Jean Meyer

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La Cristiada

In a world filled with constant religious intolerance and strife, it is easy to overlook a little known twentieth-century religious war that was fought on the shores of North America. Taking place in Mexico in the 1920s, La Cristiada - he Cristero War - was the result of repressive anti-religious laws directed at the Catholic Church. By the time the conflict was over, it had taken the lives of over 90,000 people. Historian Dr. Jean Meyer has put together this unique book that uses words and pictures to document the savageness of the four-year war. The book examines the war's history and reveals the crucial roles played by groups in the United States that wished to encourage the carnage, as well as those that attempted to stop the conflict. After the Mexican Revolution of 1916, the newly drafted Mexican Constitution greatly restricted the function of the Church. It halted Church control of schools. It banned monastic orders. It eliminated religious processions and outdoor masses. It curtailed Church ownership of property. And it forbade priests from wearing clerical garb, voting or commenting on public affairs in the press. Initially, these prohibitions were lightly enforced, but by 1926, the government had pushed these laws to the limit and created a rebellion. As the rebellion grew, so did the viciousness of the attacks. In the United States, while the KKK pressed the Mexican Government to crush the rebels, the Knights of Columbus sought to end the struggle by peaceful means. In 1929, the American ambassador to Mexico finally helped arrange a nonviolent end to the uprising. With over 300 photographs and illustrations, this book provides a unique perspective on a terrible period in Mexico's history. LA CRISTIADA offers a vivid and insightful view of a war long forgotten and the lasting effects it had on Mexican society. It, also, reminds us just how dangerous the consequences of government-sponsored intolerance can be.