Recently a groundswell of books and publications on the subject of Latino theology and spirituality has paralleled the resurgence of Latino works of literature. As the number of Latinos in the United States surged in the 1980s, so did interest in the life of the community. Important books by pioneering Latino theologians such as Virgilio Elizondo, Allan Figueroa Deck, S.J., Justo L. Gonzalez, Ada María Isasi-Díaz, Andres G. Guerrero, and Moisés Sandoval have opened the door into this rich vein of theology.
The Journal of Hispanic/Latino Theology, a quarterly journal published by The Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the United States (ACHTUS), seeks to provide a forum for Latino theologians to define themselves in a society that has often attempted to impose definitions upon them. Virgilio Elizondo writes, "Others had been telling us who we were. Nobody had bothered to ask us, `Who are you?' This was the very root of our oppression."
Seeking to escape from the tokenism many Latino theologians feel at play when trying to publish papers in mainstream scholarly publications, The Journal examines "European patriarchal Christianity and Roman Catholicism" in the light of "the imperatives posed by our indigenous and mestizo peoples," declaring the subject of Latino theology as the people themselves. Adopting a "liberative praxis," the object of Latino theology can be seen as the God that is discovered in the worldview of Latino communities and named through their experiences.
The Journal has published works on mujerista (womanist) theology, the history of Guadalupe celebrations in Texas, sources and loci for Hispanic theology, and a Latino epistemology on suffering. Contributors to the journal include both Latinos and non-Latinos, Catholics and Protestants. The journal should also be noted for its emphasis on Latina feminist theology.
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