Meeting the Other in the New World: Jesuit Missionaries from the Bohemian Province in America

Abstract

This paper focuses on the participation of missionaries from the “Bohemian Province“ of the Society of Jesus in the colonization of America in the 17th and 18th century, and the representation of the New World in letters and reports sent to the home province. As a result of the activities of the Jesuits, monitored closely in their home province, and complemented of course by other direct and indirect involvement in the process of overseas colonization, the inhabitants of the Czech Lands found themselves integrated into the newly established Atlantic system and participated in an intense interchange of information and cultural influences.