Aztec and Maya Apocalypses: Old World Tales of Doom in a New World Setting

In Aztec and Maya Apocalypses: Old World Tales of Doom in a New World Setting, Mark Christensen examines the transfer and transformation of teachings on the apocalpyse from Europe to colonial Mexico. The study provides context with an overview of the evolution of the apocalypse from its origins in Judaic thought through its expression in late medieval and early modern Europe to its introduction in the Americas. Drawing on his deep knowledge of Catholic theology and Indigenous worldviews, Christensen underscores some of the similarities between Christianity and Mesoamerican cosmology, including beliefs in cycles of birth, death, and renewal, as well as catastrophic endings and new beginnings. These commonalities made the apocalypse a topic that could interest Indigenous converts. Yet, there were many new and unique ideas, such as purgatory, hell, resurrection, and the Last Judgment, that required translation and explanation. Aztec and Maya Apocalypses considers the dialogue that emerged...