AN ANALYSIS OF GUSTAVO GUTIERREZ'S: A THEOLOGY OF LIBERATION

Peruvian priest Gustavo Gutiérrez wanted to solve the problem of how the church could conduct itself to improve the lives of the poor, while consistently positioning itself as politically neutral. Despite being a deeply religious man, Gutiérrez was extremely troubled by the lukewarm way in which Christians in general, and the Catholic Church in particular, acknowledged and supported the poor. In A Theology of Liberation, he asked what he knew was an awkward question, and came to an awkward answer: the Church cannot separate itself from economic and political realities.