«Supported by Holy Scripture, and the most celebrated authors of politics». The Guanajuato Civic Catechism of Miguel Busto (1827-1867)

• Main Author: José Elías Guzmán López
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: FahrenHouse 2015-01-01
• Series: Espacio, Tiempo y Educación
• Subjects: catecismo civil; libro de texto; republicanismo; federalismo; ciudadanía
• Online Access: http://www.espaciotiempoyeducacion.com/ojs/index.php/ete/article/view/41

Civic catechisms were key instruments in the process of building the Hispanic American nations from the beginning of the XIh century, since through them the new political, civil and moral ideas were transmitted to future generations of citizens. In Mexico, as a result of the crisis of the Spanish monarchy, and the influence of Cadiz liberalism, several catechisms circulated in the late colonial period, but it was not until independence was gained when, at the heat of the adoption of republicanism, their production and their use was widely spread. In Guanajuato, one of the states of the nascent Mexican Federal Republic, on June 18, 1827, on plenary session of the First Constitutional Congress of the town, it was passed the Civic Catechism that would be used as a textbook for teaching in state’s public schools, with the main purpose of generate «truly free citizens or truly good men». While this catechism is one of many that circulated with similar objectives, its peculiarities and its extended effective in the town justify its approach. It’s the aim of this paper to present the preliminary results of research on this guanajuatense catechism, focusing on three key areas that will allow us to explain its importance: a) The educational-political context of its emergence, b) Its production, reception and validity, c) The analysis of its structure and content. How to reference this article Guzmán López, J. E. (2015). «Apoyada en la Escritura Santa, y en los autores mas celebres de política». El Catecismo Civil de Miguel Busto para Guanajuato (1827-1867). Espacio, Tiempo y Educación, 2(2), 243-264. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.14516/ete.2015.002.002.012