The Practice And Impact Of The "Re-Cristianizar" Of Argentine Catholic Action(1931-1976)

Catholic Action is a social group formed by Catholics to defend the interests of the Church,emerged in Europe at the end of the 19 th century and was founded in a number of countries in Europe and Latin America in the 1920 s and 1930 s.Argentina Catholic Action was founded in 1931,following the political crisis of the 1930 s,which was accompanied by an economic crisis and a military coup in Argentina.The Church rose to the occasion,attempting to reconquer the public space with the “myth of the Catholic State” and to return to a “Spanish,hierarchical society based on Catholic values”.The Argentine Catholic Action is a tool for the “re-Cristianizar” of the Church.In accordance with the hierarchical missionary model,it divided its members into four branch associations according to age and gender,with three levels of hierarchy from top to bottom,forming “centros” and “círculos” to carry out their daily religious activities.In order to strengthen its influence and penetrate society,it has set up an Economic and Social Secretariat to disseminate Catholic social teaching,a Catholic Rural Movement in the countryside,a Mothers’ Union to strengthen the Catholic faith of family members,and a Moral Secretariat to strengthen the regulation of popular culture.Through these structures,the Church has incorporated Christian values into the culture and daily life of Argentine society.The practice of the “re-Cristianizar” of Argentine Catholicism reinforced the Church’s attachment to the military and the elite upper classes,and increased the Romanisation and conservatism of the Church during this period.Catholicism in Argentina was not a secular ideology,but an influential social actor capable of participating in the political and economic activities of society.