On the Side of the Poor

Overview

"In my judgment, the ecclesial and theological movement that began after the Second Vatican Council in Latin America under the name 'liberation theology," . . . is one of the most significant currents of Catholic theology in the 20th century." --Cardinal Gerhard Ludwig Muller

For many years the theology of liberation, which emerged from Latin America in the 1970s, was viewed with suspicion and even hostility in Rome. In this historic exchange, Father Gustavo Gutiérrez, one of the original architects of liberation theology, and Cardinal Gerhard Müller, current Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, offer a new and positive chapter. Cardinal Müller, who as a student of Gutiérrez spent many summers working in Peru, writes with deep feeling and conviction about the contributions of liberation theology to church teaching—particularly in its articulation of the preferential option for the poor.

In his own contribution here, Gutiérrez lays out the essential ideas of liberation theology, its ecclesial location, and its fresh enunciation of the gospel for our time.

Gustavo Gutiérrez (1928-2024) a Peruvian priest and Dominican theologian, was widely regarded as the father of liberation theology. His groundbreaking work, A Theology of Liberation, was published in 1971 (in English 1973), and it inspired a whole library of books from Latin America, and in time from around the world. His many works (all translated by Orbis Books) include We Drink from Our Own Wells, The Power of the Poor in History, On Job, The Truth Shall Make You Free, and The God of Life. Fr. Gutiérrez served for many years as a parish priest in Rimac, Peru. He also taught at many universities, and served as Cardinal John O’Hara Professor at the University of Notre Dame. His many honors, included induction into the Peruvian Academy of Language, the Legion of Honor from the French government, and the Prince of Asturia award in Spain. Upon his death he was recognized by Pope Francis as “A man of the Church who knew how to be silent when he had to be silent, who knew how to suffer when it was his turn to suffer, who knew how to carry forward so much apostolic fruit and so much rich theology.”

Gerhard Ludwig Müller was ordained a priest in 1971. After teaching dogmatic theology in Munich, he was appointed bishop of Regensberg. In 2012 he was appointed Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He was named a Cardinal in 2014.