Parroquias (DCH) (Parishes (DCH))

No. 2020-10

The article analyzes the establishment and ulterior development of the parishes, according to different canonical and royal regulations, but also to ecclesiastical, political, social, and economic factors of each bishopric of Hispanic America and the Philippines. The parish was a very important institution for the spread of Christianity among the Indians. It was also the most tangible and daily ecclesiastical entity in the lives of the inhabitants of the Spanish overseas dominions. The main variant is found in the doctrines of Indians, administered by religious orders. A central actor to understand the legal evolution of the parishes was the royal patronage, due to the wide set of royal laws that would seek to record their character, the scope and limits of their tasks, as well as the discipline of the parish priests. This article studies the basic aspects outlined here: its legal definition, formation of new parishes, the doctrines of Indians, goods and parish rights, definition of parish priest, its provision, its obligations and prerogatives, coadjutors and vicars.

Go to Editor View