Four weeks in July 2002 while my husband was in Florida with the boys, I slaved away at an essay (Progressive Pentecostalism and Urban Social Transformation: Latina Faith-based Activism in NY) that is now about to be published by Oxford University Press. I am thrilled. The name of the book is Latino Religions and Civic Activism in the United States . It is edited by Gastón Espinosa, Virgilio Elizondo and Jesse Miranda. It will be available in both hard back ($74) or paperback ($25). It is a collection of 16 essays and totals 352 pages and will be available Mar 18 2005.

Description: This volume presents sixteen new essays addressing important issues, personalities, and movements in Latino religions in America. The authors’ purpose is to overthrow the longstanding stereotype that Latinos are politically passive and that their churches have supported the status quo, failing to engage in or support that struggle for civil rights and social justice. Individual essays explore such varied topics as “The Mysticism and Social Action of Cesar Chavez,” “The Challenges of Being Latina, Catholic, and Feminist,” “Hispanic Churches in Faith-Based Community Organizing,” and “The Mexican American Cultural Center and the Politics of Cultural Empowerment.” The first anthology of its kind, the book will be an invaluable resource for scholars in a wide range of disciplines, as well as serving as an introductory or supplemental text for courses in religion, politics, and Latino/Chicano studies.

Wow. I can’t believe it. If you are interested in purchasing it for your library, go here. Next up…my book. I got the chapter names. Just don’t know how to make the time. Authors out there… any suggestions!