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Book Review
Canada and the United States
| Michael P. Carroll. The Penitente Brotherhood: Patriarchy and Hispano-Catholicism in New Mexico. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. 2002. Pp. viii, 260. $45.00.
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| Los Hermanos de Nuestro Padre Jesús Nazareno (Brothers of Our Father Jesus the Nazarene), more commonly known as the Penitentes, evolved in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado before the U.S. takeover of the area, although precisely when is a debated topic. Their most conspicuous function was to publicly commemorate Christ's passion and death, especially during the week before Easter, but they also provided community leadership and fostered social integration. Although established as separate local entities, Penitente brotherhoods had similar organizational structures that encompassed a leader named the hermano mayor (older brother), the Hermanos de Luz (Brothers of Light) who were responsible for administrative functions, and the Hermanos de Sangre (Brothers of Blood) who performed penitential acts during collective rituals. Michael P. Carroll contends the Penitentes and the general practice of Catholicism in New Mexico differed from patterns prevalent elsewhere in Spain and the Spanish colonies. He then probes the significance of these divergences for understanding the Penitentes and Hispano Catholicism in New Mexico. |
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