The Vitality of Liberation Theology

by Nessan, Craig L.; Chung, Paul S.

• ISBN13: 9781610979948
• ISBN10: 161097994X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-09-06
• Publisher: Pickwick Pubns

Summary

The Vitality of Liberation Theology argues for the ongoing necessity of a liberating theology in a world of endemic poverty and economic globalization. Although some have declared its demise or even its death, Nessan articulates the imperative and logic of liberation theology for a new generation. Latin American liberation theology burst forth as the most original and compelling theological movement from the developing world in the modern period. The story of the emergence and proliferation of liberation theology, as* well as the opposition to this movement both within and without Latin America, is one of the most significant and lasting developments in Christianity since the last third of the twentieth century. Together with other forms of liberating theology from contexts of oppression in diverse parts of the world (anti-apartheid theology in South Africa and Namibia, Minjung theology in Korea, Dalit theology in India, or Palestinian liberation theology), Latin American liberation theology takes a prophetic stand against the hegemony of the status quo and joins league with other subaltern peoples in the cause of freedom from all forms of subjugation and oppression. The dawn of Latin American liberation theology inaugurated a new era in the global theological landscape. Book jacket.

Author Biography

Craig L. Nessan is Academic Dean and Professor of Contextual Theology at Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa. He is the author of Shalom Church: The Body of Christ as Ministering Community (2010) and Liberating Lutheran Theology: Freedom for Justice and Solidarity in a Global Context (with Paul Chung and Ulrich Duchrow, 2011).

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. ix
Introduction	p. xiii
Poverty: The Imperative of a Liberation Theology	p. 1
Latin American History: A Liberationist Perspective	p. 14
Emergence and Development of Liberation Theology	p. 29
Reading the Bible through Liberation Eyes: Justice Trajectory and the Gospel of Luke	p. 62
Praxis: The Method of Liberation Theology	p. 78
Basic Christian Communities: The Agent of Liberation Theology	p. 93
Two Questions: Marxism and Violence?	p. 105
Dynamics of Polarization: North American Critics versus Liberation Theology	p. 124
How Social Is the Gospel?	p. 133
Conclusion: The Vitality of Liberation Theology	p. 146
Bibliography	p. 151
Name Index	p. 155
Subject Index	p. 157
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