The “most unbelieving” city changes its course. Catholics and politics in the city of Rosario, Santa Fe (1924-1943)

Abstract

Beginning in the late nineteenth century, Rosario was characterized as “the most unbelieving city in the country”, its history based on the myth of laicism.In the mid-1920s, due to complex social, political, ideological and cultural transformations, the “secular city” began to yield. Catholics gained ground in the modern political game, despite being tensioned between rejection and appropriation of secularity. In 1925, the city mayor was forced to resign in the midst of a conflicting dispute. At that time, Catholic activism in municipal space became exceptionally noticeable; they strived to participate in political parties and communal factions and create their own political organization. In addition, initiatives derived from nationalist organizations proliferated during the 1930s. In this context, we intend to deal with the study of Catholics’ activity in political parties at a local scale, as well as their practices and social connections, in order to address the complexity of political-ideological construction processes in dialog and in tension with modernity.