Liberation theology

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{{cquote|"''Extra ecclesiam, nulla salus,''" as the older [[faith]] used to say. "Within the [[revolution]] anything," as [[Fidel Castro]] was fond of remarking. "Outside the revolution—nothing." Indeed, within Castro's periphery there evolved a bizarre mutation known [[oxymoron]]ically as "liberation theology," where priests and even some bishops adopted "alternative" liturgies enshrining [[Red-baiting|the ludicrous notion]] that [[Jesus|Jesus of Nazareth]] was really a dues-paying [[socialist]]. For a combination of good and bad reasons ({{wpl|Óscar Romero|Archbishop Romero of El Salvador}} was a man of courage and principle, in the way that some [[Nicaragua]]n "base community" clerics were not), the [[Pope|papacy]] put this down as a [[heresy]]. Would that it could have condemned [[Fascism]] and [[Nazism]] in the same unhesitating and unambiguous tones.|||[[Christopher Hitchens]], ''[[God Is Not Great|God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything]]''<ref>Christopher Hitchens, ''God Is Not Great'', Page 247.</ref>}}
'''Liberation theology''' is a [[Christian socialism|Christian socialist]] [[Politics|political]] movement founded in [[Latin America]], but has extended to much of the rest of the [[Third World]]. The movement was founded in 1971 by [[Peru]]vian [[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] priest Gustavo Gutiérrez {{lived|1928|2024}}, who was the writer of one of the movement's chief texts, ''A Theology of Liberation'' (1972), though [[Protestantism|Protestants]] are also involved alongside Roman Catholics. Liberation theology is about a [[faith]]-based and compassionate socialist response to environmental destruction, inequality, oppression, [[poverty]], and [[war]].<ref group=note>This contrasts with the American [[Religious Right]], who see [[environmentalism]] and left-wing economic and social policies as "Liberal Marxism" and against their 
right-libertarian
 "[[Christian]]" values.</ref><ref>[http://liberationtheology.org/ Introduction and Overview of Liberation Theology] ; [http://www.socinian.org/liberty.html Liberation Theology: Religious Response to Social Problems. A Survey]</ref> Overall, the central church administration has been skeptical of many of the more explicitly political or theologically liberal aspects of the concept, while still accepting the church's historic values of charity and a "preferential option for the poor".<ref>https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19840806_theology-liberation_en.html</ref>
Pope Francis has shifted the dialogue towards liberation theology in a more positive way, while not explicitly adopting it. <ref>http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2013/03/14/jesuits_and_liberation_theology_explainer_pope_francis_is_the_first_jesuit.html</ref><ref>http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/pope-francis-liberation-theory-vatican</ref><ref>http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/10/pope-francis-gustavo-gutierrez-liberation-theology_n_3900132.html</ref><ref>http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/comment/ambroseevans_pritchard/10559802/Liberation-Theology-is-back-as-Pope-Francis-holds-capitalism-to-account.html</ref>

==History==
The idea itself goes back to the colonial era, but became invigorated during the 1950s. One of the most famous proponents of liberation theology was [[Saint]] Archbishop Óscar Romero.<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-28845998 Pope lifts beatification ban on Salvadoran Oscar Romero]</ref> Romero became known as "the bishop of the poor" and was assassinated during El Salvador's civil war in 1980.<ref>[http://www.uscatholic.org/oscar_romero Archbishop Oscar Romero profile], U.S. Catholic</ref> Other influential early figures were Gustavo Gutiérrez, Hugo Assmann, and Leonardo Boff. Social revolution was seen as [[theology|theologically significant]].<ref>[http://www.landreform.org/boff2.htm A Concise History of Liberation Theology]</ref>

==Poverty is oppression==
Liberation [[theology]] claims that the root of poverty is [[sin]] within society, specifically oppression and injustice against the poor, and that practice (or praxis) &mdash; taking action against poverty and the sin that lies at its root &mdash; is as important as doctrine. (Contrast the [[Protestant]] idea of ''sola scriptura''.) It asserts that the Church can better meet the needs of the poor by decentralizing itself, and that [[God]] has a preference for those who are marginalized in society (the "preferential option for the poor").  Liberation theology is about liberating oppressed people so they can choose their own destiny.

==Brazil==
{{main|Brazil}}
The Brazilian group CELAM (the Latin American Episcopal Conference) was one of the major groups supporting LT-style ideas, though it never explicitly called itself such due to the fact that the [[Vatican]] was officially opposed to LT. It pushed the Second Vatican Council towards a more socially oriented stance in the early 1960s.

==Opposition==
{{cquote|When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why they are poor, they call me a [[communist]].|||{{wpl|Hélder Câmara}}}}
Liberation theology was historically opposed by the Roman Catholic Church and other religious critics (such as [[Glenn Beck]]<ref>"[http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2010/0825/Glenn-Beck-sticks-liberation-theology-label-on-Obama-s-Christianity Glenn Beck sticks 'liberation theology' label on Obama's Christianity]." ''The Christian Science Monitor'' (Aug 25, 2010).</ref>) on the [[Red-baiting|basis]] that it is [[Marxism|Marxist]]; this belief was especially potent and widespread during the height of the [[Cold War]]. Supporters of LT, in turn, charge that the reason why the Church opposes it is not because of [[theology]], but because it threatens their material interests, and because the Church had ties to [[right-wing]] [[dictatorship]]s in Latin America. In fact, [[Nixon]] planted the seeds to combat such theology in a meeting in 1971 that was followed four years by the {{wpl|Banzer Plan}} that was backed up by the [[CIA]], and in some cases helped by the right-leaning elements of the Catholic Church<ref name=CIA>[https://www.sdmorrison.org/when-the-cia-conspired-to-crush-liberation-theology/ When the CIA Conspired to Crush Liberation Theology]</ref>

Naturally, the [[American]] Religious Right, with its ''"[[Name it and claim it|blessed are the rich]]"'' [[philosophy]], contradicts liberation theology. In fact, there's evidence that at the very least one of the reasons of the expansion of [[Evangelicalism]] through South America was to combat Liberation theology too, considering their ties with right and far-right goverments.<ref name=CIA/>

==Not big fans==
Needless to say, supporters of liberation theology are ''not'' big fans of [[Christian economics]].

==See also==
*[[Civil rights]]
*[[Theology]]
*[[Name it and claim it]], the polar opposite in Christianity.

==External links==
* [http://liberationtheology.org/ Liberation Theology website]
* {{wpa|Liberation theology}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}
==References==
{{reflist|2|80%}}

[[Category:Catholicism]]
[[Category:Christianity]]
[[Category:Peru]]
[[Category:Political movements]]
[[Category:Socialism]]
[[Category:Social liberalism]]

Categories: Catholicism, Christianity, Peru, Political movements, Socialism, Social liberalism