Tradition and modernity: reflexions about intellectuals and ideas circulations in the period of neo-Christianity in Brazil

Abstract

The article analyses the period of so-called reconciliation between Church and State in Brazil, started in the 1920s, focusing on the role of intellectuals influenced by religious ideas at the time of Neo-Thomism. We emphasize the intellectual insertion of legal and historiographical fields, considering their mutual relations. We seek an interpretative synthesis and we aim to reflect on the combination of tradition and modernity in early 20^th century, as well as on the strength of Catholicism recovery after the first years of tension with positivism. We conclude that the action of Catholic intellectuals was strategic and that it reflected on national identity and social rules.