Orthodoxy in Guatemala. Origins and characteristic features
https://doi.org/10.28995/2073-6339-2025-5-176-193
Abstract
The article examines the history of the emergence and establishment of the Orthodox confession in Guatemala, which is traditionally Catholic country of Latin America. This extremely interesting process began in the 1980s and unexpectedly gained particular dynamics in the region, spreading even to neighboring countries such as Mexico and El Salvador. Since the 1870s, a special political situation had developed inside Guatemala, resulting in a significant reduction of the influence of the Roman Catholic Church on society and changing of the whole religious situation in the country. However, for more than a century in Guatemala existed a rather numerous ethnic Arab Diaspora whose representatives had Orthodox roots. They were not united into a community and formally belonged to various Middle Eastern patriarchates that were not represented in Guatemala until the 1980s. The situation changed significantly thanks to Inés Ayau García, who independently came to Orthodoxy while being a Roman Catholic nun, then built the Monastery of the Life-Giving Trinity, and officially registered the first Orthodox church of the Patriarchate of Antioch. The materials analyzed in the article were collected during field research conducted in Guatemala from 2013 to 2024, this topic is considered for the first time in global historiography.
About the Author
G. G. Ershova
Russian State University for the Humanities
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Galina G. Ershova, Dr. of Sci. (History), professor
6-6, Miusskaya Sq., Moscow, 125047
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Review
For citations:
Ershova G.G. Orthodoxy in Guatemala. Origins and characteristic features. RSUH/RGGU Bulletin Series "Political Science. History. International Relations". 2025;(5):176-193. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.28995/2073-6339-2025-5-176-193
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