From the Editor

The 2007 Annual Colloquium and General Meeting of the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians of the United States focused on the theme, “Building a Latino/a Ecumenical Theology: Protestant and Catholic Theological Perspectives on some Significant Issues.” Not content simply to rehearse the usual themes of ecumenical dialogue around issues about which Christians of different denominations agree or disagree, this gathering of Latina/o Roman Catholic and Protestant scholars worked together in dialogue with each other to craft a Latino/a ecumenical theology. In this issue of the Electronic Journal of Hispanic / Latino Theology, we present the fruits of that rich conversation. We begin with “Culture, Ecumenical Dialogue and a Renewed Pneumatology,” the 2007 Presidential Address delivered by Dr. Orlando O. Espín of the University of San Diego. Espín ventures to suggest that a renewed pneumatology, conceived latinamente, can provide solid ground for a Latino/a ecumenical theology that takes culture seriously. Next, articles by Drs. José Davíd Rodríguez of the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago and Miguel H. Díaz of the College of St. Benedict / St. John’s University Collegeville consider the themes of grace and justification in the reshaping of soteriology and theological anthropology. Articles by Drs. Roberto Goizueta of Boston College and Juan Francisco Martínez of Fuller Theological Seminary then address the challenges of constructing an authentically ecumenical Latina/o ecclesiology, while an article by the Catholic Theological Union’s Dr. Carmen Nanko-Fernández engaged in conversation with Dr. Mayra Rivera of the Pacific School of Religion on the doctrine of God.

In addition to these articles which are the fruit of the 2007 ACHTUS Colloquium and which were subsequently revised in the light of the lively and productive discussion that is characteristic of the Colloquium, this issue of the Electronic Journal of Hispanic / Latino Theology also presents “On Sheep and Goats: The Treatment of Foreigners according to Jesus (Matthew 25:31-46)” by Aquiles Ernesto Martínez of Reinhardt College. Immigration continues to be a pressing concern on the national and international agenda, and Martínez underlines the ways in which the practice and the teaching of Matthew’s Jesus nourishes and grounds Christian efforts for just and comprehensive reform of immigration policies.