Opinion, Idolatry, and Indigenous Consciousness: Bartolomé de las Casas’ Approach to Human Sacrifice

Abstract

This article addresses the criteria by which Las Casas conceptualized indigenous beliefs in his Apologética historia sumaria . It maintains that the theological and juridical notion of ‘opinion’ undergirds Las Casas’ conceptualization of religious phenom-ena among native peoples. Las Casas argues that human sacrifice emanates from a search for the true god within the limits of human reason, is protected with all legal considerations granted to formal opinions held in good faith and does not provide grounds to justify colonial intervention.