Fernando Lugo and the Rebirth of Liberation Theology
Paraguay, one of the poorest countries of Latin America, with a tragic history rarely mentioned in the reports on ex-bishop Fernando Lugo’s assumption of the presidency, was welcomed into the light on August 15 after the longest one-party rule anywhere in the world, 61 years of the repressive Colorado Party. To assess the meaning of this event, both for Paraguay and Latin America as a whole, it is necessary to uncover a tragedy whose long night may at last be lifting. According to Eduardo Galeano, “The woes of the Paraguayans stem from a war of extermination which was the most infamous chapter in South American history, the War of the Triple Alliance, they called it. Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay joined in committing genocide. They left no stone unturned, nor male inhabitants amid the ruins. Although Britain took no direct part in the ghastly deed, it was in the pockets of British merchants, bankers, and industrialists that the loot ended up.†Eduardo Galeano, “The Open Veins of Latin Americaâ€. Before the invasion, Paraguay “was the only Latin American country where begging, hunger, and stealing were unknown†(Galeano). In Paraguay in 1845, every child could read and write. Its economy flourished despite its landlocked confinement, “The economic surplus from agricultural production was not squandered by an oligarchy (which did not exist); nor did it pass into the pockets of middlemen and loan sharks, or swell the profits of the British Empire’s freight and insurance men. ..Ninety eight percent of Paraguayan territory was public property: the state granted holdings to peasants in return for permanently occupying and farming them, without the right to sell them…The lively encouragement of Jesuit traditions undoubtedly contributed to this creative process.†(Galeano). To those who say there is no alternative to savage capitalism, Paraguay before 1865 shines as a beacon of what is possible.
But the dangerous example of building a future “without British bank loans and the blessings of free trade†(Galeano) could not long be endured. President Solano Lopez of Paraguay soon became the Saddam Hussein of his day, “the Attila of Americaâ€; “He must be killed like a reptile†thundered the editorials. The war lasted five years. “It was a carnage from the beginning to end of the chain of forts defending the Rio Paraguay. The ‘opprobrious tyrant’ Solano Lopez was a heroic embodiment of the national will to survive; at his side the Paraguayan people, who had known no war for half a century, immolated themselves. Men and women, young and old, fought like lions. Wounded prisoners tore off their bandages so that they would not be forced to fight against their brothers. In 1870 Lopez, at the head of an army of ghosts, old folk and children who had put on false beards to make an impression from a distance, headed into the forest…When the bullets and spears finally finished off the Paraguayan president in the thickets of Cetro Cora, he managed to say: ‘I die with my country’ – and it was true. Paraguay died with him…When the war began, Paraguay had almost as large a population as Argentina. Only 250,000, less than one-sixth, survived in 1870. It was the triumph of civilization.†(Galeano). I have expanded on this episode because only in the full shadow of history can Fernando Lugo’s triumph be understood.
Shod in sandals such as St. Francis might have worn, Fernando Lugo wore the open-necked shirt known as the ao po’i, the garment that the indigenous Guaranis wear. For the first time in many decades, someone in power would notice the poorest in society. Beginning his address in the Guarani language, he gave living testimony that a President would finally speak to the people of the country rather than court their masters in Washington.
Naturally, the corporate media made no mention of Lugo’s enthusiastic support of liberation theology. Nicaragua’s poet-priest Ernesto Cardenal, the former minister of Nicaraguan culture, was in attendance, wearing an open-necked shirt and sporting his characteristic beret. After decades of dictatorship that turned Paraguay into one vast concentration camp, the first frail gestures of defiance against that form of sin known as capitalism were being raised.
There are many approaches to liberation theology, but Gustavo Gutierrez’s treatment, in the opinion of many, has yet to be surpassed. One of the central insights of liberation theology was formulated by St. Paul, "For freedom, Christ has set us free." (Gal. 5:1). What is the nature of this freedom? We are now free to love. "In the language of the Bible," writes Dietrich Bonhoeffer, "freedom is not something man has for himself but something he has for others... It is not a possession, a presence, an object, ... but a relationship between two persons. Being free means 'being free for the other,' because the other has bound me to him. Only in relationship with the other am I free." - Gustavo Gutierrez, "A Theology of Liberation". In other words, human freedom is freedom from all the social structures that reinforce our selfishness, as well as the personal decisions that result in a fixation on self.
The "freedom" which Paul speaks of is the primordial condition for the free development of humanity. Liberation theology sees human development as a field of grace, where we receive God's gifts through participation in liberating action, including growth in the awareness of the economic determinants of our ideological creations and therefore the freedom to reorder those determinants. In this perspective, temporal progress in the sense of greater control over natural processes, accompanied by an ever-deeper insight into how human societies repress their own potentiality for freedom, is seen as the continuation of the work of creation. The central project of Christian economics and politics becomes the overturning of the structures of sin, understood as those social structures which incarnate the spirit of selfishness, which reduce one segment of humanity to objects for another segment, which represent breaches in the solidarity that God wills for humanity, the humanization which is incarnate in Jesus Christ. According to Gutierrez, "...only the concept of the mediation of human self-creation in history can lead us to an accurate and fruitful understanding of the relationship between creation and redemption." - Gustavo Gutierrez, "A Theology of Liberation"
Humanization is the goal of liberation. "The human work, the transformation of nature, continues creation only if it is a human act, that is to say, if it is not alienated by unjust socio-economic structures." - Gustavo Gutierrez, "A Theology of Liberation". Liberating praxis is therefore the humanization of those socio-economic structures so that human beings can assume their own destiny. From this perspective, faith, far from being a hindrance to social liberation, actually sheds a new light on the process of liberation which would not be available without that faith. Progress is not simply a process of greater and greater control over nature through the application of reason, but is guided by an intelligence that pulses at the heart of the world, bending us toward justice in a way that lives beyond our material interests.
"The direction toward
"The direction toward humanization is to become conscious agents of our own history", marvelous. The reality is, I think, that we are agents in "our" history. The challenge is to become "conscious" agents as your post suggests brcoll. I source my definition of history with Eric Voeglin, but it might have been the prof who valued him: "History is the present under God". This latter is the second dimension, "history" engaged as the process of redemption, a work in progress, wherein my personal redemption is essentially incomplete.
"Those orders (spiritual and temporal),although distinct, are so connected in the singular plan of God...." The distinction is important, real, but equally important, more so really, is their connectedness, the relation, like love, includes but is greater the terms alone (the Trinity?)
This is contemplation in action.
To become a conscious agent
To become a conscious agent of our own history is to assume responsibility for our impact on the social reality in which we are embedded. There is an excellent illustration of this in John Dear's latest post "In the Land of the Savior, 1985", where he described the martyred Fr. Ignacio Ellacuria's position as "'The purpose of the Jesuit university in San Salvador is to promote the reign of God.' Every course, he said, every paper and department, was aimed at liberating the poor and oppressed. Education here was geared toward a new peaceful El Salvador with justice and human rights for all its people. If a course or course work didn't confront what he called 'the national reality,' if it didn't promote political, social and economic transformation, it wasn't education, he said." Precisely. My personal redemption can only be carried in relationship to my brothers and sisters, especially the poorest among them. This redemption is not merely the redemption of my personal soul, but we are called to meet the Lord insofar as we constitute a community.
I strongly affirm both your
I strongly affirm both your major points. First, that love of justice by itself can make us inhuman - this is precisely the imbalance that led to the horrendous injustices in the name of communism in the 20th century. Anything can be justified when justice becomes an all-consuming passion, so love (or more exactly - mercy) must become a counter-passion.
As to your second point, I would very much like to hear you expand on "the platonic model which the current papal administration is attempting to resurrect". I believe that part of our mission toward God's creation is to value the human as human and the earthly as precious in the Lord's sight, not merely for its symbolic value, but for its material reality, whose care should become for us a sacred duty.
One must tread carefully here, but "humanization" must mean more than appreciating what we are today, but must enable us to envision what we might become and criticize what we are today. What seems now most missing, however, is not criticism of personal greed, lust, gluttony and so on, but an awareness that the source of these sins is not simply personal choice, but carefully guided economic policies. In fact, it would appear that exclusive concentration on personal sin is part of the strategy of weakening our power of resistance to the social crimes which are committed so freely.
I realize that these comments step beyond the bounds of your comments on the "iconized model that has done significant disservice to creation", but what I'm suggesting is that this model is not the result of mere intellectual error, but is part of a larger strategy that seeks to divert attention from the social context of this dehumanization.
"I would very much like to
"I would very much like to hear you expand on "the platonic model which the current papal administration is attempting to resurrect", brcoll asks.
First, a brief anecdote. As a student I inherited a prof's text which he had inscribed in the flyleaf, "The truth is not concerned with how many people it convinces". This could be the war cry of Benedict XVI. It seems that for him and his predecessor (at least) the truth is external, it exists independent and absolute. As God is "the" one, "the" true, "the" good, and "the" beautiful, the Church its teachings its authority to dictate is God's earthly embodiment, the descendent Mount Olympus. Our role is to 'participate' in, to penetrate, to identify with that truth as contributors, maybe; as followers definitely. Obedience is more significant than judgement.
Second, obedience to what? A hierarchical, complete system that emanates from first principles that are indisputable and unquestionable: The institutional church is the temporal embodiment of Christ and supreme authority is embodied in the supreme representative of Christ. The prime directive is to become holy as followers of the church.
Thirdlly, as human beings we are weak, corrupted and corruptable, as Catholics we must reorder within ourselves so as to become less worldly and insofar as we are temporal we must order, or reorder our lives by obedience to authority.
Fourthly, as weak human beings dependent in large measure by symbols and rites our best interests are served by symbols, signs and rites which are most akin to physical expressions of the "model" at its temporal best- the medieval church. (You might check out a thread entitled: "The medieval model of church is no longer sustaiable")
This certainly identifies
This certainly identifies Benedict's position well. Are you part of a group that is exploring alternative conceptions of the Church? If so, I would probably like to be a part of that exploration. I'll explore the thread you suggested.
Brcoll~ "Are you part of a
Brcoll~ "Are you part of a group....?" No. This is really a cunundrum for Catholics who are committed to a 'fundamental' catholicism that is Jesus centered and attempting to be contemporary. One feels and is indeed tagged as 'falling away' from rather than part of anything.
"Our participation must be
"Our participation must be complete as Christ's gift of self was complete." - this statement summarizes well the unity of being which our gift of self must embody. One of the pernicious effects of the structures of sin which encompass us is to divide our God-given unity into hundreds of subdivided parts warring with each other. We live our "religious" lives in complete isolation from our social and financial commitments. Religion has devolved into a private sanctuary where we refresh ourselves before returning to the brutality which requires our participation.
What most interests me is the content of this "humanization". If it doesn't call upon our full faculties, including our love of justice, then it falls short of true humanity. Maintaining the humanity of our relationships is a religious discipline, the refusal to cease suffering from all that would degrade those relations.
"What interests me is the
"What interests me is the content of this "humanization". You are, I think, absolutely right brcoll. The little I know about liberation theology would suggest that this justice dimension of humanization is one of the elements which impels its followers, and should impell all humans towards justice and the expectation of justice in or individual and institutional relations and interdependencies at all levels.
It is not only 'love of justice' but 'love and justice', I would suggest. When one loves justice without humanization that "call(s) upon our full faculties", as you state, we are in danger of obecoming the enemy ourselves. (Incidently, this is I think the platonic model which the current papal administration is attempting to resurrect as the be-allof the Church. Regardless of the debate about 'absolutes' there is no human justice, truth, love, virtue, goodness outside of the human intellect and will.
I really think that the Catholic Church has historically failed in this element of their earthly duty as Christ's successors. The rigid emphasis on the divine and the 'divination' of the human body, mind and soul as the iconized model has neglected and done a significant disservice to creation and to the redemptive mission of Christ within the human race.
The Latin American bishops
The Latin American bishops at Medellin in 1968 laid great emphasis on conscientizicion, the growth in awareness of their social relations by rich and poor alike. Growth in social conscience was identified as an element in salvific work of the Church. The bishops stated, “The Christian quest for justice is a demand arising from biblical teaching. All men are merely humble stewards of material goods. In the search for salvation we must avoid the dualism which separates temporal tasks from the work of sanctification. Although we are encompassed with imperfections, we are men of hope. We have faith that our love for Christ and our brethren will not only be the great force liberating us from injustice and oppression, but also the inspiration for social justice, understood as a whole of life and as an impulse toward the integral growth of our countries.�
The idea of "conscientizicion" provokes much reflection in one who was taught from an early age that Christian life consists in an ever-deepening sensitivity of conscience. It suggests a constant struggle for greater depth of awareness, an inward growth that continually reflects on the spiritual implications of one’s inner and outer situation.
One description of what this conscientizicion consists of is provided by Paolo Friere, who wrote with characteristic directness, “Liberation, a human phenomenon, cannot be achieved by semihumans…The conviction of the oppressed that they must fight for their liberation is not a gift bestowed by the revolutionary leadership, but the result of their own conscientizacao…It is essential for the oppressed to realize that when they accept the struggle for humanization they also accept, from that moment their total responsibility for the struggle. They must realize that they are fighting not merely for freedom from hunger, but for…freedom to create and to construct, to wonder and to venture. Such freedom requires that the individual be active and responsible, not a slave or a well-fed cog in the machine…It is not enough that men are not slaves; if social conditions further the existence of automatons, the result will not be love of life, but love of death.� – The Pedagogy of the Oppressed.
Our belief in the redemptive
Our belief in the redemptive act of Christ and our participation in it is as human as it is divine. Am I equating 'human' with 'divine'? No, I am only contending that our participation must be complete as Christ's gift of self was complete. We live in relationship, in varying degrees and levels of interdependence, these interdependencies are termed friendships, families, communities, societies, governments, nations, even 'parties', churchs. It follows then that our interdependencies in all their forms must be maintained as human relationships if they are to achieve their divine destinies. It only follows that they must be humanized to fulfill their human purposes. No?
One more comment about the
One more comment about the human/divine dichotomy. The Dominican priest Frei Betto was captured and tortured by the Brazilian military dictatorship during the 1960's and was taunted by his torturers for his Marxism. They asked him, "Have you forgotten that Marx considered religion to be the opium of the people?" He answered, "It is the bourgeoisie which has turned religion into an opium of the people by preaching a God, lord of the heavens only, while taking possession of the earth for itself."
I'd like to draw out the implications of this dichotomy by citing the "Decree on the Apostolate of Lay People", section 5: "Christ's redemptive work, while essentially concerned with the salvation of men, includes also the renewal of the whole temporal order. Hence the mission of the Church is not only to bring the message and grace of Christ to men but also to penetrate and perfect the temporal order with the spirit of the Gospel. In fulfilling this mission of the Church, the Christian laity exercise their apostolate both in the Church and in the world, in both the spiritual and the temporal orders. These orders, although distinct, are so connected in the singular plan of God that He Himself intends to raise up the whole world again in Christ and to make it a new creation, initially on earth and completely on the last day."
So I ask the same question as before: "What is the content of this humanization?" Does the renewal of the temporal order consist primarily of technological innovation, scientific discovery, or massive public works projects? These in themselves are not intensifications of our humanity, but simply applications of our current capabilities. The direction toward humanization is to become conscious agents of our own history, responsible for our own destiny. This growth in awareness of our agency, in our reciprocal impact on the world and its material and spiritual ecology leads to a more complete fulfillment of the Christian life because it more completely accords with the inner direction of human nature. The divine element in humanity is that which realizes our nature as creative beings, which is to say beings that constantly grow in spiritual freedom - freedom to love, to create and to become more responsive and aware of our connections to others in order to deepen our solidarity with all the living.
Interpreted in a personal sense, many Christians would probably endorse this viewpoint, but what is most commonly lacking today is a sense that “human beings are called to meet the Lord insofar as they constitute a community, a people.� - Gustavo Gutierrez, “A Theology of Liberation�. This extreme emphasis on the individual meaning of salvation is an element in a larger social and economic strategy, the strategy Frei Betto alluded to in his statement to his torturers. The “heavenly� dimension of salvation, the relation of “the Alone with the Alone� (Plotinus), fits quite comfortably with the interests of those who wish to own the earth for their own profit. By keeping Christian attention rigidly focused on one’s own individual salvation the person’s embeddedness in his or her social matrix becomes secondary and in practice ignored as essential element in one’s spiritual life.
The phrase, “…the singular plan of God to raise up the whole world again in Christ�, makes the distinction between temporal and supernatural planes much more fluid than previously. Itimplies a new view of human action in history, and therefore of history become conscious of itself in humanity. “The building of a just society has worth in terms of the Kingdom, or in more current phraseology, to participate in the process of liberation is already, in a certain sense, a salvific work.� - Gustavo Gutierrez, “A Theology of Liberation�. We are saved not only by persisting in individual moral effort, but by recognizing and working toward the Kingdom on the social and political plane.