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References on Oscar Romero |
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"We cannot do everything and there is a sense of liberation in realizing
that. This enables us to do something, and to do it very well. It may be
incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity
for God's grace to enter and do the rest."
In 2002 we studied Apiritual Innovators where the lives of 75 spiritual
people of the 20th century were reviewed. This is the Oscar Romero page
from that study. Note, Thomas Merton is also in that book but was not featured
in the study. |
Monsignor Romero:
A Bishop for the Third Millennium |
Read how another Bishop, Oscar Andrés Cardinal Rodriguez Maradiaga, SDB,
Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, speaks of Romero and his great ongoing
influence. "He had just returned from Belgium where he had received
an honorary Doctorate from the University of Louvain. He stopped by to
say hello to us, and he told us that he had selected The Political Dimension
of Faith from the Perspective of the Poor as the theme of his doctoral
dissertation. He told us: “I tried to explain how for us, in El Salvador,
the key to understanding Christian faith is the poor..." |
| "The Romero Prayer" |
From the Marianist Social Justice Collaborative, a lovely prayer meditation
from Romero about how we work without knowing the results. Including what
has become known as "The Romero Prayer" a singlular distillation
of his ideas.
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Text in doc format
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Romero Letter to President Carter, February 17, 1980. |
THE
LAST
SERMON |
Archbishop Oscar Romero. The Last Sermon (1980). "Let no one be offended because we use the divine words read at our mass to shed light on the social, political and economic situation of our people. Not to do so would be unchristian. Christ desires to unite himself with humanity, so that the light he brings from God might become life for nations and individuals." |
| Romero Statue |
Brief
bio and photo of new statue of Romero in Westminster Abby. |
Remembering
the
Assassination |
Remembering the Assassination of Archbishop Oscar Romero March 24, 1980.
An excellent collection of information.
"When the church hears the cry of the oppressed it cannot but denounce
the social structures that give rise to and perpetuate the misery from
which the cry arises." ... Romero |
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El Salvador |
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Roque Dalton coined the term "half-dead" to describe the submissive poor
that were gathered into action and was referenced in the chapter on the
poor. click left for bio from Wikipedia, "...he was a leftist Salvadoran poet and journalist. He is one of Latin America's most compelling poets. He wrote emotionally strong, sometimes sarcastic,
and image-loaded works dealing with life, death, love, and politics. He
was executed 5 years before Romero and is quoted in the chapter. Very little
of his poetry has been translated to English. HERE is one. "I wanted to talk about life of all its melodious corners
..." |
| The National Security Archive |
El Salvador: War, Peace, and Human Rights, 1980-1994 contains 1,384 United States intelligence, defense, and diplomatic records
representing 6,614 pages of formerly secret documentation produced by the
highest levels of the U.S. government. The collection brings together a
wealth of primary source materials, tracing the human rights catastrophe
that gripped El Salvador throughout its terrible civil conflict. |
Library
of Congress
-
El Salvador |
Library of Congress - Federal Research Division - Country Studies - El
Salvador has a broad collection of stats and facts and summaries. One cannot however book mark their individual sub-sections or pages. The link is to the El Salvador Section Table of Contents. Of particular note are the stats on population and economy and military. The historical reviews especiallly of the Romero period are interesting. The church and especially the jesuits were considered targets because of their support for the insurgency. I have copied the principle explanation of the Role of Religion from Chapter 2 to our own server |
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Report of the UN Truth Commission on El Salvador, April 1993, United Nations Security Council.
"Between 1980 and 1991, the Republic of El Salvador in Central America
was engulfed in a war which plunged Salvadorian society into violence,
left it with thousands and thousands of people dead and exposed it to appalling
crimes, until the day - 16 January 1992 - when the parties, reconciled,
signed the Peace Agreement in the Castle of Chapultepec, Mexico, and brought
back the light and the chance to re-emerge from madness to hope"
For a more readable yet fair summary click this link to School of the Americas Watch. |
| CRISPAZ |
Christians for Peace in El Salvador, was founded in 1984. We are a faith-based organization dedicated to the
mutual accompaniment with the church of the poor and marginalized communities
in El Salvador. In building bridges of solidarity between communities in
El Salvador and those in our home countries, we strive together for peace,
justice, and human liberation. As an organization, we are politically non-partisan
and committed to nonviolence.. |
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Historical Background on El Salvador. from the University of Minnesota Morris for the course Social Change and Development in Latin America Anth/Soc 23011 a point summary of the tumultuous history of San Salvador showing how
thoroughly it is a classic history of the rich oppressing the poor. |
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Liberation Theology |
| A Concise History |
A Concise History of Liberation Theology By Leonardo and Clodovis Boff.
An excellent summary from the book Introducing Liberation Theology published by Orbis Books. |
| Liberation Theology Chronology |
Liberation Theology Chronology C John Yu has worked up a time line for Liberation Theology starting in
1512 with some Catholics advocating meeting the American peoples with the
gospel and not treating them as pagans. |
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Liberation theology is an important and controversial school in the theology of the Catholic Church after
the Second
Vatican Council. It is often cited as a form of Christian
socialism, and it has had particularly widespread influence in Latin America and among the
Jesuits, although its influence has diminished since important parts of its teaching
were rejected by the Vatican. The current pope, Benedict XVI, has
also been long known as an opponent of liberation theology.
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Gustavo Gutierrez, the "Father" of liberation theology, a Dominican theologian
in Peru, still working for the cause of the poor. See. 75 Spiritual Innovators study page, and his Wikipedia entry. |
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"The Bolivarian Missions are a series of social justice, social welfare,
anti-poverty, and educational programs implemented under the administration of
the current Venezuelan president
Hugo Chávez. They draw
their name from the historical Venezuelan hero Simón Bolívar." Here we have a totally secular program very much looking to help the poor. Chavez claims two strange bedfellows as his mentors - Noam Chomsky and Jesus of Nazareth. |
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Elsa Tamez is a theologian and professor at the Biblical University in
San Jose, Costa Rica.
Letter on the invasion of Iraq with reply by US feminist theologian Rosemary
Ruether.
Concilium-a world journal of theology. 2003-2 The Discourse of Human Dignity
An Ecclesial Community - a model of how to incorporate women in churches
The Pastoral Letters 1 & 2 Timothy, Titus - an online course at Vanderbilt
U. |
(journals on line) |
Whatever happened to liberation theology? New directions for theological reflection in latin America Anglican Theological Review, Fall 2001 by Kater, John L Jr. "Thirty years ago, Christians around the world were introduced to Latin American liberation theology, a powerful theological movement emerging among Christians in that part of the world but with links to currents stirring in many other places. A generation later, the context in which liberation theology took shape has changed significantly, its advocates are older and the concerns and aspirations it touched have also changed." |
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PBS - Globalizing the Sacred Salvadoran-American scholar of religion, Manuel Vásquez, says Americans have not grasped the way their culture will be changed by the religious and spiritual worldviews being imported. And as he sees it, indigenous religious practice and identity are growing more influential in the global age. This program is available as MP3, stream or podcast. It is one in a series of the Speaking of Faith Series of programs..
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The Future of
Liberation
Theology |
The Future of Liberation Theology by Daniel H. Levine. Director of the Program of Latin American and Caribbean Studies at the University of Michigan.
"For over twenty years, the central goal of liberation theology has
been to make religion and the churches into active agents of change in
Latin America." |
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The Poor |
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Witness and Struggle or Politics and Power: MCC Engages the World - Ronald J. R. Mathies. Article from the perspective of the Mennonite
Central Committee on aspects raised in the present study - Haiti the issue.
Check out (or subscribe to) the many interesting articles of this mennonite
forum at www.directionjournal.org . |
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The lack of milk - A most worthy paper from Elsa Tamez delivered to the 23d General Council of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches 1997. A theological development of the idea of milk - from issues of present injustice to a future land of milk and honey. "... milk is a vital necessity for our impoverished peoples, and has special meaning as an image in biblical thinking ... We need to discover how to globalize the "glass of milk project" for all those in our great village that is the world ... The gospels call it the kingdom" |
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Sojourner's Magazine prints the bold sermon Bono delivered to the Whitehouse Prayer Breakfast.
"These goals - clean water for all; school for every child; medicine
for the afflicted, an end to extreme and senseless poverty - these are
not just any goals; they are the Millennium Development goals, which this
country supports. And they are more than that. They are the Beatitudes
for a globalised world. ... History, like God, is watching what we do."
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The Least
Developed
Countries Report
2002 - Escaping
the Poverty Trap. |
A UN Report giving a global perspective on the poor of the world. "The idealistic impulse to improve the standard of living of the poor
is the right one. But unless the actual policy solutions are well grounded
in a deep understanding of the causes of poverty, and how those causes
have been, and can be, effectively addressed, they could end up with worse
results than in the past. ... This Report aims to avoid romantic violence.
Its central message is that there is a major, but currently underestimated,
opportunity for rapid reduction in extreme poverty in the LDCs through
sustained economic growth. However, this opportunity is not being realized
in most LDCs because they are stuck in an international poverty trap." |
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MIllenium Development Goals. At the World Summit of September 2005, world leaders committed to adopt,
by 2006, and implement comprehensive national development strategies to
achieve the internationally agreed development goals and objectives, including
the Millennium Development Goals. Such “MDG-based poverty reduction strategies”
were a core recommendation of Investing in Development. The UN Millennium
Project has worked extensively with countries already engaged in preparing
MDG-based poverty reduction strategies. These are the goals begun 1990
and targeted complete by 2015:
| 1 - Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger |
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5 - Improve maternal health. |
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2. - Achieve universal primary education. |
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6 - Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases. |
| 3 - Promote gender equality and emplower women. |
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7. Ensure environmental substainability. |
| 4 - Reduce child mortality. |
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8. Develop a global partnership for development. |
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United Nations - Human Development Report 2005
International cooperation at a crossroads: Aid, trade and security in an
unequal world The Human Development Report takes stock of human development,
including progress towards the Millennium Development Goals. Looking beyond
statistics, it highlights the human costs of missed targets and broken
promises. Extreme inequality between countries and within countries is
identified as one of the main barriers to human development and as a powerful
brake on accelerated progress towards the MDGs. |
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UNDP asked its reps in 100 countries about what the state of the world
and the goals of UNDP might be in response. ( 64 page report.) Here is the comment from El salvador. "... I want to weigh in on
the issue of inequality. ... In most societies (North and South) inequalities
appear to be growing, fueling social tensions and affecting potential for
progress in governance. From my perspective, a time bomb if we do not start
to put more emphasis on the issue including propositions on how societies
can make positive progress in an environment of few solutions that seem
to fit the trends for polarization of capital and power. Best regards,
Beat Rohr" |
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Rooftops Canada - Abri International The right to adequate housing is a basic human right. A secure place to live is central to everyone’s well-being and dignity. Affordable housing is also a fundamental building block that improves neighbourhoods, reduces poverty and creates vibrant, inclusive and healthy cities. Since 1984, Rooftops Canada has been providing technical expertise and leadership in low-cost housing and human settlements development around the world. Cooperative Housing Federation Canada is concerned with coop housing in Canada, and was the founder of Rooftops as a vehicle of international assistance. |
No-Exploitation
Stores in
Calgary |
Fair Trade / No Sweat listing of Calgary stores that provide goods from international sources
that are not exploitive.
Ten Thousand Villages - 3.0 km NW - 220 Crowchild Trail NW - (403) 270-0631
Ten Thousand Villages - 7.0 km S - 8318 Fairmount Drive SE - (403) 255-0553 |
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Martyrs & The Word - Romero Resurrected |
The Last
Sermon |
Oscar Romero, "The Political Dimension of Faith from the Perspective of the Option for
the Poor" (University of Louvain, February 2, 1980). referenced page 43
"Today we are passing to our liberation through a desert strewn with bodies and where anguish and pain are devastating us. Many suffer the temptation of those who walked with Moses and wanted to turn back and did not work together. It is the same old story. God, however, wants to save the people by making a new history...." |
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The El Salvador Martyrs. In November of 1989 another tradegy occured. The El Salvador assassination
of Six Jesuits, their housekeeper and her daughter. Remembering and Celebrating
- Renewing a Commitment to Justice. Continuing to remind us of our mission
and offering us inspiration and vision. |
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A magazine of the American Jesuits. Fall 1999 Issue: El Salvador -- Ten
Years Later. Stories of reconciliation. History (including a most un-usual
piece on a woman jesuit in 1540). How the legacy of Romero continues. |
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A Guided Bible Study from the United Methodists on Elsa Tamez' book: The Scandalous Message of James: Faith Without Works is Dead. The Epistle of James has long been a controversial book. The early Church
debated whether it should be canonized. Protestants like Martin Luther
thought it was a "book of straw." But James survived to challenge
each new generation of Christians to put their faith into action. Join
us in a journey of understanding James with its wisdom proverbs, shocking
exhortations, and supportive fellowship. Pamela Sparr has created a study
guide for the Here is how to order that book. Tamez looks at James through
the lens of Oppression, Hope and Praxis. See what you think. |
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Liberation Theology and the Contemporary Church - Mrs. Kay Solomon, Department of Biblical Studies, Westminster Schools,
April 17, 2002. A Challenge - "I challenge you to make a difference in the communities in which
you live, in the lives that you touch, and in your places of worship, regardless
of the faith that you practice. This is not about religion; it is about
the kingdom of God. We may not be able as individuals to change oppressive
political and social structures. We can, though, start with one person
at a time. Jesus Himself was inspired to act by love." |
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Paulo Friere and Ivan Illich - Listening to the Poor |
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A Brief Biography of Paulo Freire - Because Freire lived among poor rural families and laborers, he gained
a deep understanding of their lives and of the effects of socio-economics
on education. |
| PAULO FREiRE - A HOMAGE - "The real legacy of Paulo Freire is not to be found in his books, nor in his library, but in his commitment to the oppressed. Now more than ever the members of the Paulo Freire Institute are convinced of the need to continue Freire’s commitment to the wretched of the earth. This is the only legacy that counts." |
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INSTITUTO PAULO FREIRE - This site naturally is in Portuguese, but you can explore it without speaking the language of Brazil. Just right click the page "Translate into English". Of course the translation is done by machines and rather poor - even funny - but still it makes the world more a global village to have this service. |
| QUESTIA |
An on-line library with over a thousand hits about Friere though none of
his own pubs, and a good reference site. But here is Pedagogy of the Oppressed - Chapter 1. from a wiki where someone has started typing in this classic. |
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IVAN ILLICH ON THE WEB. Courtesy of Preserve, an excellent page on Ivan Illich is available including
the full text of many of his works, interviews, bio and other information.
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Beyond Progressive and Conservative: Political Theory on the Web. This site includes links to the writings on the web by the most important
of these new political theorists, including: John Taylor Gatto, Paul Goodman,
Ivan Illich, Jane Jacobs, Christopher Lasch, Neil Postman, Kirkpatrick
Sale, and EF Schumacher. |
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