Virginia Garrard-Burnett

Introduction to the Cambridge History of Religions in Latin America

The Cambridge History of Religions in Latin America is a timely publication, for at least three reasons. The fi rst is the historical and contemporary centrality of religion in the life of Latin America, a region that has itself been growing in global importance. A second is that the Latin American religious fi eld is undergoing an extremely rapid process of change. Third, Latin America is important because of its religious distinctiveness in global comparative terms. In this Introduction, we expand briefl y on each of these factors.