Tag: theology

Good News from Latin America: Christian Reflections on Suffering and Crisis

My readers may or may not know that some friends and I began publishing the Journal of Latin American Theology: Christian Reflections from the Latino South back in 2006. With two issues per year, the Journal has become one of the most important voices of Latin American Christian thinking in the English-speaking world. I have the privilege of being the General Editor of the Journal and I believe this issue is one of the very best. It deals with bringing God’s love to those who live in the midst of suffering, trauma and crisis. For those who are interested, here are the contents.

The Journal of Latin American Theology Volume 18:2

Disease and Healing: The Bible and Today’s World by Edesio Sánchez Cetina

Living from the Resurrection Narrative in the Midst of Speculation and Death by Fabio Salguero Fagoaga

An Interdisciplinary Approach for Supporting Women Displaced by Violence and Affected by COVID-19 by Mary Luz Reyes Bejarano

Pandemic, Trauma, and Lament: A Psycho-Theological and Pastoral Approach to Caregiving and Companioning by Daniel S. Schipani

Keys to Post-Traumatic Coping in the Life of Paul of Tarsus by Luis Cruz-Villalobos

Justice vs. Righteousness: A Contextualized Analysis of “tsedeq” in the KJV (English) and RVR (Spanish) by Esteban M. Voth

Sustaining the Momentum of Theological Education by Dieumeme Noëlliste

Film Review – Waaki by Victor Masayesva by Samuel Lagunas

Book Review – Las huellas del reino de Dios: perspectivas teológicas en América Latina (1970–2000) by Martín Ocaña Flores

Book Review – The Lord Roars: Recovering the Prophetic Voice for Today by M. Daniel Carroll R.

Book Review – Los Profetas: The Prophetic Role of Hispanic Churches in America, ed. Daniel F. Flores

Book Review – Introducción a la teología del Nuevo Mundo by Oscar García-Johnson

Theopoetry – “De las cosas sencillas / Of the Simple Things” by Luis Cruz-Villalobos

Available via Amazon and the ATLA theological data bank.

René Padilla, a Giant of a Theologian Graduated into God’s Presence

On Tuesday of this week, Latin American theologian C. René Padilla passed into the presence of the Lord. He was one of the most influential Christian thinkers in the world. He was known as the ¨Father of Integral Mission¨ in which the purpose of the church is to proclaim the gospel in word as well as in deeds, especially serving the poor.

Born in Ecuador in 1932 to humble parents, he obtained three degrees from Wheaton College (a B.A. in philosophy and Greek in 1957, an M.A. in theology in 1960, and an honorary Doctorate in 1992). He met his future wife and partner Catherine Feser at Wheaton. He also earned a Ph.D. in New Testament from the University of Manchester under the mentoring of F.F. Bruce in 1965. I met René through the ministry of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students (IFES / known as InterVarsity Christian Fellowship in the United States). He served in this ministry in Latin America for 25 years in which he articulated Christian responses to the burning questions of the day on how followers of Jesus should respond to rampant poverty, illiteracy, oppressive dictatorships, war, and environmental degradation.

Although he had a gentle demeanor and a mischievous grin, René was known for speaking clearly the “difficult” truths of the gospel to friends and foes alike. He became internationally famous for his plenary “speech that shook the world” at the 1974 Lausanne Congress of World Evangelization. He pointed out that most Christians have experienced a truncated gospel, either emphasizing a verbal proclamation or a social gospel. René urged that God’s plan was to bring together these two dimensions in an “integral” or “holistic” mission.

René promoted this holistic understanding of the gospel through public speaking events, a multitude of books and articles, and the founding of numerous organizations that implemented this vision. René and I co-authored the book “Terrorism and the War in Iraq: a Christian Word from Latin America” in which we argued how and why most Latin American Christians opposed the war in Iraq because it did not meet the moral criteria of a “Just War”. History has demonstrated that those followers of Jesus had the correct moral conscience years ago.

Those who want to honor the legacy of this theological giant can do so by demonstrating faithfully the love and truth of Jesus in all areas of our lives.