A tradição e a modernidade: a Igreja Católica e o debate educacional no RS 1930/1935

Abstract

This study addresses the strategies of action established by the Catholic Church, in order to intervene in the educational debate in the first half of 1930 in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Nationally, stands out a series of articulations between representatives of the State and the Catolic Church, which culminates in the 1934 Constitution. The historical period established for this investigation surrounds the constitutional process in order to understand some of the tensions present in this period and how the Church organizes its intervention with the goal of reassume and/or increase its influence on the public schools in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. The educational debate presented by the Catholic press announces some strategies established by the institution which consolidate itself as 'entrance gate' to address the proposed theme. The empirical basis of this analysis is comprised of printed catholic materials circulated in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, they are: the newspapers Estrella do Sul, A Palavra, and Staffetta Rio-grandense; the journals Unitas and Rainha Apóstolos. The participation of the Catholic Church in the national political discussion is ratified by themes announced in the newspapers and journals that express the position taken by the institution. The educational debate is addressed from three emerging areas: freedom of education as a discursive strategy used by the Catholic Church to claim his intervention at schools; the constitution of a space to woman in the world of work and politics, and the written media use as a training area for teachers. The argument is that the Catholic Church has adapted to the country's modernization process as a strategy of expansion of its intervention in the social space. The Catholic Church had intended to keep its tradition in dialogue with modernity and this movement contributed to the consolidation of a new place to women, linked to public action. The speeches about the women rights to vote promote women as homeland saviors and encourages their presence on the national political scene.