Question: Not long ago, Glenn Beck said we should leave any church that talks about social justice, because this is not in the Gospel. He said that our pope, when he was known as Cardinal Ratzinger, condemned liberation theology. Are these statements true?
Answer: No, they are not. Cardinal Ratzinger in 1984, as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, authored a document titled “Instruction on Certain Aspects of the 'Theology of Liberation'”. You can click here to read the entire text.
Here are some quotes from salient portions of the document that make clear that as followers of Jesus, we must be concerned for the poor and needy, and our concern must take the form of action to alleviate suffering:
The aspiration for 'liberation', as the term itself suggests, repeats a theme which is fundamental to the Old and New Testaments. In itself, the expression "theology of liberation" is a thoroughly valid term: it designates a theological reflection centered on the biblical theme of liberation and freedom, and on the urgency of its practical realization...
...In the Old Testament, the prophets after Amos keep affirming with particular vigor the requirements of justice and solidarity and the need to pronounce a very severe judgment on the rich who oppress the poor. They come to the defense of the widow and the orphan. They threaten the powerful: the accumulation of evils can only lead to terrible punishments. Faithfulness to the Covenant cannot be conceived of without the practice of justice. Justice as regards God and justice as regards mankind are inseparable. God is the defender and the liberator of the poor.
These requirements are found once again in the New Testament. They are even more radicalized as can be shown in the discourse on the Beatitudes. Conversion and renewal have to occur in the depths of the heart.
Already proclaimed in the Old Testament, the commandment of fraternal love extended to all mankind thus provides the supreme rule of social life. There are no discriminations or limitations which can counter the recognition of everyone as 'neighbor'.
...At the same time, the requirements of justice and mercy, already proclaimed in the Old Testament, are deepened to assume a new significance in the New Testament. Those who suffer or who are persecuted are identified with Christ. The perfection that Jesus demands of His disciples (Matthew 5:18) consists in the obligation to be merciful "as your heavenly Father is merciful".(Luke 6:36)
...[T]he 'Letter to Philemon' shows that the new freedom procured by the grace of Christ should necessarily have effects on the social level.
