Find
Out How “Liberation Theology” is Shifting the Focus of Religion
(The 3-Minute Weekly Insight from Spirituality U.)
Liberation Theology is a spiritual movement that
is shifting the focus of religious work from the hereafter to the “here and
now.” It is a political/spiritual movement that began in the Catholic Church in
Latin America in the 1950s and 1960s. It now plays an important role in a
variety of religious endeavors related to human rights.
Although Liberation Theology began within Roman
Catholicism, it quickly spread to Protestant denominations, and was adopted by
activists in other parts of the world and in other religions, notably in
Northern Ireland and the Palestinian Territories of the Holy Land.
The term Liberation Theology was coined by the
Peruvian Catholic priest Gustavo Gutierrez, a leading figure in the movement
who also wrote one of its most influential books: A Theology of Liberation.
According to Theopedia,
Liberation Theology is a school of thought that explores the relationship between
Christian teaching and political activism, especially in relation to such
problems as poverty, social injustice, and human rights abuse. The birth of
this movement marked a radical departure from religious practice that focused
more on individual piety and the need to make sure that souls were going to
heaven rather than hell.
Liberation Theology began in South and Central
America in the context of grinding poverty and oppression that appeared to be
fostered by a combination of business, military, and governmental structures. These
structures had arisen after centuries of colonialism that enabled the rise of
small but extremely powerful upper and upper-middle class societies in many
nations in the Americas.
The key Liberation thinkers believed that the Church
was either ignoring or, in fact, supporting structures and activities that were
devastatin to the most vulnerable in Latin society.
Liberation Theologians suggested that the Church respond
to this situation by adopting what Gutierrez termed, “a preferential option for
the poor.” They saw this as a return to the original focus of the Church.
In practice, adopting the preferential option
meant that priests and other church officials should live simple lifestyles and
work to feed the hungry, take political action to ensure human rights, and
speak out from the pulpit to oppose actions by governments which were turning a
blind eye to the needs of the helpless and hopeless.
As grassroots organizations empowered under the
banner of Liberation Theology began to grow and spread, there was violent
pushback from governments and their militaries. Thousands of activists
(including a number of priests) were disappeared, tortured and murdered. One of
the most sensational crimes perpetrated during the pushback occurred in El
Salvador in March of 1980 when Archbishop Oscar Romero was murdered at the
altar while he was celebrating Mass.
Romero had begun his Church leadership as a theological conservative but
underwent a conversion to Liberation Theology after witnessing murderous
violence directed at his parishioners and the priests who served them.
Today, the roots of Liberation Theology can be
observed at work in religion-based social justice movements in places as far
away as Burma, Tibet and the Mediterranean area.
For more information about Liberation Theology
visit:
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