Paul J. Vanderwood (1929-2011) was Professor Emeritus of Mexican History at San Diego State University. He is the author of several books, including The Power of God Against the Guns of Government: Religious Upheaval in Mexico at the Turn of the Nineteenth Century; Border Fury: A Picture Postcard Account of the Mexican Revolution and U.S. War Preparedness, 1910–1917; and Disorder and Progress: Bandits, Police, and Mexican Development.

“Juan Soldado is a rich, exuberant, and sensitive account of the making of a folk saint in Tijuana. It is based on extensive use of newspapers and remarkable interviews with eyewitnesses to events in the 1930s.”-William A. Christian Jr., author of Visionaries: The Spanish Republic and the Reign of Christ “Juan Soldado is a true cannot-put-it-down read that combines deep research, strong narrative, and remarkable insight about how a spontaneous religious devotion comes into being and consolidates itself. I know of no other work that portrays the elements of this particular sort of religious belief-its spontaneity, its stubbornness in the face of the Church’s indifference, and the matter-of-fact way it is practiced in daily life.”-Eric Van Young, author of The Other Rebellion: Popular Violence, Ideology, and the Mexican Struggle for Independence, 1810–1821

• Preface xiAcknowledgments xvI. The Crime 1. Notions of Justice 32. Aftermath 51II. Circumstances 3. Tijuana 754. Mexico for the Mexicans 1045. Riding the Roller Coaster 137III. Belief 6. Witness to Execution 1737. Criminals and Saints 2018. Closer to God 2499. John the Soldier 275Notes 293Sources 311Index 327

Paul J. Vanderwood (1929-2011) was Professor Emeritus of Mexican History at San Diego State University. He is the author of several books, including The Power of God Against the Guns of Government: Religious Upheaval in Mexico at the Turn of the Nineteenth Century; Border Fury: A Picture Postcard Account of the Mexican Revolution and U.S. War Preparedness, 1910–1917; and Disorder and Progress: Bandits, Police, and Mexican Development.

“Juan Soldado is a rich, exuberant, and sensitive account of the making of a folk saint in Tijuana. It is based on extensive use of newspapers and remarkable interviews with eyewitnesses to events in the 1930s.”-William A. Christian Jr., author of Visionaries: The Spanish Republic and the Reign of Christ “Juan Soldado is a true cannot-put-it-down read that combines deep research, strong narrative, and remarkable insight about how a spontaneous religious devotion comes into being and consolidates itself. I know of no other work that portrays the elements of this particular sort of religious belief-its spontaneity, its stubbornness in the face of the Church’s indifference, and the matter-of-fact way it is practiced in daily life.”-Eric Van Young, author of The Other Rebellion: Popular Violence, Ideology, and the Mexican Struggle for Independence, 1810–1821

• Preface xiAcknowledgments xvI. The Crime 1. Notions of Justice 32. Aftermath 51II. Circumstances 3. Tijuana 754. Mexico for the Mexicans 1045. Riding the Roller Coaster 137III. Belief 6. Witness to Execution 1737. Criminals and Saints 2018. Closer to God 2499. John the Soldier 275Notes 293Sources 311Index 327

Paul J. Vanderwood (1929-2011) was Professor Emeritus of Mexican History at San Diego State University. He is the author of several books, including The Power of God Against the Guns of Government: Religious Upheaval in Mexico at the Turn of the Nineteenth Century; Border Fury: A Picture Postcard Account of the Mexican Revolution and U.S. War Preparedness, 1910–1917; and Disorder and Progress: Bandits, Police, and Mexican Development.

“Juan Soldado is a rich, exuberant, and sensitive account of the making of a folk saint in Tijuana. It is based on extensive use of newspapers and remarkable interviews with eyewitnesses to events in the 1930s.”-William A. Christian Jr., author of Visionaries: The Spanish Republic and the Reign of Christ “Juan Soldado is a true cannot-put-it-down read that combines deep research, strong narrative, and remarkable insight about how a spontaneous religious devotion comes into being and consolidates itself. I know of no other work that portrays the elements of this particular sort of religious belief-its spontaneity, its stubbornness in the face of the Church’s indifference, and the matter-of-fact way it is practiced in daily life.”-Eric Van Young, author of The Other Rebellion: Popular Violence, Ideology, and the Mexican Struggle for Independence, 1810–1821

• Preface xiAcknowledgments xvI. The Crime 1. Notions of Justice 32. Aftermath 51II. Circumstances 3. Tijuana 754. Mexico for the Mexicans 1045. Riding the Roller Coaster 137III. Belief 6. Witness to Execution 1737. Criminals and Saints 2018. Closer to God 2499. John the Soldier 275Notes 293Sources 311Index 327