An amazing legacy of Jesuit missionaries in Paraguay (29 photos)

Paraguay was not exactly on my list when I was in Argentina together with my sister in January this year. We spent more than two weeks in the north-eastern corner of Argentina and learned about the Jesuits and the “reducciones” / settlements they had built in this area during the 17th and 18th century. At that time Jesuits priests came to South America to spread Christianity among the native Guaraní population. Usually, we think of this kind of evangelizing as brutal and done by using force. This was not the case of the Jesuits. They did not use force. They did do missionary work to convert the Guaraní population to Christianity, but they educated them, built settlements, and protected them from the Spanish conquistadores.

This was a full day tour, booked with an agency called Tierra Colorada. We were picked up at our hotel. The driver only spoke Spanish, so we did wonder how he was going to give us a guided tour! He was very helpful when we crossed the border in Posadas and through the passport control. First stop was Misión Jesuítica de la Santisma Trinidad.

The remains of these missions can be found not only in Argentina, but Brazil and Paraguay as well. All together the Jesuits built about 30 missions. From Argentina we did a day trip to the Jesuit ruins in Paraguay: Trinidad and Jesús de Tavarangue. Both are among the best-preserved Jesuit ruins on the South American continent. Because they are located some 12 kilometers from each other, it’s easy to include a visit to both on the same day. Both were added to UNESCO’s Heritage list in 1993.

The homes of the Guaraní families

THE RUINS OF TRINIDAD
It turned out that our driver / guide should not be walking around among the ruins together with us. I had to download an app and then scan a QR code at each place. The same information was read by a voice in English. This functioned very well. We started at the Plaza, but instead of walking straight to the church, we started to the left with the houses that once were the home of the Guarani families and ended up at the church.

The “guide” as it looked like on my phone (I took a screenshot here)

As you can see on the photo, this place is huge. The largest square complex to the right includes the church. Even though it is ruined, it is huge and very impressive. Trinidad was established in 1706 and range as not only the largest, but also one the best preserved in this area. The area with the family houses shows that each house has a length of 20 meters, separated by a street from the next house.

Workshops

The workshops were the place where all kind of things were produced. Musical instruments, sculptures, leather, stonework, ceramic utensils etc. It was also here that food was stored. They produced their own agriculture products.

In parts of the ruined workshops, this little museum has an exhibition with artefacts from some of the carved stonework that once decorated some of the buildings.

The Greater Church

The absolute largest structure in this whole place. In each of the missions, this was the case. An amazing structure. At the entrance and towards the nave, we can see the remains of columns. There are still lots of preserved decorations. Niches with sculptures. Doorways that are beautifully carved. It was here in the church we spend most of our time. Because we entered through a doorway on the right side we walked to the entrance from the inside.

From the inside we enter a small museum. Today this former sacristy makes up the small museum that contains a model of the church, information boards and fragments of what is left of decorations from buildings and ceramic utensils.

We leave the church by walking down to the entrance, but took time to look at the walls outside with niches and sculptures.

The Plaza with the church in the background. This central square was where the inhabitants could have ceremonies, weddings or other kind of meetings.

WHO WERE THE JESUITS?
The order of the Jesuits was founded in 1540 by a Spanish priest. Some members of the congregation left Spain for South America about a hundred years later. This was when they started to convert the Guarani population. The Jesuits valued education. Besides teaching Christianity, they focused on teaching skills like handicrafts and agriculture. Instead of using force or other methods to oppress the Guarani people, the Jesuits were offering development to the natives. They taught them the skills of a modern society (at that time) which was far better than what the Spanish conquistadors could do.