Unity

Dehart’s article speaks of the classic battle between Western capitalism and Mayan authenticity. The CDRO attempts to unify these concepts and thus grows in global popularity; however, Juan and Emilio separate the two entities when their authority in the community is threatened. They claim that as council members, they are not capitalists like the CDRO. Instead of putting blame on one party, Juan and Emilio should see the relation between Western capitalism and Mayan authenticity because, as others have stated before, development stems from a combination of both traits. The council members themselves are entrepreneurs, as indicated by Carol Smith’s article, so why not accept that capitalism is a natural part of any development strategy? For example, the CDRO did not “oppose Western capitalist practices…but retrofitted them for community use” (143). Perhaps the CDRO took things too far with their franchising, since some communities complained that their techniques actually worsened the economy in rural communities, but it began with good intentions as a grassroots organization. Juan and Emilio themselves began with the same intentions, and are ironically, fought against the exact same criticisms that the CDRO received. The controversy has turned to who is a better a developer, as opposed to the actual development of San Pedro.

Cook’s article describes Mayan authenticity from the angle of religion. He explores the unification of religions in the Mayan world, especially that of “Mayan Christianity” which maintains “Mayan identity” while being in favor of “Christian modernity” (47). For example, Mayan gods are portrayed as demons to be killed and the result of this endeavor is “improved harvests and success in business” (48). In essence, religion in Guatemala integrates Western and traditional values, by reconstituting certain indigenous institutions through the acceptance of external ideologies. Even those who to wish to return to the traditional Mayan days of ritual, unintentionally adopt Western practices. As with the CDRO and council members in Dehart’s article, development--whether it is the development of religion or the economy—is inevitably affected by modern and traditional values, and perhaps it is the unity between these two aspects that we should focus on, instead of separating the two concepts into distinct categories that cannot be reconciled.