Not available to order
Publication date:
10 June 2015Length of book:
212 pagesPublisher
Rowman & Littlefield PublishersISBN-13: 9781442250376
The Politics of Jesús is a powerful new biography of Jesus told from the margins. Miguel A. De La Torre argues that we all create Jesus in our own image, reflecting and reinforcing the values of communities—sometimes for better, and often for worse. In light of the increasing economic and social inequality around the world, De La Torre asserts that what the world needs is a Jesus of solidarity who also comes from the underside of global power. The Politics of Jesús is a search for a Jesus that resonates specifically with the Latino/a community, as well as other marginalized groups. The book unabashedly rejects the Eurocentric Jesus for the Hispanic Jesús, whose mission is to give life abundantly, who resonates with the Latino/a experience of disenfranchisement, and who works for real social justice and political change.
While Jesus is an admirable figure for Christians, The Politics of Jesús highlights the way the Jesus of dominant culture is oppressive and describes a Jesús from the barrio who chose poverty and disrupted the status quo. Saying “no” to oppression and its symbols, even when one of those symbols is Jesus, is the first step to saying “yes” to the self, to liberation, and symbols of that liberation. For Jesus to connect with the Hispanic quest for liberation, Jesús must be unapologetically Hispanic and compel people to action. The Politics of Jesús provocatively moves the study of Jesús into the global present.
While Jesus is an admirable figure for Christians, The Politics of Jesús highlights the way the Jesus of dominant culture is oppressive and describes a Jesús from the barrio who chose poverty and disrupted the status quo. Saying “no” to oppression and its symbols, even when one of those symbols is Jesus, is the first step to saying “yes” to the self, to liberation, and symbols of that liberation. For Jesus to connect with the Hispanic quest for liberation, Jesús must be unapologetically Hispanic and compel people to action. The Politics of Jesús provocatively moves the study of Jesús into the global present.
Recognizing that cultural constructions of Jesus have been used by Euro-Americans in the oppression of colonized peoples, De La Torre constructs a portrait of Jesus from a Hispanic perspective. Juxtaposing the experiences of Latinas/os with Gospel accounts of Jesus, he constructs a powerful image of Jesus the liberator. He notes that Jesus came from the margins of the empire (i.e., Nazareth), which makes him a despised and suspect alien. Consequently, Jesus is both one of and also lives among the poor. Jesus himself notes, in the Gospels, that ‘the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.’ Highlighting the suffering experienced by colonized and immigrant Hispanics, De La Torre notes that the liberator Jesus is unjustly persecuted and suffers. This suffering, however, is redemptive, and those who would follow him are invited to ‘take up the cross.’ Suffering becomes redemptive and so a ground of hope. De La Torre, in constructing this Hispanic Jesus/Jesús, invites other oppressed peoples to consult their own contexts and construct their own liberating Christologies. He notes, however, that all concerned with replacing the Jesus of colonialism with a liberating Jesus are engaged in a common project. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates and above; professionals; general readers.