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Theology and Activism in Latin America: A Reflection on Jon Sobrino’s Christology of the Resurrection and Grassroots Organizations Protesting Gender-Based Violence

Thesis advisor: Lisa S. Cahill / As ethicists, we have a responsibility to engage with major issues around the world. In Latin America, gender-based violence has become a reality for far too many women, and community organizers from faith-based organizations are working to change attitudes and structures in society. Many women from these organizations are using theological resources to aid them in their activism. This dissertation will examine how theological resources contribute to the activism of Latin American women. Through an examination of Jon Sobrino’s Christology, we can see that “resurrection” serves as a major theme for women who are fighting gender-based violence, and that specific concepts within this Christology can inspire hope. Sobrino’s work offers women a theological framework through which they can understand their protest activities as an important part of their spiritual lives. Although Sobrino provides this helpful paradigm, his writing refers to all Latin Americans in general and does not take the contextual specifics of women’s lives into consideration. Therefore, in order to add a gender lens to the conversation about women’s uses of theological resources in Latin America, this dissertation will put Latina feminist theologians in conversation with Sobrino. Although liberation theology has contributed to an important foundation for feminist theologians, liberation theologians often do not consider the realities of women’s lives as unique experiences. By looking at the writings of Marcella Althaus-Reid, Ada María Isasi-Díaz, Ivone Gebara, María Pilar Aquino, and Nancy Pineda-Madrid we can see that a gender lens is especially important for women who are using theological resources to animate their protest activities. In addition to offering important resources for women struggling against the reality of gender-based violence, it is also necessary for theologians and ethicists to develop responses to gender-based violence and to support activists in their work for change. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2016. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Theology.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:BOSTON/oai:dlib.bc.edu:bc-ir_106787
Date January 2016
CreatorsFitzGerald, Marianne Tierney
PublisherBoston College
Source SetsBoston College
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeText, thesis
Formatelectronic, application/pdf
RightsCopyright is held by the author, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise noted.

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