03/07/2026 09:00 - 10:00

HALL: Pola - AT14

Contact: Gusella F.

Chair: Pavone S.

Inequality lies at the very core of the postcolonial debate, that intellectual turn that deconstructed the myths of Western civilizing mandate by highlighting its implicit hierarchies of race, religion, and culture. This scholarly shift also affected Jesuit historiography, especially those apologetic versions that envisioned Jesuit agents as pioneering promoters of interreligious dialogue and cultural exchange.
Historians still struggle to reconcile these two aspects of the Jesuit missionary experience. On the one hand, the tension towards a genuine ecumenism and the complex search for a balance with the communities where missionary activity was carried out. On the other, the asymmetries of power that permeated the missions themselves. These asymmetries could see the Society in a position of strength as well as in the role of a "guest" carefully controlled by radically different authorities. Furthermore, we shall also consider the internal asymmetries within the Society itself between competing groups, as well as the complex relationship with political opposers, sponsors, the Holy See, and other religious orders engaged in the same areas.
Comparative analysis of these conditions is essential to assess how the various strategies for adaptation, negotiation and interaction with the local communities took shape. This panel brings together early-career scholars in the field of early modern and contemporary historiography of the Society of Jesus with a comparative focus on three areas of research: Southeast Europe, South Asia, and China. The parallel establishment of Jesuit missions across these diverse regions allows us to reflect on the inherent ambiguities of the Jesuit missionary experience with special attention to the search for equivalents across different cultural traditions, as well as the dialogical strategies implemented in local contexts.