Abrahamic minorities in Helder Camara's political philosophy∗

Abstract

Abstract Groups of individuals, ‘Abrahamic minorities’, wedded to the concept of nonviolence, form the critical element in Helder Camara's program for attaining the ideal society. For Camara, ‘Abrahamic minorities’ are a means of activating and combining his education, ethical transformation and nonviolent action programs for changing the ‘structures’ and ‘psycho‐social’ phenomena that lead to, or permit, ‘sub‐human conditions’ in society. The efforts of ‘Abrahamic minorities’ to understand the structures inherent at the national and international levels led to the implementation of an educative program to this end. Similarly, their efforts to discover the rights and obligations of themselves and of other individuals, groups and nations mean that Camara's ethical program will be implemented. Finally, their advocacy of nonviolence suggests that they will initiate the necessary activity for addressing iniquitous national and international structures.