Jung Mo Sung
Jung Mo Sung (born 1957) is a Roman Catholic lay theologian trained in theology, ethics, and education. He works within the paradigm of liberation theology and can be considered a "next generation" theologian-practitioner. He has served as an informal associate of the "DEI School," a research institute in Costa Rica where scholars such as Pablo Richard, Elsa Támez, and Franz Hinkelammert are currently working. He is particularly concerned with the relationship between theology and the economy as well as education theory in view of solidarity. Though he may be viewed as rejecting the idea that some  sort of historical subject, whether God, the proletariat, or even a particular set of social institutions, will bring into history the utopian dream of a truly just, peaceful, and harmonious society, he is not passive in the face of injustice. Sung has worked directly with basic ecclesial communities as an advisor, speaking regularly at various ecumenical events that focus on justice and solidarity, and writing scholarly books as well as those aimed directly at those laypersons who are involved in particular struggles for justice. He speaks about justice with the same ferociousness as most liberation theologians, but tempers his evaluations  of struggles, projects, and proposals with a sense of what may be temporally attainable. Early life. Sung was born in Seoul, South Korea as the eldest son of Sung Nak-cheon (성낙천; 成洛天). He attended the Samcheong Elementary School there before moving to Paraná, Brazil with his family in 1966. He has remained there ever since. Sung received his undergraduate degree in philosophy in 1984, a doctorate in religious studies in 1993 (from the Methodist University of São Paulo, under the direction of Júlio de Santa Ana), and did post-doctoral work in education in 2000 (at the Methodist University  of Piracicaba with Hugo Assmann). Employment. Sung is currently a professor in the graduate program of religious studies at the prestigious Methodist University of São Paulo, where he has been teaching since 1994. From 1996 to 2006 he was also a professor in the graduate program at the Pontifical Catholic University of São Paulo. Impact abroad. Several of Sung's texts have been translated into Italian, Spanish, Korean, English, and German. He is gradually gaining prominence and exposure in the United States, speaking, for example, twice in the last three years at the annual national meeting of the American Academy  of Religion (a large convention with over 11,000 participants). See also Ivan Petrella's "The Future of Liberation Theology" (SCM Press, 2006) and his edited volume of articles, "Latin American Liberation Theology: The Next Generation" (Orbis Books, 2005). The latter volume, Petrella states, "opens with Jung Mo Sung, the most prolific next-generation voice within mainstream contemporary Latin American liberation theology" (p. xvi). Dr. Petrella employed Sung's critique of earlier liberation theologians in his own article "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy: The Making Over of Liberation Theology, A Queer Discursive Approach" in "Liberation Theology and Sexuality", ed. Marcella  Althaus-Reid (Ashgate, 2006 [expanded pb. ed., 2009]), pp. 33–49. Publication of "Desire, Market and Religion" in 2007 brought Sung's work into English as the sole author of a book-length project for the first time. It was followed by "Beyond the Spirit of Empire: Theology and Politics in a New Key" in 2009, a book co-authored with Nestor Miguez and Joerg Rieger in SCM's "Reclaiming Liberation Theology" Series. Referred to. Jung Mo Sung's work has been predominantly influential in Spanish- and Portuguese-language academic discourse in Latin America. However, his work has also been discussed  in international publications, including: