Note: I recently read that some of the folks objecting to library collections just wanted to have their point-of-view represented. I am quite wary of this argument as it applies to book challenges and bans—there is much evidence that books are being removed for racist, misogynistic or political reasons (see my Substack “Be a Cactus” for examples and discussions). However, I’m sure there are people (including parents) who would just like to know the library is considering its religion section (particularly on Christianity) and updating it so their teens can find current works there. That’s my reason for posting several books on religion recently. It’s unlikely that these books will please the book banners, but they are titles that will appeal to Christian students looking for guidance on putting their spirituality into practice. 

A bit of background on Gregory Boyle and Tattoos on the Heart

Father Gregory Boyle is the LA priest who founded Homeboy Industries and Homegirl Café. Back in 2010, I was so taken by his first book, Tattoos on the Heart, that I bought copies for my relatives for Christmas and wrote this review.

Their motto: Nothing stops a bullet like a job.

Father Boyle—“G-dog” as he is known by his homies—acts in a way that is very much centered in his faith (Catholicism) as a Christian, but is also so unusual that his story makes a startling read. And here’s why: he believes that every individual has equal value in society. And unlike most of us, he doesn’t just say it. He truly believes it. For Father Greg, there are no throw-away people. He never stops caring—and so the subtitle of this book—The Power of Boundless Compassion—is apt. When I say that his compassion is amazing, I know that the word ‘amazing’ is so overused that you may not understand what I mean. But I think it is the right word—I’m filled with wonder at the life of this man. I believe Tattoos is the best of his titles for the high school library.

Cherished Belonging: The Healing Power of Love in Divided Times

Cherished Belonging is Boyle’s fourth and most recent book. Again, he looks at how love (“Cherishing is love fully engaged. Cherishing is tenderness in action.”) is our job, how it is active, and how it resolves troubles. And again, I am amazed at his capacity for cherishing, his ability to walk the walk of genuine Christian calling. What I mean is that I only dream of being so fully accepting of others. Like many people, I’ve sometimes felt that unconditional love is beyond human capacity. But no—Boyle’s life and work disprove that. He doesn’t see anyone as ‘the other’ and everyone involved in Homeboy Industries learns that lesson. Former gang rivals who once might have wanted to shoot one another on the street now work side by side.

If it feels like people in the U.S. have forgotten the roots of Christianity, Boyle’s worldview is an antidote for the Christian Nationalism blues. This also means that many purported people of faith will not agree with the “two unwavering principles” of Homeboy Industries: 

1. Everyone is unshakably good (no exceptions)
2. We belong to each other (no exceptions)

He repeatedly makes the point that God’s power lies not in rescuing us, but in loving us. While he refers to Jesus often, he also sometimes uses the pronoun ‘She’ in reference to God and chides the Church for continuing “to prevent women from full inclusion.” He seems to have no concern with upsetting religious literalists:

At a house where I was leading a weekend retreat, the first reading was a story of Abraham and Isaac. It begins, “God put Abraham to the test.” I opened my homily by telling the congregation that life provides us with endless “tests,” but not once has the God of love ever thrown one our way. Not ever. “And besides,” I told them, “any father who hears God tell him to kill his son is mentally ill.” They applauded, which surprised me. I proceeded, then, to preach on the transfiguration.

Boyle’s defense of the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence—all gay men who sometimes dress in “mock wimples worn by nuns in 1954”—for their “considerable service and charitable works” will likely outrage more conservative religious folks. This book truly is for people who are open to the idea that everyone has value.

Boyle’s God is the God of second chances (and third and fourth…). Reading about his metaphysics made me think of the idea of ‘turning the other cheek’—that this might not mean what I’ve always thought it meant (be a punching bag) but rather is just another way of saying forgive seven x seventy times. But there is an important progress to this that doesn’t include allowing people to take advantage of others. For example, at Homeboy, if people test positive for drugs or have other relapses, they are sent out and told, “Come back to us when you’re ready [sober, etc.].” This understanding of human relationships extends to all people. Of Donald Trump, Boyle says that no mentally well person would be that malignant narcissist and sociopath, so we have to feel for him in his mental illness. But he also notes that a person that ill should not be handed the Presidency of the United States.

Boyle’s writing style is epigrammatic. It reminds me of R. W. Emerson in that you can pull quotes, sentences from within the same paragraph, that encapsulate different ideas. (“People don’t become homeless because they run out of money…They become homeless because they run out of relationships.”) As in past books, Boyle tells anecdotes about the former gang members who have been helped at Homeboy. There are some “I’m not crying, you’re crying” moments once again, but there are some laugh out loud stories as well. When Boyle when to Washington D.C. to receive the Medal of Freedom this year:

A homie sends me a congratulatory text: “I heard you got a presidential pardon … or some shit like that.” A home girl, Ivy, stands in for me at a luncheon talk at which she says, “Father Greg couldn’t be here today because he’s at the White House being knighted.” 

If you love language, you’ll enjoy some of the words Homeboy workers make up to suit the circumstance. A few favorites:

”I feel belongance.”

When Steve Avalon’s encounters a homie who manipulates, he calls him a “shenanigizer.”

Literary folks, you’ll like this: in listing his beliefs, Boyle quotes George Saunders: “Kindness is the only non-delusional response to everything.”