Samuel Garcia
My work addresses the significance of the sacrament of penance, or confession, in the era of the Reformations. This ritual was a central point of discord and difference between Protestants and Catholics of the period, and essential in the formation and maintenance of their respective identities.
My dissertation, Confession and the Appeal of Early Modern Catholicism: the Sacrament of Penance in Spain, c.1500-1650, focuses specifically upon the development of confession within the context of early modern Spain. By utilizing a variety of printed sources (confession manuals, catechetical literature, and devotional works), as well as relevant inquisitorial trial records, I’ve been able to assemble a more complete picture of both the contemporary understanding and performance of the sacrament in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Spain. I also deal with the subject of confession in the broader Hispanic world, c.1550-1650, contrasting the practice, problems, and conceptualization of confession in colonial Spanish America with the corresponding realities in metropolitan Spain. Ultimately, my dissertation counters a significant current in the historiography which has not only overemphasized the sacrament’s burdensome and disciplinary character, neglecting the ritual’s consolatory purpose and function, but also exaggerated the passivity and powerlessness of penitents in both European and colonial Latin American contexts.
Before coming to Yale, I received a BA in Liberal Arts from St. John’s College (Annapolis, MD), as well as a Master of Theological Studies degree from Harvard Divinity School. Carlos Eire is my adviser.
Other interests include playing the guitar, German, and llamas.
