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This week in Christian history: Bob Coy resigns; Pope Leo X triggers Reformation; Jesuits arrive in Brazil

By Michael Gryboski, Editor Twitter

First Jesuits arrive in Brazil – March 29, 1549

A group of Jesuits in 16th-century Brazil, led by Manuel da Nóbrega, rescued a person from a cannibal feast.
A group of Jesuits in 16th-century Brazil, led by Manuel da Nóbrega, rescued a person from a cannibal feast. | Wikimedia Commons

This week marks the anniversary of when the first group of Society of Jesus members, commonly known as the Jesuits, arrived in Portuguese-controlled Brazil.

Six Jesuits led by Manuel da Nóbrega arrived in the Brazilian state of Bahia, along with Tomé de Sousa, who served as the first colonial governor-general of the territory.

The Jesuits faced the dual challenges of ministering to colonists, many of whom were violent criminals, and evangelizing the natives, known for their hostility to foreigners and their ongoing practice of cannibalism.

“Despite all setbacks, the Jesuits won many converts,” explained Christianity.com. “By the time the Carmelites, Benedictines and other religious societies began arriving in Brazil (around 1580) the Jesuits had converted about 100,000 Indians.”

“The society remained the major religious influence in Brazil for 210 years. The Jesuits constructed the first road from Bahia to Sao Paolo. They opened schools and seminaries. In one of the world's most novel experiments, they brought young orphans from Portugal in the hope they would be able to learn the Indian languages and act as translators.”

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