Pope Francis' views have ties to liberation theology

Pope Francis' focus on poverty will take center stage during this week's World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia, and likely renew interest in so-called "liberation theology," which sprouted in Latin America in the 1960s. Liberation theology provided the model for black liberation theology, which became controversial in the aftermath of America's civil rights era and was preached by President Obama's former pastor in Chicago, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, a United Church of Christ minister.

I became familiar with black liberation theology as a student at a small liberal arts college in Kansas in the 1970s. I and other members of our school's black student union liked to quote the Rev. Dr. James H. Cone, the Union Theological Seminary professor who wrote "A Black Theology of Liberation" and "Black Theology and Black Power." While Cone stressed the need to combat racism by any means necessary, the object of his brand and all liberation theology is to empower the poor and oppressed.

That seems like a natural for the Catholic Church, indeed for all churches and religious congregations. But the liberation theology movement fell out of favor with the Catholic hierarchy in Latin countries when it -- much like the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.'s civil rights organization in the United States -- was accused of being riddled with communists. In the 1980s, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, who later became Pope Benedict, twice warned priests not to confuse Marxism with Christianity's emphasis on helping those most in need of help.

Given that history, Pope Francis raised eyebrows when, six months after he was elevated to the papacy in 2013, he asked Gustavo Gutiérrez, the Peruvian priest considered to be one of the founders of liberation theology, to meet with him privately at the Vatican. Earlier this year, Gutiérrez, 87, was again invited to Rome to speak at a general assembly of Caritas Internationalis, a federation of Catholic charitable organizations. Gutiérrez acknowledges a "change in atmosphere" under Pope Francis, but he has tried to play down the church's past antagonism toward a philosophical approach to Christianity that it considered dangerous.

"I believe it's clear now that the key element of liberation theology is the special care for the poor," said Gutiérrez in a recent interview for Crux, the Boston Globe website that covers Catholic news. "There's no passage in the Bible that says 'Go and do theology, but there's one that says, 'Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations.' " Gutiérrez said Pope Francis is simply following the Scriptures in showing special concern for the poor.

That's a message that resonates wherever poverty can be found, whether it be in Latin America, Africa, or Philadelphia. It's a message that has helped boost the popularity of Pope Francis, who years ago in Argentina was considered one of the doctrinaire Catholic priests who opposed liberation theology. If true, his apparent transformation in that regard supports the Christian belief that we all must be born again, and with our rebirth display the biblical fruits of the spirit -- among them kindness, goodness, and generosity. Helping others doesn't have to be Marxist; it's simply the right thing to do. And doing right can be liberating.

Harold Jackson is editorial page editor for The Inquirer.