The Cambridge History of Religions in Latin America

This book contains essays from leading historians and social scientists that elucidate religion in Latin American from pre-Conquest times to the present. The chapters in this volume address both the historical development of various religious traditions in the region and also the social, cultural, and political implications of those developments.The Cambridge History of Religions in Latin America covers religious history in Latin America from pre-Conquest times until the present. This publication is important; first, because of the historical and contemporary centrality of religion in the life of Latin America; second, for the rapid process of religious change which the region is undergoing; and third, for the region's religious distinctiveness in global comparative terms, which contributes to its importance for debates over religion, globalization, and modernity. Reflecting recent currents of scholarship, this volume addresses the breadth of Latin American religion, including religions of the African diaspora, indigenous spiritual expressions, non-Christian traditions, new religious movements, alternative spiritualities, and secularizing tendencies.