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Christian Theology Groody 000.FM 1/15/07 7:08 PM Page iii opt Thee Optionion th for the Poor in Christian Theology edited by Daniel G. Groody University of Notre Dame Press Notre Dame, Indiana © 2007 University of Notre Dame Press Groody 000.FM 1/15/07 7:08 PM Page iv Copyright © 2007 by University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, Indiana 46556 www.undpress.nd.edu All Rights Reserved Manufactured in the United States of America Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The option for the poor in Christian theology / edited by Daniel G. Groody. p. cm. Includes index. ISBN-13: 978-0-268-02971-5 (pbk. : alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-268-02971-7 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Poverty—Religious aspects—Catholic Church—Congresses. 2. Liberation theology—Congresses. I. Groody, Daniel G., 1964 – BX2347.8.P66O77 2007 261.8'325—dc22 2006039789 ∞ The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources. © 2007 University of Notre Dame Press Groody 00.Intro 1/15/07 7:08 PM Page 1 Introduction DANIEL G. GROODY In the spring of 2000, Virgilio Elizondo and I attended a meeting in Paris, France. While we were there, he asked me if I wanted to get together with a good friend of his named Gustavo Gutiérrez. I was grateful for the invi- tation because for many years I had been greatly influenced by Gutiérrez’s writings and welcomed the chance to meet him in person. The three of us went out to lunch together and spent hours talking about many things, not the least of which was the option for the poor in Christian theology and where it stood as an issue within the church and the academy today. This lunch in Paris was particularly timely. It was becoming less clear where this topic of the poor fit within the discipline of academic theology. Undoubtedly, many today recognize how Gutiérrez has pioneered a new area in the discipline and has put this whole notion of the preferential op- tion for the poor on the theological map. But as I looked at the current state of the question, I wondered if, at least in theology, the theme was receding into the background. There were various reasons why the preferential option for the poor seemed at low ebb. One was the inevitable development of the theme and its transformation into new expressions, accelerated in particular by 1 © 2007 University of Notre Dame Press Groody 00.Intro 1/15/07 7:08 PM Page 2 2 Daniel G. Groody changes brought about by globalization. While Gustavo’s groundbreaking work A Theology of Liberation in 1973 reflected on the preferential option from the perspective of those who faced dire economic poverty, in the years that followed it became evident that this option had to include not just those who were marginalized economically but also those who were poor because of gender, race, culture, and other reasons.1 As the idea de- veloped, this central notion of God’s preference for the poor extended to all who are vulnerable. The notion has not disappeared; whereas in previ- ous generations most areas did not show even a trace of reflection on the subject, today almost every area of theology shows its influence. At the same time I realized that the notion of the option for the poor could be understood so broadly as to lose much of its meaning. Saying “We are all poor” takes the edge off the challenge of the option and makes the notion so commonplace that it is hollow and empty. Such a perspective also preempts the conversion process that is inevitably a part of this option. Further, it can reduce the task of theology to an abstract exercise rooted in peripheral questions rather than a concrete exercise of faith seeking un- derstanding within the particular social challenges of our contemporary context. Partially because our understanding of poverty has become more and more complex, and also partially because the option for the poor has become so watered down that it can apply to everyone and mean little, many theologians now believe that the liberation theology of the late 1960s through the 1990s has made its contribution and run its course. Some might even say the river has dried up. Given that fewer people seem to be inter- ested in the topic, it looks almost as if this topic has been somewhat of a theological fad that has come and gone. The fire that ignited such passion a few decades ago has burned low, and as the coals of liberation begin to lose their heat some wonder whether it will simply die out all together or be just an occasional spark here and there. As Gutiérrez, Elizondo, and I ate lunch, I thought much about these questions, so it seemed particularly ur- gent to throw some more socioeconomic wood on the theological fire. POVERTY: AN ANCIENT PROBLEM, A CONTEMPORARY THEOLOGICAL CHALLENGE Since Elizondo, Gutiérrez, and others began writing about poverty and liberation in the 1960s, in many respects the situation of the poor today © 2007 University of Notre Dame Press Groody 00.Intro 1/15/07 7:08 PM Page 3 Introduction 3 has gotten worse, not better. While there is good news that more than half the world is experiencing economic progress because of globaliza- tion, the bad news is that the other half still does not have even one foot on the development ladder.2 More than half of the planet still lives on less than two dollars a day, and the current course of globalization has only further widened the gap between the rich and the poor. The income dis- parities between the richest and the poorest have deteriorated at a rate never before witnessed in human history.3 The economic difference be- tween the richest and poorest countries was 3:1 in 1820, 11:1 in 1913, 35:1 in 1950, 44:1 in 1973, and 72:1 in 1992.4 Research in the new millen- nium indicates that this gap continues to widen and worsen.5 The critical condition of the poor in our times makes the concept of the option for the poor not less but more important than ever. And the task of thinking critically and academically in the face of the current, complex social reality of poverty is one of the great theological challenges, if not the central theo- logical challenge, of our times. This volume seeks to address that challenge as well as examine the ways it is being reconceived and renegotiated in light of today’s global realities. Gutiérrez, Elizondo, and others like them did not invent the notion of the preferential option for the poor but rather drew it out of the Christian tradition. They sought to read current social problems in light of the Gos- pel, as did the first Christians. From the earliest days of the church, the re- ality of poverty has made an explicit demand on Christian conscience.6 The preferential option for the poor is in fact one of the oldest and most central themes of Scripture. Amidst the doctrinal controversies of the early church, when many dimensions of the faith were being debated by Paul and theological doctrine was still up for grabs, the one thing that was clear to all of them—whatever their doctrinal differences—was “to be mindful of the poor” (Gal. 2:10). This is no less true today. Whatever doctrinal and ecclesiastical controversies the church faces, the one central issue of Christian faith that all can agree on is commitment to the poor. What does theology say to the countless people still subjected to high in- fant mortality, inadequate housing, health problems, starvation wages, unemployment and underemployment, malnutrition, job uncertainty, compulsory mass migration, and many other problems? While theologians have made many important contributions over the last decades and liberationist themes have permeated various disci- plines, the issue of the poor more and more appears to sit on the sidelines © 2007 University of Notre Dame Press Groody 00.Intro 1/15/07 7:08 PM Page 4 4 Daniel G. Groody of Christian theology rather than be one of the central players on the theo- logical field. Whatever else theology says or wherever else it takes us, the preferential option for the poor is at the heart of Christian theology. With- out it, theology can become useless or irrelevant. But how does one make this option and do Christian theology in a globalized world and even a theological discipline that has become more and more complex? To me this is one of the great challenges that lie ahead, and it has been one of the great moments to build a community of reflection where a team of theo- logians could work together to reflect on how our theological task could be enriched when done from the perspective of the least of our broth- ers and sisters. When Gutiérrez, Elizondo, and I came to the University of Notre Dame in the fall of 2000, I believed that one of the important places to begin this community of dialogue would be a conference on the prefer- ential option for the poor. I believed such an event could bring together a group of senior theologians and honor the foundational work of Gutiér- rez and Elizondo but also bring together from around the world younger theologians like myself who were interested in this same theme and could begin to advance the topic in the decades ahead.
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