Liberation Christology PDF

Liberation Christology The realization that concern for justice is an intrinsic part of christology receives a sharper and more critical focus when it is by people who are actually suffering from articulated injustice. The maj...

Liberation Christology The realization that concern for justice is an intrinsic part of christology receives a sharper and more critical focus when it is by people who are actually suffering from articulated injustice. The major Catholic theologians who developed transcendental christology in the 1960's, recovering the gen- uine humanity of Jesus, and narrative christology in the 1970's, recovering the history of Jesus, have a great deal in common: they are all white, well-fed, well-educated, pros- perous, privileged, European males. They all theologize, how- ever compassionately, out of an experience of political, economic, and social privilege. Starting in the 1970's and moving into the 1980's, a third wave of renewal in Catholic christology has developed as the poor and dispossessed in the world have begun to find their voice. On virtually every con- tinent, reflection on faith from the "underside of history" has resulted in forms of theology collectively known as liberation theology. It is a new way doing theology, one which draws of on the experience of systematically oppressed and suffering peoples. Done from a different perspective, it has different characteristics and method from either the transcendental or narrative approach. Liberation theology originated in Latin America after the Second Vatican Council, although its roots reach back into the base-community movement begun decades earlier. Theo- 83 84 Liberation Christology logians such as Leonardo Boff, Jon Sobrino, and Juan Luis Segundo have used its methods to present a new answer to the christological question, one which sees Jesus Christ as the Liberator. Such theology is not limited to one continent, however. With differences according to the circumstances of oppression, similar work is being done in Africa (e.g., Albert Nolan), the Asian subcontinent (e.g., Aloysius Pieris), Indo- nesia, and the Philippines. It poses a profound challenge to the conscience of disciples who live relatively safe and pros- perous lives in the so-called First World. Characteristics 1. The context of liberation theology is the recognition of the suffering of a particular oppressed group. Every word here is important. While frequently interwined, oppressions dif- fer — poverty, political disenfranchisement, patriarchy, apart- heid, etc. —so that not all liberation theology is the same. Again, individuals suffer, but liberation theology is generated when community is formed. Coming together in faith, people become conscious of their situation, pray, study the scriptures, and seek actions which will begin to change things for the better. Out of this interaction, reflections on the meaning of faith arise. As part of these groups, theologians are able to articulate these insights systematically, but it is basically a people's theology coming from the grass roots. Recognition of the oppression and suffering which have so many in their grip gives rise to a sense of outrage. One cries out: This should not be. The bishops America, for of Latin example, at the Medellin conference in 1968 wrote in the opening lines of their document on justice: "The misery that besets large masses of human beings in all of our countries is described in [many] studies. That misery, as a collective fact, expresses itself as injustice which cries to the heavens." The lack of food, shelter, education, and medical care, especially for untold numbers of children, contrasts with what is neces- Liberation Christology 85 sary for a decent human life and creates a climate of collective anguish which makes us genuinely scandalized. This sense of outrage is a religious experience. Impelling the judgment that the situation is against the will of the living God, it awakens a strong moral imperative in the Christian conscience to resist. Letting it go on is to have complicity in the wrongness. The context is different from of liberation theology, then, other forms of theology. shaped by the experience of It is oppression, within groups who become conscious of this and come together to work and pray with the sense that the situation must change. 2. The reflection of liberation theology is intrinsically in- tertwined with what is called prax is, or critical action done reflectively. Juan Luis Segundo, aHatin American theologian, argues that as a process of thinking, liberation theology is an — owl it arises at sundown after a full day of activity. In other words, when people who are engaged in action on behalf of justice come together to pray and talk about their situation and reflect on God in relation to what is going on, what emerges is liberation theology. Thought and action mutually feed each other. A very practical engagement with forces of oppression, therefore, is intrinsic to the doing of liberation theology. In fact, a convincing case can be made that if one is not engaged in action on behalf of justice, then one simply cannot do liberation theology. One of the key ingredients would be missing. 3. Liberation theology is highly conscious of the social nature of human existence. An essential aspect of each of us as individuals our relatedness to one another, along with the is structures we have created to embody that relatedness. There simply is no such creature as an individual person outside this network of relationships. Therefore _sm, as it affects the human heart and is utterly personal, is alscTsocial and shows up in the way we structure ourselves as a community. It affects how people, over time, have distributed power, and is embod- ied in the present as bad decisions of the past continue to be  86 Liberation Christology sedimented in structures. In addition to thinking of sin>s an ^individual act, one must also think of it collectively, socially, in structural terms. Similarly, the grace of God forgives indi- vidual sin and unites each person with God; but it not only transforms us one by one. It is also social, embedded in structures, and able to transform them. There is a great consciousness of this sociality of human existence in liberation theology, and the perspective is far from the privatized view too often prevalent among those who are privileged. 4. Liberation theology makes extensive use of social analy- sis. Unlike classical and transcendental theology, whose "handmaid" was philosophy, and unlike narrative christology which makes a partner of historical and biblical studies, this I approach utilizes social, political, economic, and anthropo- logical studies which lay bare the structures of the social situation. With the help of these disciplines, the situation is analyzed to identify the forces that are causing the suffering. What are the dynamics of a system of privilege for the few which causes misery for the many? Who is benefitting from the way things are arranged? Indeed, who benefits from any particular theological interpretation? Because it asks these kinds of questions liberation theology almost invariably comes up critical of the status quo. Being done in a social situation of oppression, it names evils and perceives a way forward certain of one thing: that structures must change. From the perspective of the victims, the chasm between what should be and what actually is is so great that superficial reforms of tinkering with the system simply will not do. Liberation theology opts for the changing of structures, and that means it is a conflictual theolog y, for the powerful are fiercely protective of their own privilege. 5. In addition to the goal of classical theology, which was to understand the faith, the goal of liberation theology in- cludes the purpose of changing the unjust situation. It is a practical goal in addition to an intellectual one that is en- dorsed. Theology here is seeking not just the gift of meaning Liberation Christology 87 from newly interpreted dogmas, but also the release of cap- tives. It intends to contribute something to the lifting of misery for actual people here and now. 6. The vision which impels liberation theology is that of the reign of God, already arriving. We do not have to wait until the last day for God to wipe all tears away from people's faces and for there to be an end to mourning. The new heaven and the new earth should already be beginning to take root, if not totally, then at least in real anticipations here and now. To use a technical word, what is operative is a realized es- chatology which functions as a critique of the lack of salvation in present situations. In this vision, what comes to the fore in a new way is the importance of this world, in contrast with a dualism which would pit heaven against earth. In a dualistic view, what happens on earth is relatively unimportant because we expect a life to come where eternal reward and punishment will be meted out. The more integrated vision proposed by Vatican II and strongly adopted by liberation theology sees that this world also matters, for it mediates to us in a sacramental way the goodness of God. Our ultimate salvation can be tasted in advance in the blessings of this world. In very concrete ways, then, God's saving will is violated when oppressive situations grind people down; but God's saving will appears wherever justice and peace gain a foothold. As the Latin American bishops said at Medellin: "All liberation is an anticipation of the complete redemption brought by Christ." This redemp- tion involves us as persons in all of our dimensions, so that no act of lifting oppression, however small, is divorced from the final redemption. Rather, it is part of salvation already hap- pening. Method Individual theologians will work variations on the theme, but liberation theology's method does involve three steps. 88 Liberation Christology Firsts an oppressive situation is recognized to be oppressive. It is named a sin and analyzed for its root causes. Then, because this is theology and not simply a humanistic discipline, Chris- tian tradition is analyzed for what may have contributed to this oppression. What elements coming from our tradition had a hand in this present circumstance? Where is the com- plicity of the church and its preaching? How have we under- stood Christ in a way that is helpful to the oppressor? At this point liberation theology becomes quite critical of some ele- ments of the tradition. Finally, guided by the experience of the oppressed, the Christian tradition is searched for elements thatwould yield a new understanding and a new practice which would be liberating. At this point liberation theology often notices things in our tradition that have been overlooked and lifts them up as a challenge to accepted interpretations. Jesus Christ "Who do you say that I am?" In Latin American liberation theology the question begins to be answered by bringing into focus the poverty of millions of people. The question arises: is it God's will that these people be deprived of livelihood, that they be malnourished, that children die, that there be inade- quate education, no medical benefits, no shelter for millions of people? Is this what God desires? No, it is wrong. Then why is it like this? At this point social analysis starts to uncover economic and political structures wherein the majority of people are landless while a small minority of people own all the land. The land itself is worked by the many for the benefit of the few. This in itself is a controversial analysis. The dispute over its legitimacy brings to mind Brazilian Bishop Dom Helder Camara's comment: "When I ask people for bread to feed the poor, they think I am a saint; when I ask them why the poor are hungry, they think I am a Communist." But it is that asking of the question why that gets to the root causes. Liberation Christology 89 Then it becomes possible to envision something besides just emergency measures and endless patching up; a radical, cre- ative quest for better structures ensues. The second toward answering the question leads to step way preaching and piety, with official critical analysis of the encouragement, have appropriated the tradition about Jesus Christ. What is there in the tradition of christology that has » supported this situation of injustice? Two things have been named. The first is the mysticism of the dead Christ in Latin American pietyTsymbolized in graphic crucifixes and in Holy Week processions in which the dead Christ is carried and pious folk mourn as if he had just died. This is coupled with an interior spiritual identification with Christ as a model. - What is wrong with this? How has this contributed to the continuation of a situation of oppression? Emphasis on the dead Christ works to legitimate suffering as the will of God. It is preached that Jesus Cnrfst suffered quietly and passively; he went to the cross like a sheep to the slaughter and opened not his mouth. The corollary is clear: To be a good Christian youv should suffer quietly; you should go to the cross and not open your mouth; you should bear your cross in this world and after death God will give you your eternal reward. When embraced in a situation of injustice, this pattern of piety ' promotes acceptance of the status of victim. Anyone who would challenge their suffering would be seen to go against the example of Christ. This obviously works to the advantage of the oppressor. The second difficulty that has been identified in the tradi- tion is the glorification of the imperial Christ. In heaven the risen Christ rules. preached that he sets up on earth It is human authorities to rule in his name, both in the civil and ecclesiastical spheres. Human authorities represent Christ and are to be one would obey him. In a situation of obeyed as injustice, this puts Christ in league with the dominating powers. The ethics which flow from it would lead one to think 90 Liberation Christology that anyone who challenged temporal or ecclesiastical rulers, all too often allies in the past history of Latin America, was disobeying the will of God. This emphasis on the heavenly Christ ruling as Lord in league with the earthly lords has been used to keep people passive in the face of their own oppres- sion. The third step is then taken. What in the tradition of christology has been overlooked and, in the light of the expe- rience of the poor, might be used to shape a christology that would liberate? Liberation theologians look primarily to the Jesus of the gospels. Is he really a passive victim whose example legitimates passive suffering? Is he really a dominat- ing lord whose will legitimates oppressive rule? What did he What about the fact that his ministry stand for in his ministry? to the outcast and sinners led to his death in an intrinsic and profound way? Is the resurrection not God's victory over oppressive forces? Reading the scriptures from the perspective of the poor makes it very clear (and this comes as a surprise, perhaps, to those who have not been suffering, but to the oppressed it comes as a great revelation of good news) that Jesus is on the side of the downtrodden and calls oppressors to conversion. A key text is the scene in Luke where, at the beginning of his ministry, Jesus goes to his home synagogue in Nazareth and reads from the scroll of Isaiah. Imagine how these words sound to people within a situation of oppression: The Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me Spirit of the to preach the good news to the poor; he has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. Sitting down Jesus says, "Today this scripture is being fulfilled in your hearing" (Lk 4:16-21). This prophecy agenda sets the for Jesus' ministry, as we see from everything that follows in the gospels. His preaching that the reign of God is near; his Liberation Christology 91 singling out the poor and those who hunger after justice for beatitude; the way he feeds and heals and welcomes out- casts — all of this reveals a choice, a preference for those who have not. Obviously, then, this is God's agenda for the poor: that they be released and set at liberty from grinding poverty and oppression. This is special good news for victims. It means that their present situation is not the last word about their lives, but that God has another design in mind. Touching structures as well as hearts, God is opening up a new future for the poor. One of the most powerful expressions of this gospel truth is the Magnificat, the song of Mary. After praising God for all the great things He has done for her, a poor peasant woman, she goes on to sing about the great things God will do for everyone else, perceiving this in very startling words: "He has put down and has exalted the the mighty from their thrones lowly. He has filled good things and has sent the hungry with the rich way empty" (Lk 2:46-55). How does that sound to the hearts of those oppressed? There is a clear message enun- ciated here that rings all the way through the gospels: Jesus opts for the poor, for the cause of the poor, as the embodi- ment of God who does the same. If this is the way the ministry of Jesus is read in liberation theology, then it flows logically into an interpretation of the cross as a liberating event. It is not that Jesus came to die; he was not masochistic. He came to liveand to bring life abun- dantly to everyone Doing so faithfully, however, put him else. at odds with the religious and civil powers not tuned into God's ways. In one real sense the crucified Jesus is a victim arrested, unjustly tried, executed. But he is far from passive.^ His death results from a very active ministry in which love and compassion for the dispossessed led him into conflict with the powerful. Even in custody he still had the choice of what attitude to adopt toward those who were torturing and killing him. His words, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what 92 Liberation Christology they do" (Lk 23:34) show was still for love and that his choice compassion. There is engagement active here, of heart and soul, in conflict with the mystery of evil and in tune with the mystery of the goodness of God. In the end, the cross reveals that God identifies with the one unjustly executed rather than with the rulers. Far from legitimizing suffering, the cross in a liberation perspective shows victims that God is in powerful solidarity with them in their suffering, and opens the pos- sibility of their own active engagement, both interiorly and exteriorly, against the forces of oppression. Coherent with this reading, the resurrection appears as the sign of God's liberation breaking into this world. It does not rob Jesus' death of its negative aspects, but reveals that ul- timately the loving power of God is stronger than death and evil. The risen Christ embodies God's intention on behalf of everyone who is oppressed; in the end, the murderer will not triumph over his victim. In this light, the ruling Christ is seen to be in league not with dominating powers who cause so much suffering, but with those who suffer, as ground of their hope. He is the Lord as the crucified one who liberates. Out from the perspec- of this reading of the story of Jesus tive of the poor and oppressed has come a new and potent christological title: Jesus Christ, Liberator. In the early church, believers borrowed names which had currency in civil society and bestowed them on Jesus, whose own life history and them with a different significance. For exam- Spirit filled ple, the title "Lord," used of someone who was a boss or an overseer of a group, was given to Jesus in acknowledgment of his ascendency over all other powers of this world. The dif- ference which his own was the value of history gave to this title liberating service rather than domination: this Lord washes feet. A similar dynamic occuTs^witrr^this- new title. Some leaders of movements for national independence in various countries have been called "Liberator," showing the role they played in freeing their people from dominating colonial na- Liberation Christology 93 tions. Giving this title to Jesus, liberation theology intends to confess his identification with the oppressed as well as the power of his name and Spirit to overturn that oppression. If people set their hearts on him, they will be on the path to wholeness and freedom. At the same time, Jesus' own life history breaks open the secular meaning of the title and revises it. He is Liberator not just for one group, but especially for the poor as sign of inclusion of all. Through him God's will for the justice and well-being of the whole world, through the lifting up of the lowliest, comes into play. Again, he is Liberator not in a violent or military way, but through active ministry, boldness in speaking, steadfastness in conflict, suffer- ing love, and ultimate reliance on God. Jesus Christ, Liberator, is a christological theme that evokes a new image of God, who is on the side of the op- pressed with the aim to free them. It also lifts up a new image of the oppressed, of great worth, the privileged focus of God's own care. Finally, it gives us a new image of discipleship, entering into the way of Jesus with the poor, a way which has a paschal character. It carries a new answer to the question, "Who do you say I am?" Neither passive victim nor dominat- ing Lord, Jesus is the liberating Word of God in solidarity with the poor. As christology, the liberation approach is more practical S than theoretical in its intent. In classical terms, it is more functional than ontological, focusing more on the saving, liberating power of Jesus Christ than on his inner makeup. Such a christology calls the church to discipleship, to par- ticipation with God in the work of overturning oppression. In order for Christians who are not involved directly with a particular situation of oppression to hear this call, what is needed is conversion. The cry of the poor must be heeded and their perspective entered into. Ultimately, however, liberation theology has made it plain that none of us is uninvolved, like it or not. The network of oppressive structures is an inter- 94 Liberation Christology linked reality around the world, with local manifestations. Not to acknowledge this is to remain in complicity with these forces. We have lost our innocence on this question —neu- trality is not possible. We may ignore the situation and im- plicitly opt for the status quo with its damaging effect on millions of people. Or we can name Jesus Christ "Liberator," thereby committing ourselves personally and ecclesially to enter with Christ into the struggle for justice. Readings Major Catholic Latin American christologies which are available in English are: Leonardo Boff, Jesus Christ Liberator (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1978); Jon Sobrino, Christology at the Crossroads (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1978), as well as his collected essays Jesus in Latin America (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1987); and the five- volume work by Juan Luis Segundo collectively entitled Jesus of Nazareth Yesterday and Today, especially vol. 2, The Historical Jesus of the Synoptics (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1985), and vol. 3 The Humanist Christology of Paul (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1986). Jose Miguez-Bonino, ed., Faces of Jesus: Latin American Christologies (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1984), provides an excellent sampler of liberation christology. For most North American readers, liberation theology needs to be mediated since the circumstances of the two continents differ so profoundly. Very fine interpretations are offered by Roger Haight, An Alternative Vision (New York: Paulist, 1985); Rebecca Chopp, The Praxis of Suffering (Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 1986); Philip Berryman, Liberation Theology (Bloomington, IN: Meyer-Stone Books, 1987); and Michael Cook, "J esus from the Other Side of History: Christology in Latin America," Theological Studies 44 (1983)258-87. Liberation theology is not confined to Latin America, however. For statements of this basic intuition from other contexts, see James Cone, A Black Theology of Liberation (Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1970); Vine Deloria, God Is Red (New York: Grosset and Dunlap,