This thesis explores two debates that came to a head in early seventeenth century in Spain, in response to a period of military, economic, and religious crisis. The first of these debates, on the "u201cMorisco problem,"u201d concerned the decision of whether or not the baptized descendants of the Moors should be expelled from Iberia, on the grounds that they had not become true Catholics and thus remained a corrosive influence on society. The second debate, the co-patronage controversy, revolved around the belief held by numerous members of the government and clergy that Spain would be better represented by two patron saints rather than by only one. The newly canonized Saint Teresa of Ávila was strongly considered, at the urging of Philip IV and his favorite the Count-Duke of Olivares, for the role of co-patron at Santiago"'s side, as a symbol of purity, reform, and the struggle against Protestant heresy. I argue that the arguments for the expulsion of the Moriscos, as well as from those favoring the co-patronage of Teresa, represent attempts to make Spain more securely orthodox in response to perceived external and internal threats posed by heretics and infidels. In both cases, we can also clearly see that the monarchy and secular authorities were willing and able to overlook the opposition of Church authorities even within these two discourses intrinsically tied to matters of faith, demonstrating a weakness of the Spanish Catholic Church when its goals came into conflict with those of the state. / Bryan Laird