Raimundo César Barreto, Jr.

Biography

Raimundo C. Barreto is associate professor of World Christianity at Princeton Theological Seminary, where he has been teaching since 2014. He holds a bachelor’s degree in theology from Seminário Teológico Batista do Norte do Brasil in Recife, Brazil, an MDiv degree from McAfee School of Theology at Mercer University in Atlanta, GA, and a PhD degree in religion and society from Princeton Theological Seminary. Prior to his current position, he taught at several institutions in his native Brazil and held the position of director of the Division on Freedom and Justice at the Baptist World Alliance.

Barreto is the author of Protesting Poverty: Protestants, Social Ethics, and the Poor in Brazil (Baylor University Press, 2023) and Base Ecumenism: A Latin American Contribution to Ecumenical Praxis and Theology (Augsburg Fortress, 2025). He is currently working on a new book titled Christians in the City of São Paulo: The Shaping of World Christianity in a Brazilian Megacity (Bloomsbury). A leading Latin American contributor to the burgeoning field of World Christianity, he has co-edited several books and journal issues. He has served as a co-editor of the Journal of World Christianity (2023-25), and as a general editor for the six-volume series World Christianity and Public Religion Series, published by Fortress Press (2017–24), in addition to being a co-convener of the World Christianity Conference since its first edition in 2018.

In addition to his productive scholarly service, which also includes numerous book chapters and journal articles, he has taken leadership roles in ecumenical and interfaith work, contributing in different capacities with organizations such as the American Baptist Churches USA, the Alliance of Baptists, the Baptist World Alliance, Aliança de Batistas do Brasil, the National Council of Churches USA, and the World Council of Churches. His teaching and research interests cover multiple fields and disciplines, and include world Christianity, ecumenics, and interreligious/intercultural studies, Latin American/Latinx religion(s), and decolonial theory. Barreto has delivered lectures and presentations at conferences in dozens of countries and currently serves on various academic, denominational, and ecumenical boards and advisory committees worldwide.

Select Publications

• Base Ecumenism: A Latin American Contribution to Ecumenical Praxis and Theology. Series: Shapers of Ecumenical Theology (Fortress Press, 2025).
• World Christianity and Ecological Theologies. Fortress Press, Series World Christianity and Public Religion, vol. 6 (Fortress Press, 2024). With Graham McGeoch and Wanderley Pereira da Rosa.
• Protesting Poverty: Protestants, Social Ethics and the Poor in Brazil (Baylor University Press, 2023).
• Decolonial Horizons: Reshaping Synodality, Mission, and Social Justice. Series Pathways for Ecumenical and Interreligious Dialogue (Palgrave MacMillan, 2023). With Vladimir Latinovic.
• Decolonial Horizons: Reimagining Theology, Ecumenism, and Sacramental Praxis (Palgrave MacMillan, 2023). With Vladimir Latinovic.
• Alterity and the Evasion of Justice: Explorations of the “Other” in World Christianity. Fortress Press, Series World Christianity and Public Religion, vol. 5 (Fortress Press, 2023). With Deanna Womack.
• “World Christianity and Global Justice: Ecumenical Demands and Possibilities,” The Ecumenical Review 74/1 (2022): 16-31.
• “Ex- and Post-Evangelicalism: Recent Developments in Brazil’s Changing Religious Landscape,” International Journal of Public Theology 16 (2022): 191-216. With Fabio Py.
• “The Challenge for Christian Unity and Reconciliation Today from a Decolonial Perspective,” International Review of Mission 111/1 (2022): 70-87.
• “Racism and Religious Intolerance: A Critical Analysis of the Coloniality of Brazilian Christianity,” Mission Studies 38 (2021): 398-423.
• “Suffering, Injustice, and Interfaith Relations: A Latin American Perspective,” Current Dialogue 73/5 (2021): 834-848.
• “Granting Full Citizenship to Latin American Christianities in World Christianity,” in World Christianity: History, Methodologies, Horizons, edited by Jehu Hanciles (Orbis Books, 2021), 138-157.
• World Christianity, Urbanization and Identity. Series World Christianity and Public Religion, vol. 3 (Fortress Press), 2021. With Moses Biney and Kenneth Ngwa.
• “Vatican II, Medellin, and Latin American Ecumenism: A Brazilian Protestant Perspective,” Journal of World Christianity 9/2 (2019): 187-202.
• “Brazil’s Black Christianity and the Counterhegemonic Production of Knowledge in World Christianity,” Studies in World Christianity 25/1 (2019): 71-94.
• Decolonial Christianities: Latinx and Latin American Perspectives. Series New Approaches to Religion and Power (Palgrave MacMillan, 2019). With Roberto Sirvent.