"This is a first-rate work of scholarship. Matovina is a theologian, and he pays attention to serious religious questions. But he is also a historian, and a very good one, and he turns the Latino story into a genuinely American story, and that is a terrific achievement."--David J. O'Brien, author of "From the Heart of the American Church: Catholic Higher Education and American Culture"

"For decades, religious historians have sought ways to integrate the Latino experience into narratives of U.S. Catholicism. In this bold and provocative work, Matovina eschews the integration model in favor of a thoroughgoing reinterpretation of U.S. Catholic history, revealing how--from the sixteenth century to today--Latino Catholicism drove a mutually transformative process that yielded an integrally Latino-inspirited church."--James T. Fisher, author of "Communion of Immigrants: A History of Catholics in America"

Our Lady of Guadalupe is the most revered religious figure in Mexican Catholicism. Devotion to Guadalupe among Mexicans and Mexican Americans has evolved for nearly five centuries into a deeply rooted, multifaceted tradition. Here, religion scholar Timothy Matovina offers a thorough study of this tradition as it has been lived out by the parishioners of San Fernando Cathedral in San Antonio, Texas. He shows how the devotion to Guadalupe sustained this congregation through times of political turmoil, war and peace, and ecclesiastical and social changes over San Antonio's long history, from an agricultural settlement on the northern edge of New Spain to a dynamic U.S. metropolis. Engaging recent scholarly analysis of ritual studies, lived religion, Latino theology and history, transnationalism, and ethnicity, Guadalupe and Her Faithful shows how religious traditions shape and are shaped by a faith community's shifting contexts and power dynamics. This fascinating account reveals the potential force-and the potential limitations-of devotion in people's lives and religious imagination.

Roman Catholicism in the United States: A Thematic History takes the reader beyond the traditional ways scholars have viewed and recounted the story of the Catholic Church in America. The collection covers unfamiliar topics such as anti-Catholicism, rural Catholicism, Latino Catholics, and issues related to the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Vatican and the U.S. government. The book continues with fascinating discussions on popular culture (film and literature), women religious, and the work of U.S. missionaries in other countries. The final section of the books is devoted to Catholic social teaching, tackling challenging and sometimes controversial subjects such as the relationship between African American Catholics and the Communist Party, Catholics in the civil rights movement, the abortion debate, issues of war and peace, and Vatican II and the American Catholic Church. Roman Catholicism in the United States examines the history of U.S. Catholicism from a variety of perspectives that transcend the familiar account of the immigrant, urban parish, which served as the focus for so many American Catholics during the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth centuries.

Most histories of Catholicism in the United States focus on the experience of Euro-American Catholics, whose views on social issues have dominated public debates. "Latino Catholicism" provides a comprehensive overview of the Latino Catholic experience in America from the sixteenth century to today, and offers the most in-depth examination to date of the important ways the U.S. Catholic Church, its evolving Latino majority, and American culture are mutually transforming one another.

In "Latino Catholicism," Timothy Matovina highlights the vital contributions of Latinos to American religious and social life, demonstrating in particular how their engagement with the U.S. cultural milieu is the most significant factor behind their ecclesial and societal impact.

In this abridged version made available in both English and Spanish, renowned author and Notre Dame scholar Timothy Matovina provides a comprehensive overview of the Latino Catholic experience in America from the 16th century to today and offers the most in-depth examination to date of the significant ways the U.S. Catholic Church, its evolving Latino majority, and the American culture are mutually transforming one another. Latino Catholicism: Transformation in America's Largest Church has received important endorsements from the Catholic Sentinel, U.S. Catholic, Catholic Press Association and many other Catholic media. This highly accessible edition is a must read for Hispanic Ministries.

Synopsis: The theological reflections of Virgilio Elizondo and Gustavo Gutierrez are examples of the ecclesial fruitfulness of the second half of the twentieth century. Following the directives of Pope John XXIII and the Second Vatican Council, Elizondo and Gutierrez present the Gospel message in relevant terms to their own people by engaging the world as the Church of the poor. Inspired by this moment in Church history, while at the same time recognizing the plight of their people in their poor and marginal existence, Elizondo and Gutierrez discovered a new way of doing theology by asking a specific set of questions based on their local context. By investigating where God is present in the border crossers of the southwestern United States and the poorest of the poor in Latin America, both theologians have uncovered a hermeneutical lens in rereading Scripture and deepening our understanding of ecclesial tradition. Elizondo's mestizaje and Gutierrez's preferential option for the poor arose out of a theology of context, a theological method that takes seriously the contextual circumstances of their locale. By utilizing the common loci theologici of Scripture and tradition in conjunction with context and their own experience, Elizondo and Gutierrez illustrate through their theologies how every group must embrace their own unique theological reflection. Endorsements: "Simon Kim has clearly delineated his goal of examining the importance of doing theology in context through a comparative analysis of the works of Gustavo Gutierrez and Virgilio Elizondo. Then he masterfully achieves that goal through a careful exposition of the contexts, contents, intersections, and divergences of their respective theologies. . . . Gutierrez is the founding figure of liberation theology in Latin America and arguably one of the most influential theologians of the twentieth century, while Elizondo is the premiere US Latino theologian, whose influence also stretches to all continents around the globe. Fewer readers will note at first glance that Kim has produced the most comprehensive comparative analysis of these two leading theologians to date. Since many theologians and scholars from related fields tend to conflate the theologies of Latin Americans and those of US Latinas and Latinos, this comparative analysis alone makes Kim's book a valuable contribution to contemporary theological scholarship. "Simon Kim brings out the value of the method Gutierrez and Elizondo employed for doing theological reflection. He captures beautifully how his subjects' life experiences and pastoral leadership have deeply shaped their theological insights and . . . how those insights have shaped their pastoral vision and that of numerous others whom they have inspired." --From the Foreword by Daniel G. Groody, CSC, and Timothy Matovina Author Biography: Simon Kim is a Korean American priest ordained for the Diocese of Orange, California. He has been invited to give conferences, workshops, and retreats across the country on Korean American pastoral ministry. Recently, he has been engaged in generational outreach within the Korean American community, requiring him to present ideas and themes bilingually in order to bridge the generations of Korean Americans. Kim earned a PhD in theology from The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC.

Horizons of the Sacred explores the distinctive worldview underlying the faith and lived religion of Catholics of Mexican descent living in the United States. Religious practices, including devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, celebration of the Day of the Dead, the healing tradition of curanderismo, and Good Friday devotions such as the Way of the Cross (Via Crucis), reflect the increasing influence of Mexican traditions in U.S. Catholicism, especially since Mexicans and Mexican Americans are a growing group in most Roman Catholic congregations.In their introduction, Timothy Matovina and Gary Riebe-Estrella analyze the ways Mexican rituals and beliefs pose significant challenges and opportunities for Catholicism in the United States. Original essays by theologians, historians, and ethnographers provide a rich interdisciplinary dialogue on how religious traditions function for Mexican American Catholics, revealing the symbolic world at the heart of their spirituality. The authors speak to the diverse meanings behind these ceremonies, explaining that Mexican American (and other Latino) Catholics use them to express not only religious devotion, but also ethnic identity and patriotism, solidarity, and, in some cases, their condition as exiles. The result is a multilayered vision of Mexican American religion, which touches as well on issues of racism and discrimination, poverty, and the role of women.

Roman Catholicism in the United States: A Thematic History takes the reader beyond the traditional ways scholars have viewed and recounted the story of the Catholic Church in America. The collection covers unfamiliar topics such as anti-Catholicism, rural Catholicism, Latino Catholics, and issues related to the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Vatican and the U.S. government. The book continues with fascinating discussions on popular culture (film and literature), women religious, and the work of U.S. missionaries in other countries. The final section of the books is devoted to Catholic social teaching, tackling challenging and sometimes controversial subjects such as the relationship between African American Catholics and the Communist Party, Catholics in the civil rights movement, the abortion debate, issues of war and peace, and Vatican II and the American Catholic Church. Roman Catholicism in the United States examines the history of U.S. Catholicism from a variety of perspectives that transcend the familiar account of the immigrant, urban parish, which served as the focus for so many American Catholics during the nineteenth and first half of the twentieth centuries.

Debates about the meaning of Vatican II and its role in modern Catholic and global history have largely focused on close theological study of its authoritative documents. This volume of newly commissioned essays contends that the historical significance of the council is best examined where these messages encountered the particular circumstances of the modern world: in local dioceses around the world. Each author examines the social, political, and domestic circumstances of a diocese, asking how they produced a distinctive lived experience of the Council and its aftermath. How did the Council change relationships and institutions? What was it like for laymen and women, for clergy, for nuns, for powerful first-world dioceses and for those in what we now know as the global south? A comparative reading of these chapters affords insights into these dimensions of Vatican II, and will spark a new generation of research into the history of twentieth-century Catholicism as both international and local.

In "Catolicismo Latino," author Timothy Matovina provides a comprehensive overview of the Latino Catholic experience in America from the 16th century to today and offers the most in-depth examination to date of the important ways the U.S. Catholic Church, its evolving Latino majority, and the American culture are mutually transforming one another in this abridged version.

Three leading scholars of Latino religious studies team up in this edited collection to present original meditations and reflections on Our Lady of Guadalupe, one of the most prominent religious images of the western hemisphere. Newest in the Celebrating Faith series, this book considers the meaning behind the symbol of Guadalupe. Because of the wide array of contributors, the figure of Guadalupe is examined from a variety of viewpoints: Catholic and Protestant, male and female, scholarly and liturgical. Written in a scholarly, yet spiritual manner, this analysis of Guadalupe recognizes her dual roles of maternal figure and inspiring evangelizer. Contributors discuss the history of Guadalupe and analyze how to carry out her message and teachings in contemporary society. The Treasure of Guadalupe is ideally suited to courses in Latino religious and cultural studies, and adds important contributions to the ongoing dialogue of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Horizons of the Sacred explores the distinctive worldview underlying the faith and lived religion of Catholics of Mexican descent living in the United States. Religious practices, including devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe, celebration of the Day of the Dead, the healing tradition of curanderismo, and Good Friday devotions such as the Way of the Cross (Via Crucis), reflect the increasing influence of Mexican traditions in U.S. Catholicism, especially since Mexicans and Mexican Americans are a growing group in most Roman Catholic congregations.In their introduction, Timothy Matovina and Gary Riebe-Estrella analyze the ways Mexican rituals and beliefs pose significant challenges and opportunities for Catholicism in the United States. Original essays by theologians, historians, and ethnographers provide a rich interdisciplinary dialogue on how religious traditions function for Mexican American Catholics, revealing the symbolic world at the heart of their spirituality. The authors speak to the diverse meanings behind these ceremonies, explaining that Mexican American (and other Latino) Catholics use them to express not only religious devotion, but also ethnic identity and patriotism, solidarity, and, in some cases, their condition as exiles. The result is a multilayered vision of Mexican American religion, which touches as well on issues of racism and discrimination, poverty, and the role of women.