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Popular Catholicism is one of the most distinctive elements of Latino culture, an essential dimension of any project of Latino theology. In The Faith of the People Orlando Espin presents the most concentrated and systematic reflection on this theme. Examining such traditions as devotion to the crucified Christ and to the Virgin of Guadalupe, Espin shows how Popular Catholicism offers a source for vital insight into such theological issues as the nature of God, the Trinity, Christology, and salvation. As Espin explains, it is a matter of taking seriously the expressions of faith of ordinary people - not simply as a sociological phenomenon or a "pastoral problem," but as a font of intuition, wisdom, and living revelation.
As Robert Goizueta observes in his Foreword, The Faith of the People has great significance for the church as a whole, as it struggles with the issues raised in an increasingly polycentric and multicultural time. The stubborn faith of Latino Catholics in the ultimate goodness of life, even in the midst of affliction, remains at the heart of Latino Popular Catholicism. This faith in God's gift not only to the U.S. Latino community but to the entire church and to all peoples.
