Gustavo Gutierrez: Latin American Liberation Theology

Abstract

Latin American liberation theology has become one of the more dynamic and controversial intellectual forces of contemporary Latin American politics. Although identified with a minority left‐wing perspective, liberation theology constitutes an important component within the larger context of progressive change in the political orientation of the Church in recent years. The chief inspiration for liberation theology stems from the Conference of Latin American Bishops at Medellin in 1968. The central theme of the Medellin conference was that Latin America lives beneath a tragic sign of under‐development: hunger, misery, illness, infant mortality, inequalities of income; tension between classes and outbreaks of violence; the lack of participation of people in decisions affecting the common good; an external position of neo‐colonial dependency. The privileged classes, it alleges, are insensitive to the miseries of the marginal sectors and frequently resort to force to repress opposition with “anti‐communism” or “keeping order” as the justification for their actions.