Acolman

Acolman is the site of the first monastery built in Mexico. Remember that Cortes landed at Veracruz in 1519 and occupied Tenochtitlan by 1521. Franciscan missionary friars began Acolman in 1536, and Augustinians finished it around 1560. The earliest colonial period, the era of collision between two (or one vs. multiple) vastly different world views, is the most fascinating to me, especially the role of the missionary friars, whose profound impact on Mexico extends from colonization into modern times, in ways big and small. In artesanía, for example. Certain pueblos specialize in a particular craft that was first taught to the local people by the friars who served in that area. Fray Juan de Valencia taught people how to mix amaranth and other grains and nuts with honey. The people who first tried it were so delighted that they started dancing for joy, and the concoction is called today alegrías (joy). Vendors sell them all over Mexico.

The friars also sought to impart Catholic doctrine in ways that the people would understand and embrace.
They introduced the piñata, shaped like a seven-pointed star (each point representing one of the seven cardinal sins), filled with treats. They taught the natives that the stick they used to break the piñata was like the power of God to overcome sin and the goodies that fell out were the rewards of resisting sin. The piñata has certainly endured, and Mexicans know the symbolism even if that was lost as the piñata crossed the border. This sculpture of a blindfolded friar striking a piñata is in Acolman, near the monastery.

My interest in this topic was piqued on our first trip to Mexico in 1972 when I saw a cross in front of the church in Tepotzotlan. A coiled rattlesnake was carved at its base. The rattlesnake is a sacred symbol associated with Quetzalcoatl, the god legend said would return some day; Moctezuma famously thought Cortes might be that god, a belief with disastous consequences for his people.

That cross was the first of many examples of syncretism, the melding of religious beliefs. As native artisans built the churches and carved the symbols of Christianity, they included their own sacred symbols. Was this encouraged by the friars? These mixed symbols are so ubiquitous that I think the answer is yes. And Mexican Catholicism is rich with customs that point to a pre-Christian origin.

But back to Acolman. I found it impressive in its simplicity; I could easily imagine the work of the friars in this place as they taught not only their religion but also their language (remnants of writing, with beautifully ornate lettering, can be seen in borders along the tops of walls) and skills of artisanship to give the native population at least some means of livelihood in their changed world. We could not enter the church because a funeral mass was being celebrated, but the music of the mass resonating through the thick monastery walls made our visit even more enjoyable.

Months later, I visited the Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso in Mexico City. This mural by Orozco in a stairwell of the school shows a friar embracing an emaciated indigenous, a moving image of the conquest.