Fall 2007

124 Pages·2007·0.63 MB·English

P E R S P E C T I V A S
HISPANIC THEOLOGICAL INITIATIVE
OCCASIONAL PAPER SERIES
ELEVENTH ISSUE, FALL 2007
10TH ANNIVERSARY ISSUE
ArturoChávez,editor
UlrikeR.M.Guthrie,visitingeditor
PerspectivasisapublicationoftheHispanicTheologicalInitiative,
fundedbyPrincetonTheologicalSeminary.

P E R S P E C T I V A S
ELEVENTHISSUE,FALL2007
10THANNIVERSARYISSUE
CONTENTS
FromtheEditor
ArturoChávez 9
PastoralTheologyinaPost-ColonialContext:
SomeobservationsfromtheCaribbean
LuisRivera-Págan 11
“CallMe‘Bitter’”:LifeandDeathinthe
DiasporicBorderlandsandtheChallenges/
OpportunitiesforNorteamericanoChurches
DanielRamírez 39
Testimonios
HTI’SRoleinEmpoweringPresbyterian
LaityandLay-CommissionedPastors
VictorAloyo,Jr. 67
AnAppreciationofHTI
EdwinDavidAponte 69
InTributetotheHispanicTheologicalInitiative
JonBerquist 71
HTI’sCollaborationsatPrincetonandBeyond
PeterCasarella 75
ScholarlyContributionsintheLutheranChurch
SamuelCruz 79
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Perspectivas/OccasionalPapers•Fall2007
ImpactandGrowthofLatina/oScholars
intheCatholicChurch
OrlandoO.Espín 83
PerspectivesonHTI
IsmaelGarcía 85
TenYearsofHTIWritingWorkshopsandEditing
Dissertations
UlrikeR.M.Guthrie 89
SustainingtheVisionthroughCollaboration
EdwinI.Hernández 93
LookingBack:TenYearsofMemory
DaisyMachado 97
DissertationAbstracts
FoundationsforaHispanicPentecostalChristology:
AConstructiveandLiberativeApproach
SammyAlfaro 103
EthnicNegotiations: TheTheologicalFunction
ofRaceandEthnicityinActs16
EricDanielBarreto 107
Resolviendo:NarrativesofSurvivalinthe
HebrewBibleandinCubaToday
CristinaGarcía-Alfonso 109
StandinginNo-Place:Utopias,Scriptures,
andtheUnhomelinessofEmpireinAztlán,
theNewJerusalem,andCalifornia
JacquelineHidalgo 111
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Perspectivas/OccasionalPapers•Fall2007
ViolenceandIgnacioEllacuría’sTheology
ofHistorialReality
SalvadorLeavitt-Alcántara 113
“Race,”CultureandFaith(Re)Mapping
theDevelopmentofMestizajeinTheology
NéstorMedinaBermejo 115
TheHolyGhostBeyondChurchWalls
LatinoPentecostalism(s),Congregations,
andCivicEngagement
NormanE.Ruano 117
TheLifeandWorkofMillardRichardShaull
APresbyterianMissionarytoLatinAmerica,
1919-2000
AngelDanielSantiago-Vendrell 119
Truth,Justice,andForgiveness: Reconciliationinthe
ChristologyofJonSobrino
ErnestoValiente 121
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PERSPECTIVAS: OCCASIONALPAPERS
EDITOR
ArturoChávez
Director,MexicanAmericanCulturalCenter
Perspectivas:OccasionalPapersisapublicationofthe
HispanicTheologicalInitiativeandismadepossibleby
PrincetonTheologicalSeminary.
Editorialcorrespondenceshouldbeaddressedto
TheHispanicTheologicalInitiative,
12LibraryPlace,Princeton,NJ08540.
Subscriptionsshouldbemadeto
TheHispanicTheologicalInitiativeattheaboveaddress,
[email protected]
Viewsexpressedinthispublicationarethoseofthewriters.
Publicationdoesnotnecessarilysignifyendorsementby
theHispanicTheologicalInitiative.
Postmaster:Pleasesendaddresschangesto
theHispanicTheologicalInitiative,
12LibraryPlace,
Princeton,NJ 08540.
ISSN1536-996X
6
he Hispanic Theological Initiative (HTI) began the publi-
cationofPerspectivas:OccasionalPapersin1998tofeature
Tthe scholarship of Latina/o scholars in theology and reli-
gion, and to address the scant number of journals dedicated to
featuring the contributions of Latinas/os an important and
critical means to stimulate further dialogue and researchin theo-
logicaleducation.
Our past and present issues feature the work of HTI mentors,
fellows, HTI Summer Workshop Lecturers, and HTI Regional
Conference speakers. The present publication is the eleventh in
theseriesandour10thAnniversaryissue. Thisissueincludestes-
timonialsfromHTIScholars,Mentors,Editors,andPastors,some
of the many voices who have experienced first-hand the positive
impact HTI fellows are making in the academy and the church.
Also presented in this issue are numerous dissertation abstracts
from a diverse group of dissertation fellows in the HTI pipeline.
Theseabstractsgiveusaforetasteofthenewscholarshipwewill
beexperiencingintheacademichallsoftheologicalschools,sem-
inariesanduniversityreligiondepartmentsacrossthenation.
We trust you will find Perspectivas insightful, and we invite
you to share comments and responses to any of the articles.
PleaselookforcurrentandpastissuesofPerspectivasinseminar-
ies, religion departments at universities, and other institutions
throughout the United States, and Puerto Rico. If you like your
own issue please e-mail us at [email protected] for a free copy.
JoanneRodríguez
Director,HTI
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Perspectivas/OccasionalPapers•Fall2007
FROM THE EDITOR
t is truly an honor to present this eleventh issue of
Perspectivas, as we celebrate the tenth anniversary of the
IHispanic Theological Initiative. In this short time, we are
alreadyreapingtheharvestofHTI’smissiontoincreasethenum-
berofLatina/oscholars,andhelpmaketheirvoicesheardinboth
thechurchandtheacademy.Manyofthesemenandwomenhave
successfully completed their doctoral studies and are teaching,
preaching,andmakingsystemicchangeintheirparticularinstitu-
tionsandinsocietyatlarge. Othersarestillintheprocessofcom-
pleting their studies and are experiencing firsthand the
networkingandmentoringsupportofHTI.
Inthisissue,youwillheartheirvoicesinaneclecticcollection
of articles from seasoned scholars, testimonios from beneficiaries
and supporters of HTI’s legacy, and dissertation abstracts from
up-and-coming scholars who bring such vibrant promise and
hope to our community. The two articles by Luis Rivera-Pagán
and Daniel Ramírez continue Perspectivas’ excellent track record
ofprovidinginsightful,theologicalreflectiononthe“signsofthe
times” from a Hispanic perspective. Both authors (Rivera-Pagán
as mentor, and Ramírez as mentee) participated in the first HTI
mentoringclassof1997andarenowfullyengagedasscholarsand
teacherswhospeakboldlyonthecomplexissuesstemmingfrom
colonization,globalization,andimmigration.
In the first article, Luis Rivera-Pagán provocatively addresses
the Society for Pastoral Theology during their annual study con-
ferencein2007thattookplaceinSanJuan,PuertoRico. Hecalls
theparticipantsandeachofustoacriticalawarenessofhowthe
historical experience of Latina/o colonization continues to mani-
festinthepostcolonialrealitiesofpersonalestrangementandsys-
temic alienation. Only an honest and rigorous contextualization
ofourtheologicalreflectioncanyieldnewinsightsandstrategies
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Perspectivas/OccasionalPapers•Fall2007
for pastoral ministry that are truly liberating. Similarly, Daniel
Ramírez’sarticlewasoriginallydeliveredasakeynoteaddressat
the HTI West Regional Conference in 2004. In a powerful reflec-
tion on Naomi and Ruth’s experiences of being strangers in
strange lands, Ramírez challenges all of us to see the faith and
determination of so many “invisible people” who are forced to
leavetheirhomessearchingforawaytosurviveinatransnation-
al economic system that relies on their silent consent to labor
underinhumanconditionsandliveasshadowsamongus.
Ijoinmyvoicewiththoseofmycolleaguesandfellowco-
workersinthankingtheHispanicTheologicalInitiativefor
bringingustogetherandinspiringustoformcommunity.
Personally,IknowthatwithoutthesupportofHTI,mypresent
roleasthepresidentoftheMexicanAmericanCulturalCenter
wouldprobablynothavebeenpossible. HTIgavemeandso
manyofusthecouragetobelievethatwehadsomethingto
say—and thetoolstouseourvoicesconfidently. Aswecele-
bratethismilestoneinourhistory,mayitrenewourdetermina-
tiontocreatecommunitieswherethosewhosevoicesareignored
orsilencedbytheassimilativeforcesofthedominantculture
mightonedayresound! ¡QuevivaHTI!
ArturoChávez
Editor
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