Sending carmelites to Portuguese America in 1580: the letter from Friar João Cayado as a guideline for action

Abstract

Starting with the narrative of the expeditions to conquer Paraíba River, this article attempts to understand the role assigned to the four carmelite friars who boarded in the fleet of Frutuoso Barbosa in 1580. These religious men carried a letter written by Friar João Cayado, the superior of the Portuguese Carmelite Province, which established the first operational guidelines for the Calced Carmelite missionaries travelling to Portuguese territories, besides delegating the necessary powers to the friars for the consolidation of the Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in America. Based on these indications, the friars metamorphosed the way they worked, adapting to the local demands by taking the opportunities that arose. Despite the adjustments, the main goal of the work of these religious men in Brazil, which was to meet the spiritual demands of natives and the ordinary population, did not change. The same guideline that directed the carmelites to America was also responsible for the decay of the Order and its near extinction in Brazil in the 19th century.