Marг­a pedraza hot - 🧡 Honor and Personhood in Early Modern Mexico

When an individual affirmed or denied that a particular event had taken place, for example, they took an “assertory oath,” whereby swearers make God a witness to their statements, with or without a judge present.

This perception grew stronger as the frequent sight of Mexican Indians seeking redress in local courts came to confirm their status as royal subjects in no uncertain terms.

This optimistic outward view, inherent to Christianity as a religion of the word, ignores the lessons of the theological controversies that make up the history of Christian dogma, namely that language can be a minefield.

Through these and other legal rituals, indigenous people confirmed their status as personas in the legal sense, another step in a process that began with baptism.