Homies and Hermanos: God and Gangs in Central America (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780199753901)

Why would a gun-wielding, tattoo-bearing "homie" trade in la vida loca for a Bible and the buttoned-down lifestyle of an evangelical hermano (brother in Christ)? To answer this question, Robert Brenneman interviewed sixty-three former gang members from the "Northern Triangle" of Central America--Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras--most of whom left their gang for evangelicalism. Unlike in the United States, membership in a Central American gang is hasta la morgue. But the most common exception to the "morgue rule" is that of conversion or regular participation in an evangelical church. Do gang members who weary of their dangerous lifestyle simply make a rational choice to opt for evangelical religion? Brenneman finds this is only partly the case, for many others report emotional conversions that came unexpectedly, when they found themselves overwhelmed by a sermon, a conversation, or a prayer service. An extensively researched and gritty account, Homies and Hermanos sheds light on the nature of youth violence, of religious conversion, and of evangelical churches in Central America.

Author: Robert Brenneman
ISBN-10: 0199753903
ISBN-13: 9780199753901
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Language: English
Published: 11/23/2011
Pages: 312
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.10w x 0.90d

Review Citation(s):
Books & Culture 07/01/2012 pg. 30
Christian Century 10/17/2012 pg. 31