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Guatemalan National Institute for Agrarian Transformation (INTA)
Catholic Action is a religious association that seeks to convert Indigenous Guatemalans to Catholicism. Although Rigoberta criticizes some of the organizations political attitudes, she also learns important aspects of the Catholic doctrine from its members.
Catholic Action Quotes in I, Rigoberta Menchú
The I, Rigoberta Menchú quotes below are all either spoken by Catholic Action or refer to Catholic Action. For each quote, you can also see the other terms and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 16
Quotes
I must say one thing, and it’s not to denigrate them, because the priests have done a lot for us. It’s not to undervalue the good things they have taught us; but they also taught us to accept many things, to be passive, to be a dormant people. Their religion told us it was a sin to kill while we were being killed. They told us that God is up there and that God had a kingdom for the poor. This confused me because I’d been a catechist since I was a child and had had a lot of ideas put in my head. It prevents us from seeing the real truth of how our people live.
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Catholic Action Term Timeline in I, Rigoberta Menchú
The timeline below shows where the term Catholic Action appears in I, Rigoberta Menchú. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2: Birth Ceremonies
...little information they had about Indian customs to misrepresent their life. For example, priests from Catholic Action (an association meant to bring Catholicism to Indian communities) have caused mistrust among Indians by...
(full context)
Chapter 12: Life in the Community
...which they accompanied Catholic hymns. On Mondays, they would pray for the sick and sing Catholic Action hymns. In addition to these meetings focused on spirituality, the village also held regular meetings...
(full context)
Chapter 18: The Bible and Self-Defense: The Examples of Judith, Moses and David
...can become coopted by an exploitative system. It is in this sense that she understands Catholic Action ’s emphasis on a paradise in Heaven for the poor, which forces peasants to resign...
(full context)
