Scholars from around the world will gather at Yale Friday-Saturday, Nov. 7-8, to discuss the life and works of a 17th-century "troublemaker and troubleshooter."
The "International Colloquium on Padre António Vieira" -- which commemorates the 300th anniversary of the death of the Jesuit priest, missionary, diplomat and writer -- will be held in Rm. 203 of Luce Hall, 34 Hillhouse Ave. Scholars from Brazil, Portugal, Puerto Rico and the United States will discuss Vieira's life and work at the conference, which is free and open to the public.
Born in Portugual, Padre António Vieira (1608-97) was court preacher to the king of Portugal, who sent him on diplomatic missions to Amsterdam and Rome, and later was confessor to Queen Christina of Sweden. He traveled to the New World, where he lived among slaves and Indians in the Amazon jungle, delivering dramatic and popular sermons throughout northern Brazil. He spoke up for the "New Christians" (Jews forced to convert to Christianity) and urged his countrymen to accept them and encourage their commercial ventures. He was also an outspoken opponent of slaving expeditions in the Amazon, arguing for the Indians and against the settlers before the royal court at Lisbon. In response, the settlers revolted and expelled Vieira and all the Jesuits from the Amazon.
Back in Europe, Vieira was arrested by the Inquisition for criticizing their excesses. He was tried and held prisoner for five years. Late in life, he returned to Brazil and prepared his sermons for publication. Due to his legacy of treatises, sermons and political essays, Padre Vieira has been called one of the greatest writers in the Portuguese language.
The Yale colloquium will open at 9 a.m. on Friday with a keynote address titled "Seventeenth-Century Troubleshooter and Troublemaker" by Dauril Alden, professor of history at the University of Washington in Seattle.
There will also be sessions at 2 p.m. on Friday and at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Saturday. Speakers will discuss Vieira's defense of the New World Indians, his incorporation of Jewish and messianic thought into his theology, and his concepts of time and prophecy.
In conjunction with the colloquium, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library will host an exhibition of selections from Yale's collection of Vieira's writings.
The colloquium is sponsored by the Program in the History and Culture of Portugal in the World, directed by Professors Stuart Schwartz and K. David Jackson; the Council on Latin American Studies, part of the Yale Center for International and Area Studies; the department of Spanish and Portuguese; the Office of the Provost; and the National (Portuguese) Commission for the Commemoration of Portuguese Discoveries.