Martins (Marquette Univ.) here derives an anthropology of suffering from Simone Weil’s syncretism of Plato and the suffering of Christ, combined with Latin American liberation theology, offering a philosophical/ethical framework to address social justice and health inequities. Paulo Freire’s pedagogical perspective, the irruption of the poor, drives an emphasis on the unique voice of the poor "from below" that is necessary to scholars and health care professionals as they engage the poor in a dialectical process of liberating education, essential to the social transformation of health care. The Catholic preferential option for the poor, with the non-poor as companions in their struggles, stresses listening to the poor, who are victims of social violence, here considered as experts in existential knowledge. Although primarily philosophical and theological in orientation, Martins's work is highly interdisciplinary, drawing on anthropology, bioethics, and public health disciplines. His text integrates biblical text, Roman Catholic church documents, the "health as a human right versus health as commodity" debate, and the role of grassroots Catholic church organizations as agents of health care and sociopolitical transformation. In his final chapter Martins addresses the application of this multifaceted framework to practical problems of health care delivery, challenging his readers to implementation. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, faculty, and professionals.

Choice Reviews

Alexandre Martin's text is a complex work that boldly dives into the ramifications of a health care ethic that is authentically informed by a preferential option for the poor. Martins’s experience of growing up in Brazil, but earning his Ph.D. in the United States where he currently teaches, provides him with a unique perspective for writing on this topic.... This book is a necessary addition to other texts on Catholic health care ethics. To the best of my knowledge, this is only book in English that examines health care ethics through a liberationist lens. Though Martins is certainly inspired by the voices of the poor from the Latin American context, there is relevance for readers in English-speaking countries to assess their own context with fresh eyes. As a reviewer from the United States where health care is not a right, I was reminded how the voices of the poor—and particularly poor people of colour—have been omitted from the U.S. conversation on health care. Initially, the book’s great reliance on a French mystic seemed odd, but Weil’s rich understanding of suffering justifies the choice. This welcome book provides theological depth aimed mostly at an academic audience. The text could also serve as a wonderful resource for graduate or undergraduate courses on liberation theology or health care ethics.

The Journal of Theological Studies

Few books in the health care ethics or bioethics literature engage the theological underpinnings of these disciplines in as thorough a way as Alexandre Martin's The Cry of the Poor.... This book is an ambitious, well-researched project that succeeds in delivering an alternative research agenda for theologians and bioethicists interested in engaging in research and action for and with those bearing a disproportionate amount of suffering, disease, and death in our shared global community. The particular strengths of Martin's work lie in the research, interdisciplinary methodology, and emphasis on praxis as necessary for theological ethics and theological bioethics.”

Journal of the Society of Christian Ethics

This book is a multifaceted and interdisciplinary approach to healthcare from a liberation perspective that “engages with the poor, listens to them, learns from them and begins a dialogical process of empowering the poor.” Martins grounds the right to health care for all in an anthropology of suffering and a liberation ethic that serves as a foundation for a community-based approach of delivering health care in a just way to all people. He challenges all people to join the poor in a dialectical process of mutual learning. Only then will health care ever be realized as a basic human right. The agenda he sets is at the same time ambitious and optimistic, yet realistic and self-critical. This book is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand health care as a basic human right.

Peter A. Clark, John McShain Chair in Ethics, Director-Institute of Clinical Bioethics, Saint Joseph's University

With this book, Alexandre Martins changes the landscape of 21st century theological ethics. Martins interweaves the rigorous philosophy of Simone Weil, an impressive theoretical analysis of liberation theology, and empirical/ethnographic engagement with actual poor people to forward an important new mixed-methodology theoretical/theological framework for addressing the challenges posed by the material suffering of the world’s poor. Yet it is also a beautiful book—infused with a spirituality formed by Martins’ long and deep accompaniment with the people of and with whom he speaks. Most importantly, it levies a powerful critique to the academy and US theologians who have turned liberation theology into an academic theory, largely disconnected from actual poor people. As such, anyone interested in liberation theology, liberation ethics, global health, or Catholic social thought going forward will need to grapple with Martins’ The Cry of the Poor.

M. Therese Lysaught, Loyola University Chicago

This truly original work will make lights go on across the horizon of Catholic health care ethics and beyond. To the more familiar resources of principle-oriented moral theology, Catholic social ethics, and liberation theology's option for the poor, Martins adds unexpected riches. These include personal experience with Brazil's base communities and its national heath system, as well as the thought of Simone Weil, and a profound spiritual vision. To his compelling calls for social action, Martins unites a fine intellectual analysis that will make this a groundbreaking work in Christian ethics.

Lisa Cahill, J. Donald Monan Professor of Theology, Boston College