The view of the Catholic Church of the Viceroyalty of Peru on indigenous funeral rites

Abstract

The article analyzes the Church's position on the funeral rites that were practiced by the Peruvian Indigenous in the early colonial period. First, the author presents a brief description of the Andean funeral rite, most of the elements of which (the presence of extensive accompanying gifts, burial with subsequent access to the body for ritual purposes, etc.) directly contradicted the Christian doctrine and practice. The author distinguishes between two types of sources — reflecting the theoretical position and revealing its practical implementation. The theoretical provisions are reflected primarily in the materials of the first three Lima church councils, which were convened in 1551-52, 1567-68 and 1582-88. The practical implementation of these provisions is most clearly traced by the materials of the processes for the extirpation of idolatry among the Indigenous people, the peak of which fell on the XVII century. Most of these documents originate from the Archdiocese of Lima. The analysis of these sources shows that the following practices caused the greatest condemnation on the part of the Church: burials of the deceased outside church cemeteries and burials together with accompanying gifts (drinks, food, clothes, etc.). In addition, it can be stated that there are no significant discrepancies between the theory and practice in relation of the Church to Indigenous funeral rites, with the exception of that the burning of ancestral mummies, which has become a common practice, was not prescribed by the documentation of the Lima councils. In conclusion, the author concludes that the efforts of the Church to eradicate traditional rituals were partially successful, and some elements of the traditional Andean funeral rite were replaced by Christian ones.