The theology of the conquest / by Jesus Gayo y Aragon O.P. ; translators : Mons. Jose Abriol, Aristeo Lara, Pedro Picornell, Alfonso Felix Jr.

The present volume is the opening address read in 1950 in the University of Sto. Tomas by Fr. Jesus Gayo y Aragon, at that time Philippine provincial of the Dominican Order, concerning the juridical and theological ideas of the missionaries then working in the Philippines, on the moral problems attendant on the Spanish conquest of these islands and more particularly on the legitimacy of this conquest. This lecture was printed in 1950 but since among the many talents the Dominicans have, we do not find in them a talent for pushing their ideas, the book remained almost unnoticed and would have died a natural death if upon reading it I had not immediately realized what an enormous fund of information it held on the state of mind of the missionaries laboring in the Philippines in the 16th century and how it shed light not only on their points of view but on the points of view then prevalent in Catholic Christendom in general and in particular in Spain which that time is theological center of the world.