THE RETURN OF THE JESUITS TO BRAZIL AND THE MISSIONARY ACTION AMONG THE GERMAN IMMIGRANTS IN THE SOUTH OF BRAZIL (1844-1938)

Abstract

The first Jesuits returned to Brazil in 1844 and they initially settled themselves in the former Province of São Pedro do Rio Grande do Sul in Porto Alegre. The first German-speaking Jesuits arrived in 1849 with the mission to meet the German immigrants who had been in that province since 1824. The aim of this study is to describe the main pastoral activities developed by the Jesuits with the German immigrants between 1844 and 1938. Those missionaries were not only concerned about the immigrants’ spiritual accompaniment, but they also engaged themselves in the social, educational and cultural development of the Germanic communities. On the other hand, we try to understand how the Jesuits and German immigrants relied on their own Germanity (Deutschtum) to face the challenges posed by colonization in Brazil.