Chapter 1: Practice Theologies and the Call for a Latino/a Theology of the Spirit
Practical theology involves a movement from practice to theory, whereas traditional theology involves a movement from theory to practice. Practical theology, in other words, gives predominance to praxis in how theory or theology is developed. Such theology arises from critical reflection on praxis or some experience. Latino/a theology is fundamentally a practical theology as it reflects an inclination from practice to theory. The Latino/a experience is one of conflict, violence, and oppression as evident in both history and today where the Latino/a people in the U.S. still experience prejudice and discrimination. Hence, Latino/a theology emerges out of the people’s everyday struggle for survival in attempt to be a voice for freedom, dignity, and hope to a marginalized and oppressed culture. Furthermore, “Latino/a theology is a praxis-based theology of culture and given its contextual, communal, interdisciplinary, and domestic nature- has succeeded in describing the historical, cultural, social, and religious location of the Latino/a people in the context of the United States” (Garcia-Johnson, 2009, p. 23).
Chapter 2: Latino/a Culture and the Spirit: Toward A Spirit-Friendly Postmodern Perception of Culture
There are three representational groups in the development of Latino/a theology: founders, builders, and shapers. Founders set the foundations for future developments of Latino/a theology. Builders elaborate on the foundation established by founders, making it more concrete by adding material content and addressing its practicality. Shapers further define areas of Latino/a theology and give it a particular style. They take previous developments and provide a finishing touch in a way that make s Latino/a theology engaging and hospitable to Latino/a communities. Founders and Builders in particular focus on anthropological themes to achieve a foundational understanding of cultural identity (i.e., what it is to be Latino/a in the U.S.)
Chapter 3: The Pentecost and the Cross as the Authoring Narratives of the Cruciform Community of the Spirit
The praxis of the Spirit has occurred in several settings and times throughout history. There have been some uses and misuses in regards to this praxis amongst theologians. The Spirit has a certain rhetoric that is expressed in human experience such as love, joy, and hope. This rhetoric is manifested as inclusion, community, and Christ-shaped transmissible practices. Also, the Pentecost story and the idea of cruciformity (i.e., observable aspect of the Pentecost experience) come hand in hand. When just focusing solely on the Pentecost experience, we are in danger of only feeling alive when we have these supernatural experiences and become distant from what is concrete and historical. On the flip side, when just focusing solely on the cross as the practice of Christianity, we are in danger of dried spirituality. In other words, while embracing our humanity, we are in danger of being detached from the spirit.
Chapter 4: The Mestizo/a Community of Manana: Imagining a Latino/a Postmodern Ecclesiology
The Latino/a church community seek to live out the manana vision. This vision is about how the Mestizo/a church community are to bring forth the kingdom of God and engage with the challenges of their postmodern context. Because of the presence of poverty in the majority of Latino/a communities in the U.S., the Mestizo/a church community has a calling to become a community of tomorrow (or manana), which aims to be a source of survival, service, and faith for others. Through action, this community seeks to bring forth justice and liberty to the oppressed of their current society. One way this community seeks to bring forth change is through community organizing in order to bring true transformation to broken communities. In addition, this community is to perform ecclesial practices (i.e., eucharistic praxis, proclamation praxis, and pastoral praxis) to further aid impoverished communities.
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