Hanging on a Ghetto Cross: Piri Thomas and Latino Protestant Popular Religion‪.‬

My interest in popular religion has led me to search for those resources that witness to the spiritual and religious expressions of the Latino people in the United States and its territories. This area of interest has captured the attention of an increasing number of Latino scholars, providing a rich and provocative documentation. (1) This knowledge has challenged important tenets of traditional epistemological and theological reflection as well as dominant trends in the past and present mission and ministry with Latinos by mainline expressions of the Christian church in North America. In this study I explore some valuable contributions of the Latino Protestant religious perspective by analyzing a selection of examples from the literary work of the Afro-Puerto Rican author Piri Thomas. My preference for the contributions of this author stems from the fact that his work is an important and provocative example of what is labeled Latino literature. Thomas is also one of the few Latino authors who have written about personal experience and convictions with the intention to stimulate a critical examination of the religious and spiritual expression of traditionally under-represented constituencies in North American society.