Philosophy of Theology, Religion

This section of the paper is a response to the following question: What are the two streams of liberation theology and how does each evaluate popular religion?

In order to place this question in context, it is helpful to briefly define terms. In this regard, it should be noted that 'popular religion" refers to communal, usually ritualistic, practices of an overtly religious character, many of which are intimately related to the culture of the community, e.g., Italian Americans who build altars on St. Joseph's Day and invite people in the community to come to their home and see them, the celebration in the streets that accompanies the Catholic "All Saints Day" in Mexico.

According to Boff and Boff (1988: 43-90), liberation theology can be defined as a general orientation to emphasize religion in terms of scriptures that address the plight of the poor and the need to help them. With respect to the two streams of liberation theology and popular religion, Can

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pular religion itself can be conceptualized as a creative response to historical circumstances, two of which are often poverty and oppression. In other words, popular religion is a way that some have tried to ease the burden and Parker states that it has worked to do that for many. Given this fact, it seems reasonable to believe that it can be used to continue to ease that burden by mobilizing to overturn what is an intolerable state of affairs. However, Parker (1996: 12-82) makes one point that should not be ignored, which is that those which seek to utilize popular religion toward the goal of social justice must understand what it means and what it does for people. They must value it as the people value it, even in cases where there is some belief that it may unconsciously reflect the assumptions and values of those in power. A secular depreciation of what has great value and meaning to those one is attempting to organize will often act as an obstacle to achieving good and just sociopolitical ends. Given the foregoing, in response to the question of whether social justice is easier to achieve with or without the aid of popular religion, the answer can only be that yes, for some popular religions, it is easier; however, i
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Approximate Word count = 1597
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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