For whatever reason, the OCR A Level Religion specification doesn't focus on actual religion. I'm talking about biblical etymology or genuine religious history. Instead the course is full of ethical chapters, more suited to a Philosophy qualification, or even better, it's own individual Ethics A-Level. I'm going to talk about one of the chapters most relevant to a Religion A-Level, Liberation Theology and Marxism.
The Messiah
Liberation Theology at its most basic level is the idea that the Christian goal should be to provide justice to the oppressed, in this case, the global working class. The inspiration of this comes from the life of Christ, a figure seen by many to have been the living example for of radical anti-capitalism. Jesus stripped himself of the capitalist obsession of private property, instead opting to live on the world around him in an era of strong communalism. Early nomadic lifestyles opted out of regulation and the systematisation of state monitoring, making them an enemy of governments who clamped down on the freedoms this life provides. Jesus' example is clear. Life does not need to resort to a maximisation of profits, or shareholder value to be truly fulfilling.
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The manner in which Jesus carried out his actions continued to follow this familiar theme. In Roman occupied Judea and Samaria the Pharisees were the dominant ruling elite of the time. These religious zealots dedicated their time to the adherence of tradition and religious text, as well as ensuring that everyone else was pressured to follow also. Jesus lived in direct opposition to these elites. He challenged the sanctity of the Sabbath, he challenged public prayer, he challenged performative instruction without a truly fruitful gain. This clash led to the demonisation of Jesus who utilised and weaponised their power to build a derogatory narrative around Christ, twisting the tale of the Jewish liberator to a blaspheming, Beelzebub-inspired liar who deserved a fate no better than crucifixion. An opposition to elites is a fundamental feature of the Marxist mission, another example which Christ adopted.
The Gospel for the oppressed
Additionally, specific verses of the Gospels indicate his political leaning. A verse I feel is often forgotten by the preachers of Prosperity Theology is found in John 19. After conversing with a wealthy individual who was still emotionally tied to his earthly, material gains he said, "It is easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle then for a rich man to enter the Kingdom of Heaven." I personally have no idea how this private jet wielding, mega church pastor millionaires have been able to pull wool over the eyes of their congregations for so long. Wealth has never equalled spiritual strength or success. Jesus directly opposed it. The main point I derive from this is the availability for change to be made from the actions of the wealthy as well as the persistent choice many of them make to ignore it. It's been said many times over of the availability to solve pressing issues such as hunger and water access, instead our billionaires continue to bankroll politicians, to weaponise state resources into conflicts, ending the lives of young working-class men in the pursuit of profiteering multi-national corporations. In the context of Liberation Theology this is referred to as Structural Sin, the manner in which society is organised allowing for individual suffering at the bottom of it. Structural Sin is directly tied to capitalism and the nature it gives to individuals. Life becomes a race to the bottom where we're forced towards the creation of scarcity in the name of individual gain. A life which Christ opposed.
A leading liberation theologian is Gustavo Gutierrez, author of A Theology of Liberation. Gutierrez's unique contribution was the idea of the 'preferential option for the poor', a Catholic Social Teaching. The idea attempts to claim that at every possible option our decisions should align with those of the most in need in society as was the case in the bible. Ignoring the impacts of God-sent famines, killings and wars on the lives of the middle-eastern working class, liberation theologians claim that there is a continued trend of supporting the disadvantaged being praised throughout the bible. Key examples are of course from the life of Jesus; when he saved a woman from being stoned, when he fed the five thousand and the aforementioned teachings,
Jose Portifo Miranda is another significant Liberation Theologian and author of Communism in the bible. Miranda ties in Marxist critique of capitalism into Liberation theology with its idea of alienation. Alienation refers to workers loss of self as a result of capitalism, losing their economic value (i.e the fruits of their labour) as well as their identity after being reduced to nothing more than a factor of production compared to a human being. Miranda believed that an obsession with private property is against God's purpose for mankind whilst also being counterproductive for fulfilling our individual purpose on earth. Christians often reference Jeremiah 29:11 which starts with the phrase "For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord" a message directed to a biblical prophet but taken by Christians as an indication that we all have a divinely appointed purpose by God. The necessity to provide, combined with the pursuit of corporations profits have led us to a position where for billions of people, they will never be able to access their divinely appointed purpose (if they have one) and will be stuck being eternally stuck meeting the bare minimum for survival. An illustration of modern alienation.
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Cartoon illustration of structural sinThe Modern Church |
The question which Liberation Theology poses is to whether or not the Church should play an active role in pushing for a greater egalitarian society. Whenever religion has played a role in government and politics it has been to achieve validation for its hate-filled divisive persecution of religious opposition, as outlined in the last post. Liberation theology attempts to break free from this, moving the Christian faith to a new era, in line with the teachings of Christ. However, opposition to this branch exists within Christianity. A prominent critic of Liberation theology was Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. He wrote in depth regarding liberation theologies ties to atheistic Marxism. An adoptee of a more traditional approach, Ratzinger believed that the Christian mission was not to instate the 'Kingdom of God on earth' as believed by the Liberation theologians, but instead to bring people into the Church, spreading the Christian message. Obviously, belief in this viewpoint is a matter of opinion, but as long as the majority of Christians blind themselves to global issues like this in the name of 'eternal life' Christianity will continue to hinder societal progress.
To conclude, I hope this gave you an alternative viewpoint of the life of Christ. I sympathise with the liberation theologians message, and, for the good of the faith, I hope Christians buy into it in the future.