Paraguay
Republic of South America, in the southern central part, between Bolivia, Brazil, and Argentina. Before the middle of the 16th century Franciscan missionaries accompanied the Spanish explorers and conquerors, and later Saint Francis Solanus was one of those who preached in this region and made many converts among the Indians. The Jesuits were active there in the 17th and 18th centuries until their expulsion in 1767. The country was under Spanish rule until 1811, when independence was declared. By the Constitution of 1870 the Congress is declared powerless to forbid the exercise of any religion; the Catholic Faith is recognized as the chief religion of the nation; and the organization of the Church is partly supported and partly controlled by the. State.
Ecclesiastically the country is governed by the archdiocese of
Asuncin
the dioceses of
Benjamn Aceval
Caacup
Carapegu
Ciudad del Este
Concepcin
Coronel Oviedo
Encarnacin
San Juan Bautista de las Misiones
San Lorenzo
San Pedro
Villarrica del Espritu Santo
the vicariates apostolic of
Chaco Paraguayo
Pilcomayo
and the
Paraguay Military Ordinariate
See also
Catholic-Hierarchy.Org
World Fact Book
patron saints index
New Catholic Dictionary
Fuente: New Catholic Dictionary
Paraguay
One of the inland republics of South America, separated from Spain and constituted as an independent state in 1811.
Etymology
Historians disagree as to the true origin of the word “Paraguay”, one of the most common versions being that it is a corruption of the term “Payagua”, the name of an Indian tribe and “i” the Guaraní for water or river, thus “Paragua-i” or “river of the Payaguas”. Another version, which is accepted as more correct, is that which construes the word as meaning “crowned river”, from “Paragua” (palm-crown) and “i” (water or river).
Geography
The Republic of Paraguay, with an area of about 196,000 square miles, occupies the central part of South America, bounded by Brazil to the north and east, by the Argentine Republic to the south-east and south-west, and by Bolivia to the west and north-west. It lies between 22º 4′ and 27º 30′ S. lat., and 54º 32′ and 61º 20′ W. long. The Paraguay River divides its territory into two great regions, viz.: the Oriental, which is Paraguay proper, and the Occidental, commonly known as the Chaco.
Population
The population of Paraguay is composed of Indians, white Europeans, a very small number of negroes, and the offspring of the mixture of the various races, among whom the Spanish-Indian predominates. According to the last census (1908) the total number of inhabitants is 805,000, of which nearly 700,000 are Catholics. Most of the Indian tribes which are still uncivilized are scattered throughout the immense territory of the Chaco, the principal ones being the Guaranis, the Payaguas, and the Agaces.
Languages
The official and predominating language is Spanish, and of the Indian dialects the one most in use is Guarani.
History
Originally, Paraguay comprised the entire basin of the River Plate, and it was discovered in 1525 by Sebastian Cabot during his explorations along the Upper Paraná and Paraguay Rivers. He was followed by Juan de Ayolas and Domingo Martinez de Irala (1536-38). It was during the first administration of the latter (1538-42) that Christianity was first preached, by the Franciscan Fathers, who, as in almost every instance, were the priests accompanying the first conquerors. In 1542 Irala was superseded by Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca, famous for his explorations in North America, who had been appointed governor of the River Plate, and received among other instructions from the king that of “propagating the Christian religion with the greatest zeal”. This task was, however, beset with many difficulties. In the first place the priests, although picked and of high moral character, were few in number; then they had to preach through interpreters; and worst of all, the cruel treatment of the Indians by the soldiers was itself sufficient to engender in the hearts of the natives a keen antipathy towards the religion that their new masters professed. Furthermore, the corrupt morals of the conquerors, their insatiable thirst for riches, their quarrels in the struggle for power, and their own discords and controversies could not but render their religion suspicious to the Indians. The new governor was well aware of all this; so his first official act upon reaching Asunción (11 March, 1542) was to call the missionaries together to convey to them the wishes of his sovereign, impressing upon them the kindness with which the Indians should be treated as the necessary means of facilitating their conversion; he made them responsible for the success of the undertaking. He then convoked the Indians of the surrounding country and exhorted them to receive the Faith. The administration of Alvar Nuñez was characterized by his wisdom, tact, and spirit of justice, no less than by his courage, energy, and perseverance. He succeeded in subduing the Indians, tribe after tribe, mainly through a policy of conciliation, and by force when necessary. It was thus that the march of Christianity in Paraguay was greatly facilitated during his short régime (1542-44). His achievements, however, only served to increase the jealousies of Martinez de Irala, who, never forgetting his relegation to a subordinate post, finally succeeded in turning most of the officers and soldiers against the governor. As a result of this rebellion, Nuñez was made a prisoner and sent to Spain, where he was acquitted after a trial that lasted eight years.
Irala was then left in full command of the province (1542) until his death in 1557. His second administration was noted for the many improvements he introduced, such as the establishment of schools, the construction of the Cathedral of Asunción and other public buildings, the promotion of local industries, etc. He was succeeded by Gonzalo de Mendoza, upon whose death (1559) Francisco Ortiz de Vergara was made governor, ruling until 1565, when he was deposed. Juan Ortiz de Zarate was then appointed, but, having sailed for Spain immediately thereafter in order to obtain the confirmation of the king, Felipe de Cáceres was left in charge of the government. Although Zarate secured the confirmation, he did not assume command, for he died in the same year. Juan de Garay then took the reins of government, and upon his assassination by the Indians in 1580, he was followed by Alonso de Vera y Aragon, who resigned in 1587 leaving Juan Torres de Vera in command.
Torres de Vera was still governing the province when S. Francis Solanus, a Spanish Franciscan missionary, made his celebrated journey through the Chaco to Paraguay, coming from Peru. In the course of that expedition he preached to the natives in their own tongues and converted thousands and thousands of them (1588-89). When Torres de Vera resigned his post, Hernando Arias de Saavedra, a native of Asunción, was elected governor, ruling until 1593, when Diego Valdes de Banda was appointed in his stead. Upon the death of the latter, Hernandarias, as he is also known, again took command in 1601. It was during this second administration of Arias (1601-09) that the Jesuits obtained official recognition for the first time in Paraguay, by virtue of an order from Philip III (1608), approving the plan submitted by Governor Arias for the establishment of missions by the disciples of Loyola. This marked the beginning of the flourishing period of the Church in Paraguay, as well as that of the welfare and advancement of the natives, just as the expulsion of the Jesuit Fathers in 1767, by order of Charles III, marked the decadence of the Faith among the Indians of the Chaco and their falling back into their former state of barbarism.
Paraguay was then nominally under the jurisdiction of the Viceroy of Peru, but in 1776 the Viceroyalty of La Plata was created, including Paraguay.
Finally, when in 1811 Paraguay declared its independence of Spain, the foundations of the Church were firmly established, as was the case in the other Latin-American countries.
After its emancipation, the country was ruled, more or less despotically, by José Gaspar Rodriguez de Francia, as dictator (1811-40); Carlos Antonio Lopez (1841-62); Marshal Francisco Solano Lopez, a son of the former, during whose rule (1862-70) was fought one of the bloodiest wars in the history of South America, between Paraguay on one side, and Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay on the other. The results of this struggle, provoked by the political ambitions of Lopez, were most disastrous for Paraguay. It began on 24 Nov., 1864, and lasted until 1 March, 1870, on which date the Paraguayan president was killed in the battle of Cerro Cora. At the close of the war, Paraguay was in a state of desolation, with its population decimated, its agriculture destroyed, and its treasury completely exhausted. After the peace was signed, a constitution was promulgated (1870), under whose shadow the republic has recuperated within the comparatively short term of forty years, having now entered upon an era of prosperity, peace, and stability of government.
Relations between the Church and State
Under the constitution in force, promulgated 25 Nov., 1870, the religion of the nation is the Roman Catholic, and the chief prelate must be a Paraguayan. Congress, however, has no power to forbid the free exercise of any other religion within the territory of the Republic (article 3).
By authority of paragraph 7, article 2, of the constitution, the president exercises the rights of national patronage vested in the republic, and nominates the bishop of the diocese, said nomination to be made upon presentation of three names by the legislative senate, with the advice and consent of the ecclesiastical senate or, in default thereof, of the national clergy assembled. It is further provided by the constitution (par. 8, art. 102) that the president may grant or refuse, with the advice of congress, the acceptance of the decrees of the councils and of the Bulls, Briefs, or Rescripts of the Supreme Pontiff.
The Minister of Justice, Worship, and Public Instruction is charged with the inspection of all branches of Divine worship in so far as the national patronage over the Church is concerned; it is also his duty to negotiate with the Apostolic Delegates in behalf of the executive. The fiscal budget assigns the sum of $2,259 for the salaries of the bishop, vicar-general, and secretary of the diocese.
The Diocese
The Diocese of Paraguay (Paraguayensis) was created under a Bull issued by Paul III on 1 July, 1547, eleven years after the foundation of Asunción by Juan de Ayolas, 15 Aug., 1536, and is therefore the oldest see of the River Plate. The first bishop was Father Pedro de La Torre, a Franciscan who arrived at Asunción on the eve of Palm Sunday, 1555, during the second administration of Martinez de Irala. Directly dependent upon Rome, its jurisdiction extends over the whole territory of the republic, which is divided into 102 parishes, 6 of them being located in the capital. The present Cathedral of Asunción was formally dedicated on 27 Oct., 1845.
Laws Affecting the Church
As above stated, the constitution provides that worship shall be free within the territory of the republic. The incorporation of churches and tenure of church property in Paraguay are governed under laws similar to those in force in the Argentine Republic, and the same may be said as to wills and testaments, charitable bequests, marriage, divorce, etc., the Argentine Civil Code having been adopted as a law of the country under an act of congress dated 19 Aug., 1876. All Catholic marriages are ipso facto valid for the purposes of the civil law, and by an act of 27 Sept., 1887, marriages performed under other rites should be recorded in the civil register in order that they may have legal force.
Under the Paraguayan law the clergy are exempt from military and jury service, and all accessories of Divine worship are admitted free of duty when imported at the instance of the bishop.
Law for the Conversion of the Indian Tribes
On 6 Sept., 1909, a law was enacted providing for the conversion of Indians to Christianity and civilization. By virtue of this law, the President of the Republic is authorized to grant public lands to individuals or companies organized for the purpose of converting the said tribes, in parcels not exceeding 7,500 hectares (about 18,750 acres) each, on which the concessionaire shall establish a reduction with the necessary churches, houses, schools, etc. Several English Episcopalian missions have been established in the Chaco under this law.
Education
By law of 22 July, 1909, and in accordance with the Constitution (Art. 8) primary instruction is compulsory in the republic for all children between 5 and 14 years of age. At the beginning of 1909 there were in Paraguay 344 primary schools, attended by 40,605 pupils, and employing 756 teachers. These figures do not include the private schools, which had during the same year an attendance of from 2,000 to 3,000 pupils. The course of primary instruction covers a period of six years. Secondary instruction is given in five national colleges, one of which is in the capital, and the others in Villa Concepción, Villa Rica, Villa Encarnación, and Villa del Pilar. There are also two normal schools for the preparation of teachers. Higher education is provided for in the University of Asunción, which offers a six-years’ course in law, social sciences, and medicine. Further courses in pharmacy and other branches have recently been added. There is besides a school of agriculture and a military academy.
Conciliar Seminary
For the education of young men in the ecclesiastical career there is at Asunción an excellent institution known as the “Seminario Conciliar”, founded in 1881 upon the initiative of Ana Escate, who personally collected the funds necessary for its establishment. During the thirty years of its existence sixty priests have graduated therefrom, one of them being the present Bishop of Paraguay, Monsignor Juan Sinforiano Bogarin.
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WASHBURN, History of Paraguay (Boston, 1871); FUNES, Ensayo de la Historia Civil del Paraguay, Buenos Ayres y Tucuman (Buenos Aires, 1816); BOUGARDE, Paraguay, tr. (New York, 1892); MASTERMAN, Seven Eventful Years in Paraguay (London, 1870); GRAHAM, A Vanished Arcadia (New York, 1901); BANCO AGRICOLA DEL PARAGUAY, Paraguay (Asunción, 1910); BUTLER, Paraguay (Philadelphia, 1901); YUBERO, Guia General del Paraguay (Asunción, 1910); Bulletin of the Pan-American Union (August, 1910).
JULIAN MORENO-LACALLE. Transcribed by Douglas J. Potter Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume XICopyright © 1911 by Robert Appleton CompanyOnline Edition Copyright © 2003 by K. KnightNihil Obstat, February 1, 1911. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., CensorImprimatur. +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York
Fuente: Catholic Encyclopedia
Paraguay
a republic of South America, which, as represented on most maps, is confined to the peninsula between the rivers Paraguay and Parana, as far north as about the parallel of 21 30′, but which actually, by recent treaties with neighboring states, has so considerably enlarged that it now embraces an extensive region called the Chaco, west of the Paraguay, and as far south as the river Vermejo, and west as the meridian of 61 20′, and a tract lying between the Parana and the Uraguay. The whole area, according to official statistics, is in round numbers 348,000 square miles, of which 131,000 square miles are comprised between the rivers Paraguay and Parana, 196,000 square miles are west of the Paraguay, and upwards of 21,000 square miles are between the Parana and Uraguay. The peninsula between the rivers is still the important part of Paraguay. A mountain-chain called Sierra Anambahy, which traverses it from north to south, and bifurcates to the east and west towards the southern extremity, under the name of Sierra Maracaju, divides the tributaries of the Parana from those of the Paraguay, none of which are very considerable, although they are liable to frequent and destructive overflows. As regards its physical character, the northern portion of the country is mountainous, especially towards the east. The southern portion is one of the most fertile districts of South America, consisting of hills and gentle slopes richly wooded, of wide savannas, which afford excellent pasture-ground, and of rich alluvial plains, some of which, indeed, are marshy, or covered with shallow pools of water (only one lake, that of Ypao, deserving special notice), but a large proportion of the land is of extraordinary fertility and highly cultivated. The banks of the rivers Parana and Paraguay are occasionally belted with forest; but, in general, the low lands are destitute of trees. The climate, for a tropical country, is temperate, the thermometer occasionally rising to 100 in summer, but in winter being usually about 45. The natural productions are very varied, although they do not include the precious metals or other minerals common in South America. Much excellent timber is found in the forests. Several trees yield valuable juices, as the India-rubber and its cognate trees; and an especially useful shrub is the Mate, or Paraguay tea- tree, which forms one of the chief articles of commerce, being in general use throughout La Plata, Chili, Peru, and other parts of South America. The tree grows wild in the north-eastern districts, and the gathering of its leaves gives employment in the season to a large number of the native population. Wax and honey are collected in abundance, as is also cochineal, and the medicinal plants are very numerous. The chief cultivated crops are maize, rice, coffee, cocoa, indigo, mandioc, tobacco, sugar-cane, and cotton.
One half of the land is national property, consisting partly of the lands formerly held by the Jesuit missions, or by other religious corporations, partly of lands never assigned to individuals, partly of lands confiscated in the course of the revolutionary ordeal through which the country has been passing. The, national estates have, for the most part, been let out in small tenements, at moderate rents, the condition of the tenure being that they shall be properly cultivated. Agriculture, though it has in recent years made considerable progress; nevertheless is still far from the standard of European progress. Only about 30,000 square miles of the whole territory are in cultivation. There are few manufactures sugar, rum, cotton and woollen cloths, and leather being the only industrial productions. Indeed, the commerce of the country is chiefly in the hands of the government, which holds a monopoly of the export of the Paraguay tea, and in great part of the timber trade. The population consists of whites of Spanish descent, native Indians, negroes, and a mixture of these several races, who call themselves Paraguayos, but are usually called Pardos. The Indians are most numerous. They are mostly of the friendly tribe Guaranis, whose language is also the language of the country. By a census which was taken in 1857, the population was reported at 1,33,1, but the inaccuracy of this census is now generally conceded, and the population of Paraguay, considerably reduced in recent times by war with Brazil and internal strife (see below), is now generally estimated to be about 1,000,000.
History. The history of Paraguay is highly interesting. The country was discovered by Sebastian Cabot in 1526; but the first colony was settled in 1535 by Pedro de Mendoza, who founded the city of Assuncion, and established Paraguay as a province of the vice-royalty of Peru. The warlike native Guaranis, a people who possessed a certain degree of civilization, and professed a dualistic religion, for a long time, however, successfully resisted the Spanish arms, and refused to receive either the religion or the social usages of the invaders. In the latter half of the 16th century (since 1586) the Jesuit missionaries were sent to the aid of the first preachers of Christianity in Paraguay (who had labored since 1537); but for a long time the Jesuits also were almost entirely unsuccessful, the effect of their preaching being in a great degree marred by the profligate and cruel conduct of the Spanish adventurers who formed the staple of the early colonial population. The Jesuits, however, did not hopelessly abandon their task, as had the Franciscans, who had preceded them. With their indomitable will and keen judgment of human nature, the Jesuits were probably the only Christians who could succeed. Finding that the obstacles were almost insurmountable, they concentrated their strength on the province of Guayra, and there succeeded in winning the confidence of the natives, whom they united in settlements (Reductiones), and taught there not only religion, but agriculture, arts, and industries. But even these settlements failed for a long time to bring about the much-desired change. There were constant quarrels and much fighting, and as late as 1610 several settlements had to be abandoned. The Jesuits finally determined to secure the reins of government in the entire country, to bring about such a change as they had hoped for, but had found it impossible to secure, so long as they did not themselves possess the civil control. In the 17th century the home government consented to place in their hands the entire administration, civil as well as religious, of two provinces, which, not possessing any of the precious metals, were of little value as a source of revenue; and, in order to guard the natives against the evil influences of the bad example of European Christians, gave to the Jesuits the right to exclude all other Europeans from these colonies. From this time forward the progress of civilization as well as of Christianity was rapid. The legislation, the administration, and the social organization of the settlement were shaped according to the model of a primitive Christian community, or rather of many communities under one administration; and the accounts which have been preserved of its condition appear to present a realization of the ideal of a Christian Utopia.
A careful inquiry into the history of the territory so ruled by the Jesuits reveals, however, that the natives had been made by them altogether helpless. True, the Jesuits were kind to their subjects, and gave them a quasindependence in what they called a Christian republican government, but they did everything in such a guardian-like manner that the natives lost the little qualification they once possessed for independent enterprise. Besides, the great power and accumulating wealth of the Jesuits provoked envy, and finally resulted in much opposition to the Jesuits; and when in 1750 they opposed the disposition of some of their territory to Portugal, and armed the natives for defense of the land against the Spanish government, the total expulsion of the Jesuits from Paraguay resulted in 1768. The province was again made subject to the Spanish viceroys. For a time the fruits of the older civilization maintained themselves; but as the ancient organization fell to the ground, much of the work of so many years was undone; the communities lapsed into disorganization, and by degrees much of the old barbarism returned, and that in a more aggravated form. In. 1776, Paraguay was transferred to the newly formed vice-royalty of Rio de la Plata; and in 1810 it joined with the other states in declaring its independence of the mother kingdom of Spain, which, owing to its isolated position, it was the earliest of them all to establish completely. In 1814 Dr. Francia, originally a lawyer, and the secretary of the first revolutionary junta, was proclaimed dictator for three years; and in 1817 his term of the office was made perpetual. He continued to hold it till his death in 1840; and although many of his measures tended to improve the condition of the country and to develop its internal resources, yet his rule was arbitrary and despotic in the highest degree; and his attempt to isolate the territory from commercial intercourse with the rest of the world was attended with a complete stagnation of commerce and the enterprise to which it leads. On his death the government was vested in consuls, and in 1844 a new constitution was proclaimed, and Don Carlos Antonio Lopez elected in that year. He held the government until his death in 1870. The condition of the country was little changed under his administration. Though he was a man of extraordinary character, he was so largely controlled by the restless and roving spirit of the white population of Paraguay that he was forced into a war with Brazil and the La Plata estates, which brought the country to the very verge of destruction. It barely escaped utter ruin. A provisional government conducted the affairs of Paraguay, independent of Brazil, after the re-establishment of peace in 1870, until the people had time to elect Riverola as their president. In December, 1871, Salvador Jovellanos became president. Under his administration the country was slowly recovering from the dreadful desvastations in which the war had resulted, when a rebellion broke out (1874), which has only been suppressed very recently. The arbitrary measures which the unsettled condition of the country forced the government to adopt have resulted in driving many whites into the Argentine territory and the Brazilian provinces. In the spring of 1876 the most heartrending condition prevailed. Little was produced by the farmers, and the principal staple of food, maize, sold at famine prices.
The republic is divided into twenty-five departments. The central department, in which the capital, Assuncion, is situated, contained in 1857 398,698, or nearly one third of the whole inhabitants, and the capital itself 48,000. The inhabitants of the towns consist chiefly of whites, or of half- breeds (mestizos), who closely resemble whites; the language commonly spoken, besides that of the native Indian, the Guaranis, is the Spanish. The established religion is the Roman Catholic, the ecclesiastical head of which is the bishop of Assuncion. Education is pretty well diffused, much more than is usually the case in countries so long ruled by the Jesuits. See Muratori, Christianesimo felice nelle missione nel Paraguai (Ven. 1713); Ibafiez, Regno da. Soced. d. J. etc. (Lisbon, 1770); Charlevoix, Gesch. v. Paraguay u. den Missionen der Jesuiten (Nuremb. 1764); Dugraty, La republique de Parag. (Brussels, 1864); Masterman, Seven Years in Paraguay (Lond. 1869); and especially Washburn, History of Paraguay (Bost. 1871). See also Harper’s Monthly, vol. 18 and 40.