A devoção católica como patrimônio: registros materiais e imateriais na cidade histórica de Paraty – RJ

Abstract

The article presents some aspects of the historical memory of Paraty, emphasizing material and immaterial traits that mark, over time and in the space of the city and its surroundings, the relations between Paraty, its residents and different instances of power. In such a context, the role of the Catholic Church – that had, and still has considerable influence over the ways through which the local community develops its economic and social practices – stands out. The complex relational network that constitutes Paraty as heritage is here presented through the religious practices linked to the catholic Brotherhoods that traditionally organize and direct the religious feelings of the residents. This influence remains over time because the community values catholic devotion as an inseparable trait of their local identity. This relation between geographic space, material and immaterial records, knowledge, beliefs, behaviors and processes constitutes the most legitimate matrix of a heritage that is recognized, as from the base, by the community of Paraty; and spreads towards the agencies that legitimize heritage – at local, regional, national and world level.