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Radical Catholic resistance to the Mexican Revolution: the Cristero Rebellion and the Sinarquista Movement

The Cristero Rebellion and the Sinarquista Movement were reactionary forces
that opposed the progression of the Mexican Revolution in the first half of the twentieth
century. This thesis compares the two movements, with particular emphasis on their
ideologies. Both groups embodied Catholic resistance against an anticlerical and
socialist Mexican government. The struggle between the church and state, which can be
traced to colonial times, reached a zenith with the highly anticlerical Mexican
Revolution of 1910. As revolutionary ideology was vigorously implemented by the
Mexican state, Catholics rallied behind the church and sought recourse in violence. This
culminated in the Cristero Rebellion of 1926-29, with disastrous results. In the 1930s,
when the new threat of socialism emerged, Catholics abandoned the path of bloodshed
and supported the Sinarquista Movement. These movements represented the ultimate
expression in religious protest, yet little is written that compares the Sinarquistas with
the Cristeros. Moreover, some historians contended that the two groups had little in
common. In essence, present historiography views the movements as two separate
events. This thesis argues that while a few differences exist, the Sinarquistas shared many of the goals, ideologies, and demographics of the Cristeros. Moreover, it
concludes that the Sinarquista Movement was essentially a continuation of the Cristero
struggle.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:tamu.edu/oai:repository.tamu.edu:1969.1/ETD-TAMU-1664
Date2006 August 1900
CreatorsVelazquez, Martin Tomas
ContributorsSchmidt, Henry C.
Source SetsTexas A and M University
Languageen_US
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typethesis, text
Formatelectronic, application/pdf, born digital

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