Resumen

MASFERRER KAN, Elio. Region, culture, and history. The historical cultural structure of power in the Mexican Catholic Church. Sig. his [online]. 2022, vol.24, n.48, pp.168-196.  Epub 01-Ago-2022. ISSN 1665-4420.

In this paper I analyze the historical process of articulation of the Catholic Church to Mexican society, from a historical and social perspective. In this context, I work on the configuration of cliques and groups of ecclesiastical power, analyzing the correlation of internal forces, using as an indicator the control of positions within the different episcopal levels (bishops and archbishops). After a meticulous analysis, I show the control that the Jalisco-Bajío Group has and the development of the Monterrey Group, which is taking positions. Simultaneously, there are curial groups from some states that have managed to keep their territories under control, the result of complex negotiations within the episcopate. He also explained the pressure of Pope Francis to apply substantial modifications in the Church and particularly in Mexico. Although there are changes, they are very slow, both due to bureaucratic inertia and due to processes of resistance to change.

Palabras llave : ecclesiastical power; Catholic Church; Pope Francis; career; cliques.