PRAXIS OF PME THE PASfPORAL WORK AND THEOLûGY OF BISHOP SAEIUEL RUIZ AND THE DTOCBSE OF SAM CRISTOBAL DE LAS CASAS, CHIAPAS, MEXICO by Michel Andraos A Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Theology at Regis College and the Department of Theology of the Toronto School of Theology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of heolouv awarded by the University of St. Michael ' s College. Toronto 2000 0 Michel Andraos National Library Bibliothèque nationale 1+1 .canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Services services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395, nie Wellington OttawaON K1AoN4 Ottawa ON KIA ON4 Canada Canada The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant a la National Library of Canada to Bibliothèque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de rnicrofiche/nlm, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantial extracts f?om it Ni la thèse ni des extraits substantiels may be p~tedor otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. PRAXIS OF PEACE THE PASTûRAXlr WORK AND THgOLûGY OF BISHOP SAMUEL RUXZ AND THE DIOCESE OF SAN CRISTOBAL DE WLS CASAS, CHIAPAS, MEXICO by Michel Andraos Doctor of Philosophy in Theology, Faculty of Theology, University of St. Michael's College, 2000. ABSTRACT OF DISSERTATION A new pastoral vision and process emerged in the Diocese of San Cristobal de Las Casas a few years after the coming of Bishop Samuel Ruiz to the diocese in 1960. The focus of this new pastoral process has been to develop a praxis of peace in a situation of poverty and cultural, economic and political systemic violence in which the Indigenous people of Chiapas have lived for so long. The pastoral workers of the diocese and the diocesan organizations made an option to accompany the poor campesino and Indigenous comunities and their social movements in their struggle for a better life. This accompaniment advanced the process of social mobilization which has taken place in south-east Chiapas since the 1970s. This study, building on widely held views by diocesan sources and some scholars about the roat causes of violence in Chiapas, provides a brief background to the long and complex history of this social conflict which culminated in an Indigenous anned uprising that erupted on January 1, 1994. This work examines the stages of the pastoral process of the Diocese of San Cristdbal, its origins and theological foundations, and highlights its significant turning points. This thesis claims that there has been a clear focus on and codtment to a concrete line of pastoral praxis since the early 1970s. The focal point of this praxis has been the building of iglesias autbctonas, autochthonous churches, where the Indigenous communities of Chiapas and their concerns became central to the diocesan pastoral work. Bishop Ruiz's charisma and experience were key to the creation, development and articulation of the new diocesan pastoral praxis. Based on key theological essays, pastoral letters and homilies of Bishop Ruiz over more than twenty-five years, this study also explores the origins of Ruiz's theological insights. In the final part, this thesis offers a critical reflection on the analysis of violence and the praxis of peace of the Diocese of San Cristobal in the broader context of Catholic social teaching and Latin American liberation theology. It highlights the theological and pastoral contribution of the peacemaking praxis of this local chumh and the ways in which this praxis expands the universal Church's horizon and understanding of its mission and ministry of peacemaking. iii INTRODUCTION .................................................... 1 General Context ............................................ 2 Origin of this Work ........................................8 Method and Sources ........................................10 Thesis Statement and Outline .............m................13 A ork king Definition of "Praxis" ..........................17 Persona1 Note .............................................20 CHAPTER ONE: THE OF 'PHE CONFLXCT IN CHZAPAS Introduction .............................................. 21 A Brief Background to the Zapatista Uprising and its Impact on Mexican Society ................................. 23 Beginnings of a New Social Movement: The First Indigenous Congress of Chiapas ..................34 Social Mobilization in the 1970s and the 1980s ............47 Political Repression. Exclusion and the Uprising ..........61 Conclusion ................................................ 68 CHAPTER mm: A NEW PASTORAL PRAZtrs Introduction .............................................. 70 Reading the Signs of the Times ............m..............-76 From "Pastoral Indigenista" to "Pastoral Indigena" ........81 The Early Stage ...........................................83 Pastoral Re-evaluation .................................... 85 The Influence of Vatican II and Medellin .................. 87 A Diocesan Option for the Poor ............................ 94 "For the Church to Be Catholic. It Has to Be Tzeltalw: The Emergence of Autochthonous Churches ...................97 The Pastoral Plan of 1986 ................................105 The Late 1980s: Increasing Repression and Militarization .119 El Pueblo Creyente: The People of Faith Protest ..........111 Don Samuel and the Diocese under Attack from the Papal Nuncio .................................... 114 Conclusion ..................m............................119 CHAPTER w:BISHOP RUXZfS REP TfIEOLOGXCAL XNSIGHCPS Introduction ............................................. 123 The Beginnings of Bishop Ruiz's Conversion ............... 125 Early Theological Reflections ............................130 The Lessons Learned at Medellin .......................... 133 Disciple in the 1960s. Master in the 1970s ...............136 Service to the World and Incarnated Pastoral Work ........139 A New Theology of Social Justice .........................145 Transforming Structural Violence .........................150 Mediation and Peacemaking ................................155 Conclusion .....................................m.........160 CHAPTER FOUR: THE PRAXIS OF THE DIOCESE OF SAN CRISTOBAfi IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CHURCH'S TEACHINGS ON SOCIAL VIOLENCE AND PEACE Introduction ............................................. 164 Catholic Social Teaching on Peace ........................167 Social Teaching on Peace in the Latin American Church ....173 Social Teaching of the Latin American Church and Liberation Theology on Violence and Peace ................176 The Position of the Mexican Catholic Church .............. 185 The Indigenous Peoples' Perspective on Peace ............. 187 The Peacemaking Praxis of the ~iocese.................... 191 Conclusion ...................................a...........197 CONCLUSION .................................................... 199 BIBLIOGRAPHX ..................................................224 INTRODUCTION The majority of the world's peoples, together with the rest of Godts creation, are yearning for peace. Peacemaking, at this moment of our history, is urgently needed on a global scale. The theme of peace occupies a central place in the Bible. In Luke's gospel, peace to the people of the earth was the first good news from heaven at the birth of Jesus (Luke 2:14). And in his proclamation of and witness to the Reign of God, Jesus was essentially launching a project of reconciliation and peacemaking with self, God, neighbour, community, society at large, and the earth. The absence of peace at this global conjuncture calls Christian churches around the world to engage in a new reflection on social peacemaking, each in their own context. Though peace is a central theme in most world religions, scholars in the area of theology of peace from different Christian traditions often note that theological reflection on peace and its pastoral implications has not been given enough attentione1I believe this remark speaks as well for other world religionsO2This thesis, "Praxis of L~heologiansand biblical scholars from diff erent Christian traditions argue that there has not been enough attention given to the topic of peace in the biblical and tbeological research. See Stephen E. L~rs,"Peace, ff in The New Dictionary of Catholic Social Thought, ed. Judith A. Dwyer (Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 1994); Perry B. Poder and Willard M. Swartley, eds., The Meaning of Peace, Biblical Studies, Studies in Peace and Scripture, Institute of Mennonite Stadies (Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1992), Preface, x, xiii . 2 Peace: The Pastoral Work and Theology of Bishop Samuel Ruiz and the Diocese of San cristbbal de Las Casas, Chiapas, Mexico," seeks to advance our critical thinking about the pastoral process, theological contribution and challenge of the Diocese of San Cristobal, and in so doing, contributes to theology and to the peacemaking mission of the Church in the new global context. In this introduction, 1 will describe the context of my research topic, give a history of the genesis of this