Journal: Southeastern Theological Review
Volume: STR 11:2 (Fall 2020)
Article: Middleton And Wright Have We Loved, But Padilla And Escobar? North American Eschatologies And Neglected Latino Voices
Author: Miguel G. Echevarria, Jr.

STR 11:2 (Fall 2020) p. 47

Middleton And Wright Have We Loved, But Padilla And Escobar? North American Eschatologies And Neglected Latino Voices

Miguel G. Echevarria, Jr.

Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

In the 1960s and 1970s, Latino Theologians C. René Padilla and Samuel Escobar reminded the global Christian community of Jesus’s holistic mission: that he came to save people from the painful effects of sin, such as injustice and oppression, so that they might flourish under his earthly rule. Their message was dismissed by North American evangelicals who were more concerned about delivering souls into heaven. Since then, American evangelicals have come to appreciate holistic eschatology, which is analogous to holistic mission, in the works of J. Richard Middleton and N. T. Wright. Thus, there is no reason to continue to disregard the arguments of Padilla and Escobar.

Key Words: Escobar, good news, gospel, holistic eschatology, holistic mission, kingdom, Padilla

The 1960s and 1970s marked the rise of Latino evangelical voices. David C. Kirkpatrick notes that during this time the “emerging generation” of Latinos “developed, branded, and exported” their brand of Christianity “to a changing coalition of global evangelicalism.”1 As a result, evangelicals were introduced to the likes of René Padilla, Samuel Escobar, Orlando Costas, and José Míguez Bonino.2 Two of the most influential were Padilla and Escobar, whose ideas spread through their many publications, international speaking engagements, and teaching appointments at colleges and seminaries in the United States. Padilla, for instance, published

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the notable Misión integral: Ensayos sobre la iglesia y el reino, which is available in English under the title Mission between the Times: Essays on the Kingdom of God.3 He also spoke frequently in his work for International Fellowship of Evangelical Students and the Latin American Theological Fellowship and held professorial appointments at institutions such as Wheaton College. Escobar published the popular New Global Mission: The Gospel from Everywhere to Everyone and En busca de Cristo en América Latina, which was translated into English as In Search of Christ in Latin America: From Colonial Image to Liberating Savior.4 He also spoke regularly as General Director of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship of Canada and held professorates at Palmer School of Theology (formerly Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary) and Fa...