Brown Church: Five Centuries of Latina/o Social Justice, Theology, and Identity

by Robert Chao Romero

Publisher:

IVP Academic

, 2020

Overview

Interest in and awareness of the demand for social justice as an outworking of the Christian faith is growing. But it is not new.

For five hundred years, the Latina/o culture and identity has been shaped by its challenges to the religious, socio-economic, and political status quo, whether in its opposition to Spanish colonialism, Latin American dictatorships, US imperialism in Central America, the oppression of farmworkers, or the current exploitation of undocumented immigrants. Christianity has played a significant role in that movement at every stage.

Robert Chao Romero, the son of a Mexican father and a Chinese immigrant mother, explores the history and theology of what he terms the “Brown Church.” Romero considers how this movement has responded to these and other injustices throughout its history by appealing to the belief that God's vision for redemption includes not only heavenly promises but also the transformation of every aspect of our lives and the world. Walking through this history of activism and faith, readers will discover that Latina/o Christians have a heart after God’s own.

Key Features

• Explores the history and theology of the “Brown Church”
• Considers how this movement has responded to injustices throughout its history
• Covers topics including justice, activism, and immigration

Contents

• Introduction: Brown Church
• El Plan Espiritual de Galilee
• Las Casas, La Virgen de Guadalupe, and the Birth of the Brown Church
• Multicultural Voices of Colonial Resistance: Garcilaso de la Vega el Inca, Guaman Poma, and Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz
• Padre Antonio José Martínez, the U.S.-Mexico War, and the Birth of “Brown”
• The Spiritual Praxis of César Chávez
• Social Justice Theologies of Latin America: Liberation Theology and Misión Integral
• Liberation Theology in Practice: Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador
• Recent Social Justice Theologies of US Latinos: Latina/o Theology, Mujerista Theology, and Latino Practical Theology
• Conclusion: The Brown Church Today and Tenets of a “Brown Christian”

Top Highlights

“Church provided one of the few spaces of social respect for Rosa’s parents. They had dignidad (dignity) when they walked into church, and were addressed as deacons, and hermano (brother) and hermana (sister) Ramos.” (Page 1)

“When God chose to dwell among us, to take on human flesh, and to make our suffering his own, he chose to be Brown” (Page 16)

“According to Manifest Destiny, many Anglo Americans in the nineteenth century believed that God had ordained them to conquer the Native Americans and Mexicans who lived in what is now Texas, California, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, and Utah.” (Page 3)

“Latinas/os who care about faith and justice occupy a ‘spiritual borderlands.” (Page 5)

“our concern for social justice issues is not understood” (Pages 5–6)

While it focuses on the Brown Church and presents a dramatic and engaging picture of Brown experience and theology, this book is about much more than the Brown Church. It is about church, gospel, truth, and justice. It is about me who is brown but also about you who are not. This is an important read for any who wish to be faithful Christians in today’s context.

—Justo L. González, historian and theologian

Passionate, theological, and formational! This is a book that redefines the social identity of the Brown Church, breaking away from religious stereotypes of the Latino/a community and uncovering a rich legacy and discussion of Latino/a faith and identity. Chao Romero tells the bold, proud history of advocacy and the work of social justice across the centuries of the Brown Church, including scriptural and theological foundations, so that the children of the Brown Church and those seeking to understand her may clearly see her spiritual light and the costly marks of faithful, creative courage and sacrifice.

—Elizabeth Conde-Frazier, coordinator of relations for theological entities at the Association of Hispanic Theological Education, coauthor of Latina Evangélicas: A Theological Survey from the Margins

Product Details

• Title: Brown Church: Five Centuries of Latina/o Social Justice, Theology, and Identity
• Author: Robert Chao Romero
• Publisher: IVP
• Publication Date: 2020
• Pages: 290
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Topic: Christianity

About Robert Chao Romero

Robert Chao Romero (PhD, University of California at Los Angeles; JD, University of California at Berkeley) is associate professor in the Departments of Chicana/o Studies and Asian American Studies at the University of California at Los Angeles. He is the author of the award-winning, The Chinese in Mexico, 1882-1940, Jesus for Revolutionaries: An Introduction to Race, Social Justice, and Christianity, and Mixed Race Student Politics.

Sample Pages from Brown Church: Five Centuries of Latina/o Social Justice, Theology, and Identity