Memento of the Living and the Dead: A First-Person Account of Church, Violence, and Resistance in Latin America
Ebook
Overview
In Memento of the Living and the Dead, Phillip Berryman relates his experiences as a Catholic priest in Panama City starting in 1965, and then, after leaving the priesthood to marry, in Central America in the late 1970s, as conflict and repression rose in Guatemala and El Salvador and the Sandinista revolution overthrew the Somoza dictatorship. Berryman was leading an ecumenical delegation in El Salvador when Archbishop Oscar Romero was murdered at the altar, and was at the archbishop’s funeral when it was attacked. Under increasing surveillance in Guatemala, he and his family returned to the United States in 1980, where he took part in the movement against US interference in Central America. Through study, travel, and research in South America, he followed the emergence and evolution of liberation theology and the rise of evangelical Pentecostalism. This memoir, which traces a trajectory from pre-Vatican II Catholicism to the Pope Francis era, presents the hopes and struggles of a generation of people, many of whom paid with their lives, starting with his friend Hector Gallego in Panama in 1971. Central threads are the struggle of the poor for a more dignified life and the defense of human rights.
“With relentless honesty and humbleness, Berryman is always
there just before something happens: liberation theology,
revolutions in Central America, the end of communism,
globalization, and a rising middle class. His focus is Latin
America, but his observations carry over into an understanding of
the world today . . . and tomorrow.”
—June Carolyn Erlick, editor-in-chief, ReVista, the Harvard Review
of Latin America
“The changing role of the church in Latin America, the emergence of
liberation theology, and the courage of many Christians in
struggling for social justice is one of the most inspiring stories
of our time. Phil Berryman has been a witness, participant, and
chronicler of that story since the 1960s. His fascinating memoir is
essential reading for anyone wishing to understand this
history.”
—Robert Ellsberg, publisher, Orbis Books
“If you wish to understand Latin American liberation theologies and
the contexts in which they were developed, pick up this book and
read it from cover to cover, as I did. You will see through
Berryman’s eyes and life and work the realities of the church in
Central and South America, the political situation of this
continent, and the military and economic entanglements of the
US with the various countries of the southern hemisphere.
Furthermore, the book could not be more opportune for our time,
given the inhuman and immoral treatment of Latin American migrants
by the current US administration. Pick up this book and read and
you will be transformed.”
—Peter C. Phan, Georgetown University
“For all of us who struggle for human rights—especially for the
rights of the poor—whether in the United States or Central America,
Berryman will remain a memorable ethical and spiritual reference
point.”
—Leonardo Boff, Brazilian theologian
Product Details
- Title : Memento of the Living and the Dead: A First-Person Account of Church, Violence, and Resistance in Latin America
- Author: Berryman, Phillip
- Publisher: Resource Publications
- Publication Date: 2019
- ISBN: 9781532690891
Phillip Berryman is a freelance translator and writer in
Philadelphia. His books include The Religious Roots of
Rebellion (1984), Religion in the Megacity (1994) and
Latin America at 200: A New Introduction (2016). He has
translated approximately thirty books from Spanish and Portuguese,
primarily in the areas of theology and human rights.