Unsung Icons of Liberation

Rediscovering the Ideals, Principles and Lessons of Liberation Theology through the Lives of Contemporary Exponents

Authors

  • Agbonkhianmeghe E. Orobator Jesuit Conference of Africa and Madagascar

Keywords:

liberation theology, theology, justice, peace, violence, poverty, prophetic witnessing, leadership, globalization, Dennis Mukwege, Wangari Maathai, Africa, African theology

Abstract

This essay explores the theological school and legacy of liberation theology through the exemplary witness and prophetic deeds of two African Nobel Laureates for Peace: Congolese doctor Dennis Mukwege and Kenyan environmentalist Wangari Maathai. The author argues that, although neither leader possess academic theological credentials, their prophetic witness to truth and justice, in the context of sexual gender-based violence and environmental degradation, validates the ideals and principles of liberation theology and offers important lessons on the vocation of a theologian.

References

Bingemer, Maria Clara. 2016. Latin American Theology: Roots and Branches. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis.

Boff, Leonardo. 1985. Jesus Christ Liberator: A Critical Christology of Our Time. London: SPCK.

———.1986. Ecclesiogenesis: The Base Communities Reinvent the Church. Translated by Robert R. Barr. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis.

Ensler, Eve. 2018. “My friend Denis Mukwege is a beacon for all men to follow.” The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/ct/05/denis-mukwege-nobel-peace-prize-violence-against-women-trump-misogyny

Ferraro, Benedito. 2007. “Jesus Christ Liberator: Christology in Latin America and the Caribbean,” In Getting the Poor Down from the Cross. Organized by José María Vigil, 113–122. International Theological Commission of the Ecumenical Association of Third World Theologians.

Fides.org. 2018. “AFRICA - The Nobel Peace Prize is ‘the symbol of an Africa that refuses to be overwhelmed by cruelty’.” Agenzia Fides. http://www.fides.org/en/news/64882-AFRICA_The_Nobel_Peace_Prize_is_the_symbol_of_an_Africa_that_refuses_to_be_overwhelmed_by_cruelty

Francis, Pope. 2015. “Laudato Si.” https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/papa-francesco_20150524_enciclica-laudato-si.html

McGrath, Matt. 2018. “Sir David Attenborough: Climate change ‘our greatest threat’.” BBC.com. https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-46398057

NobelPrize.org. 2019. “The Nobel Peace Prize for 2018.” NobelPrize.org. Nobel Media AB 2019. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2018/press-release/

———. 2021. “The Nobel Prize for 2004,” NobelPrize.org. Nobel Media AB 2021. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/2004/press-release/

Nobel Women’s Initiative. “WANGARI MAATHAI, Founding Member - Kenya, 2004.” https://nobelwomensinitiative.org. https://nobelwomensinitiative.org/laureate/wangari-maathai/

O Neoliberalismo na América Latina, Carta dos Superiores Provinciais da Companhia de Jesus da América Latina. 1997. São Paulo: Loyola.

Orobator, Agbonkhianmeghe E. 2018. Religion and Faith in Africa: Confessions of an Animist. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis.

Schneiders, Sandra. 2018. “The Vocation of a Theologian Begins with an Invitation.” americamagazine.org. https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2018/08/20/vocation-theologian-begins-invitation

Sobrino, Jon. 1990. Crucified Peoples. Translated by D. Livingstone. London: Catholic Institute for International Relations.

Tutu, Desmond. 1979. “The theology of liberation in Africa.” In African Theology en route, edited by Kofi Appiah-Kubi and Sérgio Torres, 162–168. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis.

Published

2023-10-11