Missions Resources - Bibliography
On the Move: A History of the Hispanic Church in the U.S.
Authors: Sandoval, Moises
ISBN: 0-88344675-8
Publisher: Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1990
Summary: On the Move is a badly needed book: A history of Hispanic Christianity in the U.S. As he progresses from the period of evangelization (in the 1500s - long before Anglos even set foot in the new world), to today's struggles over the appointment of Bishops, Sandoval has two main points:
First, there is a long history of American Christian chauvinism against Hispanic Christians, especially Mexicans. American believers, Catholic and Evangelical alike, have uncritically viewed Mexican spirituality as Syncretistic or Semi-pagan, merely because some sections of the Mexican religious spectrum fit that designation (of course, there is a lot of unchallenged syncretism in Anglo-America as well).
Secondly, Hispanic spirituality is at its best, when it takes into account the fact of poverty as the reality for a large component of the Hispanic population. Hispanic Bishops and Priests in the U.S. have often been called communists, because of the criticism they level at the market economy that so unjustly preys on the poor.
On the Move is primarily a narrative history, so the reader can get bogged down in the details, but the subject is crucial for a full understanding of America, of the American Church, and of the Civil Rights movement. I recommend On the Move, with the caveat that it may seem boring, and that an at least cursory knowledge of Hispanic history would be useful to take full advantage of this book.
-Paul Grant
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