Oscar Romero and Liberation Theology

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Hi Everyone: Three questions.
  1. Can someone please explain Liberation Theology? 2. Did Archbishop Oscar Romero preach and endorse Liberation Theology? 3. Is Archbishop Oscar Romero considered by the Catholic church to be a martyr? I would really appreciate answers from recognized sources. I am working on a project. Thanks and God bless.
 
luciavento said:
Hi Everyone: Three questions.
  1. Can someone please explain Liberation Theology? 2. Did Archbishop Oscar Romero preach and endorse Liberation Theology? 3. Is Archbishop Oscar Romero considered by the Catholic church to be a martyr? I would really appreciate answers from recognized sources. I am working on a project. Thanks and God bless.
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Liberation Theology is a heresy that is basically socialism under the guise of Christianity. It encourages class warfare with the promise that a man-made utopia can be achieved as the result. It can be very dangerous because it’s easy for a charismatic cult leader such as Jim Jones to lure poor people with such foolish promises. I don’t know if Archbishop Oscar Romero believed in it. If he did, it would mean that he can’t be canonized as a saint. It must also be mentioned that the when the Church canonizes someone a saint the Church is only officially recognizing that they are in heaven so that they can be a model for the rest of us. For all who aren’t canonized, we can’t know for certain where they went until perhaps when we die and find out who made it and who didn’t.
 
Archbishop Oscar Romero did NOT preach and endorse Liberation Theology
 
luciavento said:
Hi Everyone: Three questions.
  1. Can someone please explain Liberation Theology? 2. Did Archbishop Oscar Romero preach and endorse Liberation Theology? 3. Is Archbishop Oscar Romero considered by the Catholic church to be a martyr? I would really appreciate answers from recognized sources. I am working on a project. Thanks and God bless.
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You may want to read about Gustavo Gutiérrez the founder of Liberation Theology.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustavo_Guti%C3%A9rrez

He’s the founder of Liberation Theology. Taught about sinful structures and challenged the Church to espouse an “Preferential Option for the Poor.”

Pope John Paul used much of Gutiérrez’s thought when he wrote Centesimus Annus.
Re-reading the Encyclical (rerum novarum) in the light of contemporary realities enables us to appreciate the Church’s constant concern for and dedication to categories of people who are especially beloved to the Lord Jesus. The content of the text is an excellent testimony to the continuity within the Church of the so-called “preferential option for the poor”, an option which I defined as a “special form of primacy in the exercise of Christian charity” vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_01051991_centesimus-annus_en.html
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Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict however warned about using Marxist analysis.

Pope Francis seems to be pro-liberation theology, as long as it doesn’t follow Marxist ideology.
Despite Bergoglio’s reputation as an opponent of liberation theology during the 1970s, Bosca insists that wasn’t actually the case. He said Bergoglio accepted the premise of liberation theology, especially the option for the poor, but in a “nonideological” fashion.
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Bergoglio’s insistence on moving priests into the villas miserias, the poor slums of Buenos Aires, reflects that instinct, Bosca said. ncronline.org/blogs/all-things-catholic/hard-questions-about-francis-argentina-and-lesson-chile
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^The National “Catholic” Reporter has zero credibility for objectivity and truth. They are pure leftist opinion and spin with shoddy or no references used to support their claims. Wikipedia is unreliable as well.
 
triumphguy said:
Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict however warned about using Marxist analysis.

Pope Francis seems to be pro-liberation theology, as long as it doesn’t follow Marxist ideology.
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I just read more on it, and I agree that it’s probably OK as long as the Marxist element is taken out.
 
IMO the place where Liberation Theology goes horribly wrong is that its adherents usually approach the world seeking as if suffering were universally the result of extrinsic causes. You are miserable because you are oppressed by “the man.”

It’s an insidious problem because it may, in fact, be TRUE that you are oppressed by the man. But almost always, the greater cause of human misery is our own sinfulness. The fatal flaw of Liberation Theology is that it tends towards stoking anger and resentment of others instead of repentance and humility of the sort that is a prerequisite for receiving saving Grace.

In short, Liberation Theology is extremely dangerous to anyone who doesn’t constantly remind themselves of the reality of Original Sin and the fact that we ALL need a Savior, not just the rich and powerful. We all like scapegoats, don’t we? The rich make a pretty good scapegoat in any nation and in Latin America in particular. But scapegoating never really leads to improvements, just hatreds.

I’ve heard no convincing evidence that Bishop Romero suffered from this defect. I’ve heard quite a few angry LT loonies attempt to claim him as their own on the basis of his real compassion for the powerless under his care, but that doesn’t make him one of them.

Bishop Romero’s cause for sainthood under the martyrdom route is in process in Rome. It’s not entirely clear yet whether his assassination was due to the political implications of his pastoral care or directly because of his faith. We should let the smart guys in Rome figure that one out rather than jumping the gun ourselves.
 
livingwordunity said:
^The National “Catholic” Reporter has zero credibility for objectivity and truth. They are pure leftist opinion and spin with shoddy or no references used to support their claims. Wikipedia is unreliable as well.
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Father Z approves of the journalist who wrote this article - John Allen.
 
After briefly reading a couple of Monseñor Romero’s homilies, he appears to have been a man true to the gospel above everything else. What difference does it make whether he was killed for political or religious reasons? He would not have attracted the attention of the government and the guerillas if he had not so vocally defended the gospel. In doing so, he brought the wrath of both groups upon himself. That sounds like martyrdom to me. May God rest his soul.

*“As a Christian formed in the gospel you have the right to organize and, inspired by the gospel, to make concrete decisions. Be careful not to betray those evangelical, Christian, supernatural convictions in the company of those who seek other liberations that can be merely economic, temporal, political. Even though working for liberation along with those who hold other ideologies, Christians must cling to their original liberation.”*Oscar Romero June 19, 1977

Thank you everyone that replied! All the observations are astute, and I appreciate the clarity and directness of the comments.
 
luciavento said:
Hi Everyone: Three questions.
  1. Can someone please explain Liberation Theology? 2. Did Archbishop Oscar Romero preach and endorse Liberation Theology? 3. Is Archbishop Oscar Romero considered by the Catholic church to be a martyr? I would really appreciate answers from recognized sources. I am working on a project. Thanks and God bless.
Click to expand...
I read a book some years ago on liberation theology authored by Gustavo Gutierrez. And I read another written by one of the Boff brothers of Brazil. Both are well known and respected in Liberation theology.

I would recommend reading some of their books if you are interested in what Liberation Theology teaches.

Guiterrez in particular is a very intelligent man. I could tell reading his book. His mind is sharp, clear, and I don’t doubt erudite. But I thought similar reading a book written by Hans Kung. Although, I think they are two different kinds of men and I got the sense Guiterrez was motivated by more benevolent and honest motives. But that’s a judgement of mine and one stemming from my disagreement with and perceptions of Kung.
 
luciavento said:
After briefly reading a couple of Monseñor Romero’s homilies, he appears to have been a man true to the gospel above everything else. What difference does it make whether he was killed for political or religious reasons? He would not have attracted the attention of the government and the guerillas if he had not so vocally defended the gospel. In doing so, he brought the wrath of both groups upon himself. That sounds like martyrdom to me. May God rest his soul.

*“As a Christian formed in the gospel you have the right to organize and, inspired by the gospel, to make concrete decisions. Be careful not to betray those evangelical, Christian, supernatural convictions in the company of those who seek other liberations that can be merely economic, temporal, political. Even though working for liberation along with those who hold other ideologies, Christians must cling to their original liberation.”*Oscar Romero June 19, 1977

Thank you everyone that replied! All the observations are astute, and I appreciate the clarity and directness of the comments.
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The leftists movements throughout Latin America may have originally been inspired by the movements in Europe but I think they had some qualitative differences. While I loved and love John Paul II I think one of human errors was not to quite appreciate this as much as he probably should have.

The U.S. made a similar era several decades back when it viewed China and Russia as the same animal in all respects. They were not. But U.S., German, and French capitalism aren’t the exact same copies of each other either.
 
TimeEntrance said:
The leftists movements throughout Latin America may have originally been inspired by the movements in Europe but I think they had some qualitative differences. While I loved and love John Paul II I think one of human errors was not to quite appreciate this as much as he probably should have.

The U.S. made a similar era several decades back when it viewed China and Russia as the same animal in all respects. They were not. But U.S., German, and French capitalism aren’t the exact same copies of each other either.
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You make a good point very well. Pope John Paul as a Pole viewed most of the left as a potential danger. Which was politically naive. It also alienated many Catholics
 
Jimmygill88 said:
Pope John Paul as a Pole viewed most of the left as a potential danger.
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I feel this may be overly simplistic. He was no lover of communist socialism, with good reason, but neither was he a lover of liberal capitalism. We are, after all, talking about the same man who, earlier in his priesthood, wrote that “The Church is aware that the bourgeois mentality and capitalism as a whole, with its materialist spirit, acutely contradict the Gospel.”
 
LT is one of those things that makes me happy to be a Catholic.
It sounds so wonderful and reasonable. Someone like me would easily be taken in because it tries to ease suffering.
However the Church has the world’s finest minds looking at every nook and cranny of a teaching. If there is something that could lead the faithful astray, they will find it and declare it no matter how good the rest of it is.
No other church has such a deep tradition of intellectual rigor. It amazes me sometimes.
 
Jimmygill88: Thank you! That is exactly what I was looking for.👍
 
Deltadeliquent said:
LT is one of those things that makes me happy to be a Catholic.
It sounds so wonderful and reasonable. Someone like me would easily be taken in because it tries to ease suffering.
However the Church has the world’s finest minds looking at every nook and cranny of a teaching. If there is something that could lead the faithful astray, they will find it and declare it no matter how good the rest of it is.
No other church has such a deep tradition of intellectual rigor. It amazes me sometimes.
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I found liberation theology to be too concerned with the materialistic. But this was in part due to a lot of the abject poverty widespread throughout Latin America. Interesting enough, even many of the poor throughout Latin America viewed it has too material focused as well.

If Liberation Theology is a fault then it is not just a fault of the left but of those on the right throughout much of the history of Latin America as well. Kind of like the militant spread of Islam can be viewed as a culpable force in the development and spread of militant Crusader Christianity.
 
I think the fact that those folks shot down Romero while he was celebrating the Eucharist makes Romero a martyr.

One could argue that Romero’s teachings were “political” but his teachings were the Social teachings of the Church… Romero was not someone who thought that the Church should be only concerned with temporal liberation. And he was choosen as archbishop because he was a conservative. However Romero could no longer stand by and watch while innocent people were being slaughtered and exploited…

If we don’t stand out and speak for injustice, how are we not actually denying our faith? If the Church doesn’t stand for the weak and the marginalized how are we presenting the gospel to the needy world? .

Now one could argue his murders were Catholics who thought he was leading folks a stray. I will say okay But those Catholics, shot a man while the man was slaying mass. Even if you dislike your priest. Think he’s absolutely the worst ever. To shoot him while he’s saying mass. What about the respect for the Body of Christ.

To shoot a man during the mass is the very essence of the faith. To shoot man while he’s representing the very person of Christ.

To me in a weird sense for the Lord to allow Romero to die this way, is also in some many ways the greatest of honors. Romero knew he was going to be killed for being this outspoken.

I will say this if some Pro abortion supports shoot an outspoken pro life priest would that priest be considered a martyr?

Romero is a martyr the same way Beckett is a martyr.
 
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