The Church and Liberation Theology

One of the many issues that arises frequently in the life of the Church is that of "What does theology have to do with the Church?"  It is, indeed, a very strange question, in that it is assumed that theology emerges from and is constructed by the Church.  Nevertheless, it appears that from time to time, that theology exists in a world of its own, and making occasional inroads into the life of the Church.  There are many in the Church who believe that theology is not only irrelevant, but also unnecessary for the Church.  Those who think this way believe that theology amounts to ivory tower speculation that has no relationship whatsoever to the practice of the faith.

Throughout this series of essays, we have seen that Liberation Theology is a movement within the Church that seeks to address the ills of society, i.e  namely those of injustice and oppression of all kinds.  Liberation Theology, therefore, in some sense, seeks to be the voice of God on behalf of the downtrodden of the world.   Liberation Theology takes the message of the Gospel and that of Scripture as a whole, seriously, in both its contents and its approaches.  We now turn our attention to the issue of Liberation Theology in the life of Christians, both individually and collectively.  As we will discover, Liberation Theology is not a mere activity of intellectual pursuit or abstract speculation, but rather a movement, which to a certain extent, is the driving force for the Church of Christ to engage in the quest for social justice.

A New Model: A Church from the Poor

In the 1970's, there arose a growing consciousness of the true causes of underdevelopment as a problem that is not simply technical or political.  It is the consequence of a type of capitalistic development in the countries of the North Atlantic, which in order to maintain current levels of growth and accumulation, need to establish unbalanced relationships with those countries that are technologically backward, though rich in raw materials.  These latter countries are kept in underdevelopment, that is, the other side of development.  This development creates oppression on economic, political, and cultural levels.  In view of this, the long-range Christian strategy is to achieve a liberation that guarantees a self-sustained development that meets the need of the people, and not the consumerist needs of rich countries and groups associated with those countries (Leonardo Boff, Church: Charism and Power. Liberation Theology and the Institutional Church.  New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company, 1985, p. 7).

The historical subjects of this liberation are the oppressed who must develop a consciousness of their oppressed situation, organize themselves, and take the steps that will lead to a society that is less dependent and less subject to the injustices.  Other classes may and should join this project of the oppressed, but without trying to control it.  In this way, beginning in the early 1970's, countless young people, intellectuals, and a whole range of movements arose to make such a liberation viable.  They made an option for the people: they entered the world of the poor, embracing their culture, giving expression to their claims, and organizing activities that were considered subversive by the forces of the status quo.  More than a few took on the violence of urban guerillas and campesinos, and were violently repressed (Ibid, p.8).)

Countless Christians and organizations took part in this process.  They were generally individuals and groups of middle class extraction, full of idealism, but lacking political sense in terms of the concrete viability of such a popular liberation (Ibid.).

Later, after years of harsh repression, the bases of the Church took on exceptional importance both ecclesiologically and politically.  The people themselves took responsibility for their destiny.  This generally began with reading the Bible,  and proceeded to the creation of small-base (grass-roots) ecclesial communities.  Initially, such a community serves to deepen the faith of its members, to prepare the liturgy, the sacraments, and a life of prayer.  As they became better organized and began to reflect more deeply, they came to the realization that the problems they encountered have a structural character.  Their marginalization is seen as a consequence of elitist organization, private ownership, that is, of the very socioeconomic structure of the capitalist system.  Thus, the question of politics arises and the desire for liberation is set in concrete and historical context.  The community sees this not only as liberation from sin from which we must always liberate ourselves, but also a liberation that has economic, political, social, and cultural dimensions.  Christian faith directly seeks the liberation and freedom of the children of God in the Kingdom, but it also has historical liberation as an anticipation and concretization of that ultimate liberation (Ibid.).

Latin America

The present conditions and the future prospects of Christianity in Latin America cannot be analyzed as if Christianity were a self-contained and autonomous reality.  The qualification "in Latin America," has to be taken consciously, seriously, and responsibly as a conditioning framework for any significant reflection on the question.  To unpack what is contained at present and future in "Latin America" seems such a theologically and sociologically risky enterprise as to be almost folly.  We must, however, try to suggest some lines that we might explore, in order to point out some significant variables.  We can propose some approaches, even while we are aware of the ambiguity inherent in this exercise, and consequently of the provisional and contingent nature of all the hypothesis that we may formulate (Jose Miguez Bonino, "The Conditions and Prospects of Christianity in Latin America."  Guillermo Cook, ed., New Face of the Church in Latin America.  Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1994, p. 260).

Relative to the social, political, and economic conditions, it is probable that the dominant tendencies which prevail today in most Latin American countries, will continue for the immediate and perhaps mid-term future.  Latin America will remain, directly or indirectly, under the unifying hegemony of the United States and the neo-liberal economic orthodoxy proclaimed and supervised by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the international banking and financial system of the new world.  It will continue under the scrutiny order which the UN seems to have taken on (Ibid.).

If such a hypothesis is valid, we can expect that there will be in Latin America a worsening of the economic condition of the large majorities, i.e. a growth in the gap between rich and poor.  There will be a tendency to revert to two-class societies wit small and very conditioned middle sectors and a large totally marginalized percentage of the population.  Politically, this will mean formal democracies with different types and measures of control or repression.  Possibly, there will be an increase of local social explosions and occasional violent confrontations, social and political protests, and certainly growth in delinquency.  But we should not be quick to expect an ideal revolutionary situation or profound structural changes.  All of this means, of course, a high degree of social anomie and marginality (Ibid.).

As we can see, theology cannot be divorced from life.  Theology has to be historicized.  And because theology is the Church's expression of its understanding of divine revelation, the Church and its mission cannot be divorced from life.  Liberation Theology seeks to make the Church "keep it real."  In future essays, we shall continue to examine how the Church in Latin America, through Liberation Theology, seeks to address the various issues of economic, political, and social justice.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Dr. Juan A. Carmona