| Chapter 1: | Cherished Myths |
|
|
These words are confirmed by Governor-General Ferreira do Amaral in his report about the state of the province in 1882 and 1883:
This perspective is a consequence of the fact that, beyond obvious material limits, from the liberal revolutions to the implantation of the New State (Estado Novo), the Portuguese Catholic Church had been frequently persecuted and almost outlawed at home and abroad, first by republican-style Freemasonry and later by fascist-style nationalism. The great majority of the Catholic missionary effort in Angola came from France, Italy, Spain, Germany, and elsewhere, and did not come from Portugal; even if the “secular” clergy that served white parishes and came from Portugal was supportive of the imperial design, the “regular” clergy composed by sons of the country and foreigners was as ambivalent about much of Portugal’s colonising activity, as any of the Protestant groups were often perceived as subversive by colonial authorities.7 It was not until 1940 that Salazar’s corporative state was able to agree a concordat with the Vatican, which preserved Lusitanian patriotism while at the same time accommodating the demands of the Catholic Church.8 Only after this agreement did Salazarist imperial propaganda resume the exaltation of Portugal’s universalistic mission, praising the Christian and humanitarian nature of Portuguese imperialism, in contrast with other forms of greedy imperialism.9