8b. The Churches of Latin America

Question 1

Communist Manifesto

Answer 1

Marx was asked to leave France, and he made his way to Brussels, Belgium where in 1848, he wrote The Communist Manifesto.

Question 2

What were the Catholic numbers in Latin America in 1900, and in 2000? Why are those numbers important?

Answer 2

92% in 1900, 85.9% in 2000. The religious complexion has begun to shift throughout Latin America for the first time in 500 years, and it has a decidedly different complexion to it. At one level, these numbers seem to be relatively insignificant, yet they mark something very significant. They mark an end to the unchallenged Roman Catholic hegemony in the region.

Question 3

What percentage of Latin American is currently Protestant?

Answer 3

9.1%

Question 4

Protestants are usually seen as Evangelical in Latin America. What percentage of the Evangelical Church is actually Pentecostal?

Answer 4

85%

Question 5

What are the three major threats to Catholicism in Latin America?

Answer 5

First, since Vatican II, the Roman Catholic Church has generally seen a decline in the number of vocations, that is, fewer men are entering the priesthood, and fewer women are entering the convent. This has meant that fewer priests on a regular basis are serving the needs of the people and people must wait until a priest visits their area before they can receive the sacraments. Second, during the 20th Century, Latin America saw a steady rise in what might be described as secular forces working in its midst. The rise of Marxism among some people (Cuba, Venezuela, Peru, Bolivia, etc.), and the obsession with neo-colonial manifestations of material interests has had an impact on many. Third, the rise in the number of Pentecostals and Neo-Pentecostals in the region has contributed substantially to a viable competing form of Christian faith.

Question 6

When did colonialism end in Latin America?

Answer 6

1820s and 30s.

Question 7

Liberal State

Answer 7

Secular governments that were anti-religion.

Question 8

How did the Liberal State view the Catholic Church?

Answer 8

The “Liberal State” was not always kind to Roman Catholicism in the latter half of the 19th Century. The Roman Catholic Church was often, though not always, viewed as a symbol of European colonialism.

Question 9

What did the Liberal State do to the Catholic Church?

Answer 9

Colombia declared the separation of Church and State as early as 1853, leading the way for others to follow. South American followed, and then Central America. In so far as conservative governments were able to take power away from the liberal governments, the Roman Catholic Church often benefitted.

Question 10

What else began to erode the power of the Catholic Church?

Answer 10

Immigration, and the presence of the Protestant Churches.

Question 11

What helped the Catholic Church engage with the people after all these threats?

Answer 11

Vatican II

Question 12

What did Vatican II bring to Latin America

Answer 12

1. Priest learned to preach.
2. Liturgy translated.
3. New Music
4. Theology was contextualized.
5. Catholics encouraged to own bibles and read them.

Question 13

What was the response to Vatican II?

Answer 13

Mostly positive. People began going to church again and engaging with God. But there were those who wanted the old ways.

Question 14

Opus Dei

Answer 14

Group of individuals who gathered around their bitterness towards Vatican II.

Question 15

Liberation Theology

Answer 15

Liberation Theology attempted to translate the meaning of the Bible into a contemporary Latin America, a Latin America that was becoming increasingly dominated by newer forms of economic neo-colonialism. Many of these theologians tended to embrace some form of socialism and in some cases even Marxism, but their primary concern was the poor, the marginalized, and what they saw as the unmitigated materialism of capitalism. Liberation theologians spoke often of a “preferential option for the poor.”

Question 16

base communities

Answer 16

These communities, which typically undertook Bible studies that brought a theological undergirding to their social engagement, often understood themselves to be communities of “experience which enable the poor to assert their civil rights as active participants in society and Church.”

Question 17

Name three important Liberation Theologians

Answer 17

1. José Míguez Bonino
2. Ruben Alves
3. Juan Luis Segundo
4. Gustavo Gutiérrez
5. Leonardo Boff

Question 18

What were the two major weaknesses of Liberation Theology?

Answer 18

1. It was a theology for the poor, but not written by them.

2. It often ignored the fact that ultimate liberation was liberation from sin.

Question 19

Who wrote “A Theology of Liberation”?

Answer 19

Gustavo Gutiérrez

Question 20

What were the consequences of Liberation Theology?

Answer 20

Sermons began to reflect liberation theological themes, and people were empowered by participation in base ecclesial communities that often took strong anti-governmental positions. As a result, many Catholics who embraced Liberation Theology found themselves persecuted as they stood up to various governmental powers in the region. People disappeared. People were “martyred” for the liberation cause. The poor, whether Christian or not, were often viewed as the face of Jesus. And the hierarchy of the Church was sometimes viewed as a dysfunctional enemy.

Question 21

Why did Liberation Theology come to and end?

Answer 21

The rise of Pentecostalism.

The poor went along with Liberation Theology for a time, but in the end, many of them came to view it with disdain. Part of the reason for this disdain arose because another theology was developing simultaneously, a theology not viewed as being developed on behalf of the poor, but a theology that was being developed by the poor. This fact has led someone to note the irony in the fact that, “while the liberation theologians opted for the poor, the poor opted for Pentecostalism.”

Question 22

When did Pentecostal missionaries arrive in Mexico?

Answer 22

1906

Question 23

What was the strength of Pentecostalism in Latino America?

Answer 23

Think “Billy Graham”-type crusades . . .

Pentecostals were among the first to bring mass rallies and evangelistic crusades to the region, in part through tents, but later on in stadium meetings that brought together as many as one hundred thousand people for evangelistic or healing crusades. Furthermore, Pentecostals began to experiment with and then embrace the use of radio, and later television and satellite broadcasting, purchasing, running, and maintaining their own stations.

Question 24

What are the 7 reasons for the rise of Pentecostalism in Latin America?

Answer 24

1. HOLINESS. First, the Pentecostal Movement has frequently attracted people from the lower classes of society as well as people who are in the midst of personal crisis. Those who gambled, smoked, drank, or participated in any number of vices before their conversion, are confronted with a message of salvation that includes a commitment to a different lifestyle – a life of holiness that involves self-sacrifice.
2. COMMUNITY. Second, Pentecostal churches provide a forum for new community. Parishioners may not be able to own their own homes, but they believe that they do have “material possession” when they contributed to the building of “their” church.
3. EMOTION. Third, Pentecostal churches take seriously the emotional side of their people. They value experience. They do not view responses to God as merely cerebral responses to cerebral demands, but rather, they grant legitimacy to the whole person, body, mind, and soul responding to God.
4. POWER. Fourth, power is a critical ingredient to Pentecostal success. The issue of power emerges first in Pentecostalism in the discussion surrounding the baptism in the Spirit. People are encouraged and taught to pray. Through prayer, they can resolve many of their personal problems and conflicts.
5. LEADERSHIP OPPORTUNITY. Fifth, Pentecostal churches provide opportunity for gifts to be tested and charismatic leadership to emerge. Every member of a Pentecostal congregation is understood to be in ministry.
6. HIGH MORAL CODE. Sixth, Pentecostal churches take seriously a high moral code.
7. VERSATILITY. Seventh, Pentecostal churches are highly versatile. No two Pentecostal congregations are exactly alike.

Question 25

What are the two types of Catholics in Latin America?

Answer 25

There are “Catholics” who attend the local Roman Catholic Church and honor the Pope in Rome, and there are “Catholics” who attend Pentecostal churches, but who do not recognize the Pope in Rome though their local pastors may often exercise more power among their people than the Roman Pontiff could ever exercise.

Question 26

Milagros

Answer 26

Milagros are charm-like representations of body parts, or other items that represent prayer requests or more often symbols of thanks to God for providing a healing or other answer to prayer. In the case of older Pentecostal churches as well as many throughout the developing world, such things as crutches, braces, and wheel chairs, as well as whiskey bottles, snuff pouches, and cigarette packages may still be offered as testimonies to God’s healing interventions in the lives of those who are healed or delivered from some form or “bondage”.

Question 27

1. The Church in Latin America has had a long history. During the 20th Century, the Latin American Church has seen a great deal of development. Based upon your reading, and the lecture, please describe in broad strokes the history of the development of the Church in Latin America since the end of colonialism in the region. If you chose the Latin American regional readings, please make reference to the 19th and 20th Century church based upon your regional readings.

Answer 27

I REALLY need to do the readings for this one. Share for 2-3 minutes and look at outline.

Question 28

2. During the 20th Century, the hegemony of the Roman Catholic Church in Latin America has been challenged by two factors. One of these factors is secularization; the other is Pentecostalism. Write an essay in which you draw upon your readings and the lectures to explain how these two factors have challenged the Roman Catholic Church. Explain what the primary Roman Catholic responses have been to these challenges.

Answer 28

I REALLY need to do the readings for this one. Look at outline. Share for 2-3 minutes.

Question 29

3. Liberation Theology and Pentecostalism both claimed to offer something to the people throughout Latin America during the 20th Century. While Liberation Theology attracted many for a time, its effect in Latin America has subsided to some extent. On the other hand, the growth of Pentecostalism has continued, though not without its own problems. Write an essay in which you set forth and explain the various factors that brought these two movements into existence in Latin America and based upon your reading and these lectures, develop and explain the factors you see that have affected the outcome of their offerings.

Answer 29

Look at outline. Share for 2-3 minutes.