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rienthril's review
5.0
Read this for the first time last year, and it utterly changed my conception of what Christianity is. Currently re-reading with a neighborhood group. - Finished sometime in November, 2011. Romero has become incredibly important to me. The Violence of Love is a selection of his homilies during his tenure as Archbishop of El Salvador, which, at the time, was in the throes of violent civil war. The general populace (Romero's congregation) was caught between the fear campaigns of the ruling oligarchy and leftist guerrilla groups. Torture and disappearances were commonplace. In this setting, Romero metamorphosed from a conservative apologist for the status quo into a radical advocate for the common Salvadoran, and was ultimately assassinated for his stand. He views the maddening complexity and desperation of political and religious systems of injustice through the lens of Christ-inspired love: Straight-up 1st Corinthians 13 stuff. He tears down the veil of man-made Christian tradition to expose the true call within Christianity, the call to the conversion of the heart. For Romero, no injustice, no violence is tolerable, because it always creates victims of individuals who are the image of God, namely, for Romero, the poor of El Salvador. This book is a wake up call for any self-proclaimed Christian, and an encouragement to Christians who are sick of being misrepresented by hate language and repressive tendencies in popular strains of western Christianity.
danwmitchell's review
5.0
This is definitely worth the read. It can be a little hard to get through, because it is a collection of quotes and it isn’t composed of one coherent thought, but it is still thought provoking and challenging.
mschlat's review
4.0
I've been reading this on and off for devotionals for almost a year. It is selections of Archbishop Romero's sermons and homilies, often formatted as poetry. While there are different chapters with apparently different themes (e.g., "Evangelizer of the People", "The Bright Light of Christ", ...), the selections are presented in strict chronological order, which means focus can shift from reading to reading. However, the words are quite powerful and have often been a challenge to me as an affluent Western Christian as well as excellent reminders of the kingdom of God.
birdy1luv's review
5.0
Holy cow! I had a tough time.getting through this book because I spent half my time writing down quotable passages. A beautiful call to solidarity and suffering with the poor. Poetic words backed up by courageous action. And at the root of it all - love.
croxanas's review
3.0
the content was good, but the disjointed nature of the excerpts made it hard to get into the flow. would love to read some of his work in complete pieces rather than selections.
jrowe93's review
4.0
A lovely book of homilies by Blessed (soon to be Saint) Oscar Romero. Though it is written within the social and political context of El Salvador, its message of concern for human dignity, spiritual and political liberation through Christ and God’s heart for justice and the oppressed can be applied anywhere. It was particularly convicting to read in light of what is happening in the United States now, where many Christians, particularly on the right, have chosen to align themselves with those whose actions and words are the complete opposite of the Gospel; who have chosen to abandon prophetic witness in pursuit of social and political power.
andreagaddis's review
4.0
A great book for meditation as it includes excerpts from Archbishop Romero's homilies and speeches. The sections are both labeled by theme and arranged chronologically so it can be read in two ways: 1) As the story of the El Salvador Revolution through the words of Romero's weekly homilies and radio broadcasts or 2) As a reflection on different standards of social justice (i.e. the section "Option for the Poor"). In this way, you can flip to a section you are drawn to at that time and read Romero's passionate response to the horrors surrounding him.
In any case, Romero's words are truly beautiful and reflective of great insight in a confusing time and place. No wonder his words inspired so many people in and outside of his country.
In any case, Romero's words are truly beautiful and reflective of great insight in a confusing time and place. No wonder his words inspired so many people in and outside of his country.
kevinhendricks's review
4.0
A wonderful collection of writings and sermons from the martyred El Salvadoran priest who spoke out for the poor and oppressed.