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Paraguay Ritual Kinship
Ritual kinship in the form of godparenthood (compadrazgo)
played an important role in strengthening and extending the ties of
kinship, as it did in much of Latin America. Parents selected
godparents for a child at his or her baptism, confirmation, and
marriage. The godparents were then tied to the parents as coparents . Those chosen for the child's baptism were considered the
most important, and great care was exercised in their selection.
Ideally co-parents should be a married couple; they were
preferred because their unions were typically more stable and they
were more likely to be able to provide a home for the child should
the need arise. In most communities, however, there were not enough
couples to serve as godparents for all children, so single women of
good reputation were frequently chosen. It was important that the
person asked should be of proper character and good standing in the
community.
Often parents asked a close, important relative to serve as
godparent. The tie between co-parents reinforced that of kinship.
The same godparents could serve for the couple's successive
children, a practice that further strengthened the ties between the
families involved.
A godparent was expected to see to his or her godchild's
upbringing, should the parents be unable to do so. In many ways the
social link between co-parents was more significant than that
between godparents and godchildren. Co-parents were required to
treat each other with respect and assist one another in times of
need. Marriage or sexual relations between co-parents were
considered incestuous; an insult to a co-parent was a grave matter,
condemned by the community at large. In the countryside, ties to
godparents had daily social significance; children visited their
godparents often and were expected to treat them with particular
respect. Not even quarrels or the death of the godchildren should
break the ties between co-parents.
Compadrazgo served different purposes in rural and urban
areas and among different social classes. In cities and among the
more prosperous, the institution principally fulfilled the
requirements for a Roman Catholic baptism. Godparents assumed the
cost of the baptism and were expected to give gifts on a godchild's
birthday and other significant occasions. Rarely did they have to
assume the responsibility of raising a godchild; if they did, the
financial wherewithal was provided through inheritance. In the
countryside and among the poor, the responsibility to care for the
godchild was taken more literally. If the parents were unable to
care for their offspring, a godparent was expected to do so or find
someone who could. Godparents should not only give gifts to the
godchild on special occasions, but also assist with his or her
schooling. Co-parents should come to one another's aid in times of
social or economic distress.
The choice of a godparent also varied by social class. The urban
and rural upper class and the urban middle class selected friends
or relatives. In both groups co-parents were usually social equals.
The institution had less practical significance than it had among
the poor. For those of limited means, the emphasis was less on the
feeling of friendship the co-parents shared and more on the
potential economic benefits that the child might enjoy. Among
peasants or the urban poor the choice could be either a relative or
an influential benefactor (patrón)
(see Rural Society
, this
ch.). When a patrón agreed to serve as a godparent, the
lower-class individual was entitled to more extensive dealings with
the higher-status person. He or she could, for example, visit the
patrón's house and expect to be received hospitably. The
patrón expected in return absolute and unquestioning
loyalty. In essence, this system satisfied the poor person's need
to look above his or her class for protection, while satisfying the
desire of the wealthy for a more loyal following. Where the
expectations were met on both sides, compadrazgo could blunt
the obvious economic disparities in small towns and the
countryside. It also had important political implications. It was
through such traditional kinlike ties that landholders from the
ruling National Republican Association-Colorado Party (Asociación
Nacional Republicana--Partido Colorado) could mobilize support
among the peasantry
(see The Twin Pillars of the Stroessner Regime
, ch. 4).
Data as of December 1988
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