False Mystics: Deviant Orthodoxy in Colonial Mexico (review)

Based on Inquisition proceedings in colonial Mexico, this book provides a fascinating glimpse into the lives of those who crossed religious, political, social, and sexual boundaries in the years 1598–1799. While an excellent resource for scholars of Mexican colonial history, it will also appeal to more general readers. False Mystics gives a snapshot of the inner workings of the colonial Mexican establishment; it clarifies the ways in which theological concepts were expressed and received, and it even elucidates changing theories about hysteria, mental illness, and medicine in general.

One of the most interesting and useful contributions of Jaffary's book is her explanation of the difference between demonic obsession and demonic possession. The former could be a sign of genuine sanctity, while the latter would most often result in a verdict of guilty for accused mystics. This is just one example of the fine line that sometimes separated the genuine from the false in the eyes of the inquisitors. Jaffary does a good job of explaining how those inquisitors may have assessed the evidence presented to them.

Given the relatively limited number of cases (102) and the fact that these were adjudicated over a two-hundred-year period, Jaffary is able to find intriguing patterns of behavior on the part of both accuser and accused. The author very competently illustrates the role of gender and class in the lives of her subjects. She also does a good job of illustrating the influence of blacks and Indians on the Spanish elements of the population, but sometimes the links between Indians and Spaniards seem hazy or very conjectural. This is one area where more research may be fruitful.

There are some parts of the book where more precise theological language might be utilized. For example, sometimes Jaffary notes that an individual or group "worshipped" a particular saint or the Virgin Mary. It is important to note that whatever those persons actually believed or practiced, worship in Catholicism is reserved only for God. It would be better to consistently use a term such as "venerate." So too, the reader might be excused for concluding, though it is never stated explicitly, that the Immaculate Conception involved a "virgin birth" of Mary. In reality this doctrine does not require an asexual, or biologically unusual, conception of Mary.

False Mystics makes excellent use of secondary sources as well as those to be found in archives. Readers will be most appreciative of the helpful glossary that explains terms such as alumbrado, embustero, iluso, and locura. There are numerous charts that allow for a quick review of the individuals and investigations that are mentioned in the text.

False Mystics is able, in a few pages, to give a surprisingly ample view of colonial Mexican society. It would be a particularly appropriate text for any number of college- or graduate-level courses. When all is said and done, what will most engage the reader of this book are the stories of flesh and blood human beings who, despite all their strangeness, have much in common with ourselves.