Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion Book

It is interesting to me that if you read about people who work with the most wounded of human beings, they tend to have a very expansive view of God and a very inclusive Christian theology.

Fr. Greg Boyle works with Latino gangs in the public housing projects of LA. (I could have said "gang-infested" projects but Fr. Boyle makes a point in the book about language which brings shame to "life and love challenged" kids- I mean what do you think of when you say something is "infested"?) Instead he says, "Here is what we seek: a compassion that can stand in awe at what the poor have to carry rather than stand in judgment of how they carry it."

The book is divided into chapters that stress a theological point and then he illustrates it with stories from his 20 years as director of Homeboy Industries, the ministry he started to help willing kids get a job and get out of the gang life.("parables inspired by faith") Unfortunately, many of the stories end in funerals since the sense of worthlessness among these "throw-away" kids is very deep. What I liked is that he didn't go into blame. Blame leads to shame which excludes the possibility of grace and hope.

Instead he chooses love and compassion, expressed most often as just listening, calling them by their true names, and finding a place for them as equals in the world. (Though he shares some stories where he does get mad when kids self destruct.) So be prepared for some tears as these essays and short "sermons" do pull at your heart strings. The little sermonettes are often enriched by quotes from some of my favorite authors and poets: Pema Chodron, Marcus Borg, Mary Oliver, Emily Dickenson, Richard Rohr, Al Sharpton(!),James Gilligan and Mother Teresa. (A companion book might be Borg's "The Heart of Christianity")

One minor complaint is how often he uses latino language which at first was educational, but later began to bother me. I'd have to stop the sentence flow and translate ( not being good at languages made it a problem for me) and I don't recall any stories from the last 10 years. Perhaps it takes time to reflect but most of the book takes place 10-20 years ago.
And a caviat -The reasons given for showing compassion are wrapped in Judeo-Christian theology. Compassion and love, however, are not unique to Christianity. "Standing with" the poor is the heart of any spirituality or religion expressed in hundreds of versions of the "golden rule".
That does not change the impact of the wisdom in this book. For many Christians, it will open your heart to realize that your God has been too small.