Book Description

Liberation theology was the most important theological movement of the 20th century. Its influence shook the Third and First world. Born from an epistemological break from the whole of the Western theological tradition, liberation theology was not one theological school among others in the canon. Instead, it sought a new understanding of theology itself. The basis of that new understanding was the attempt to do theology from the perspective of the poor majority of humankind. Liberation theology - whether Latin American, U.S. Black, African, Feminist - realized that theology had traditionally been done from the standpoint of privilege. Western theology was the product of a minority of humankind living in a state of affluent exception; poverty was the norm for the majority of the world's population. By grounding itself in the perspective of the poor, liberation theology came as close as possible to being the first truly global theology. This series recovers the heart and soul of liberation theology by focusing on authors that ground their work in the perspective of the majority of the world's poor. "Another Possible World" is the book resulting from the first World Forum on liberation theology that took place in 2005 in Brazil. This international gathering discussed themes of liberation, ecumenical differences, inter-religious commitments and historical and interdisciplinary methodologies from the perspective of the global poor. The resulting chapters come from an internationally acclaimed group of contributors. This collection brings the current debates within liberation theologies right up to date and allows readers to acquaint themselves with key thinkers on the most relevant topics within this discipline.