Download or read book Black Robes and Buckskin written by Catharine Randall and published by Fordham Univ Press. This book was released on 2011 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Jesuits approached the task of converting the native peoples, and the formidable obstacles it implied, in a flexible manner. One of their central values was "inculturation," the idea of "coming in by their door," to quote a favorite saying of Ignatius, via a creative process of syncretism that blended aspects of native belief with aspects of Christian faith, in order to facilitate understanding and acceptance. The Relations thus abound with examples of the Jesuits' thoughtfully trying to make sense of native---and female---difference, rather than eliding it. --