Leonardo Boff

Leonardo Boff ( born December 14, 1938 in Concordia, Santa Catarina ) is a Brazilian Catholic theologian. He is one of the main proponents of liberation theology and tries his Church to undertake the defense of human rights for the poor.

Life

Origin and academic career

As the son of Italian immigrants, he attended school at Concordia, then in Rio Negro ( Paraná ) and in Agudos (São Paulo). In 1959 he entered the Franciscan Order.

He studied philosophy and theology in Curitiba in Petrópolis (Rio de Janeiro) in Bonaventura Kloppenburg, Constantine Koser, and Paulo Evaristo Arns. In 1964 he was ordained a priest. After that Boff held on to guest studies at the Universities of Würzburg, Louvain and Oxford and sat 1965-1970 studies with Karl Rahner at the Ludwig- Maximilians- University of Munich continues. There he received his doctorate in 1970 at Scheffczyk in dogmatics; the second reviewer of the work was Joseph Ratzinger. After returning to Brazil came Boff 1970, the successor to Bonaventura Klopp Petersburg as a professor of systematic theology at the Philosophical- Theological College (Instituto Teologico Franciscano ) in Petrópolis on (until 1991 ). In addition, he supervised at Vozes, the largest Catholic publisher in Latin America, who published many of his books, the field of religion and theology. At the same time he was the editor in the theological journal Revista Brasileira Eclesiástica.

Clashes with the official church

In 1985, the Vatican issued a Boff speech and banned from teaching (see below), by which he was known worldwide. He used the Schweigebuße imposed upon him to write more books, who carried his Christology, ecclesiology and sacramental doctrine.

After Boff had further explained in various articles in the Revista Vozes with celibacy, the exercise of power of the Roman Curia and the theological incompetence of some Brazilian bishops, he was in 1991 again subject to a disciplinary sanction. After an intervention of Cardinal Ratzinger and the Bishop of Petrópolis, José Fernandes Veloso, he had to resign and leave his residence in Petrópolis head of the Catholic Revista Vozes. In September 1991, Boff let her know that he would stop his fight against the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. In June 1992 he finally resigned from the Franciscan order and had himself transferred to the lay state.

After the abolishment of the priesthood

After giving up his priestly duties, he took over in 1992 created especially for him Chair of Ethics and Spirituality at the State University of Rio de Janeiro. He devoted himself strengthened its activities as a theologian, author, and the leadership of organizations and social movements. Among other things, he expanded the liberation theology on environmental issues in order to develop a more " theology of life ".

Boff, who speaks fluent German, also held various visiting professorships, including at the Universities of Lisbon ( Portugal), Salamanca (Spain ), Harvard (USA ), Basel ( Switzerland ) and Heidelberg ( Germany ). He has appeared as an author and editor of theological journals in appearance and was a member of the Theological Commission of the Brazilian Bishops Conference, the Conference of Religious in Brazil and the Latin American Conference of Religious. He has received numerous honorary degrees during his academic activity.

In 2001 he was awarded with three other laureates of the Right Livelihood Award. He wrote more than 60 books in the fields of theology, philosophy, anthropology and mysticism, including an independent ecological " Global Ethic ", a humorous explanation of the sacraments, books on the "logic of the heart " and the " compassion " as the central starting point for socialist commitment. He speaks no longer of "liberation", but the " protection of life " for the " excluded" and points to the current reality of his country: there get a third of the population - only 50 million people - no government assistance against crime, starvation and unemployment.

In an ecological reserve Jardim macaws in Petrópolis, he lives with the human rights activist Marcia Maria Monteiro de Miranda and her six children from his first marriage together.

The " case Boff "

After Boff had stood since 1971 by the Vatican for its alleged " heresy " under observation, it came with the advent of the Church: Charism and Power ( 1981, German 1985) to open conflict with the Vatican congregation. In the work which was subtitled " A militant ecclesiology " and represented a collection of several earlier writings, polemics among others Boff against hierarchical and undemocratic church structures and called for a revolutionary and unique standing on the side of the oppressed class church. The publication led to the " case Boff " (see references ): His second PhD supervisor, the Franciscan Bonaventura Kloppenburg, publicly accused him of heresy. As Boff then wrote to Ratzinger and asked him for advice, he was summoned to Rome in May 1984. In September, the secret meeting took place with the Curia. Although Boff seemed to be rehabilitated after that, he received a surprise early 1985, a speech and banned from teaching ( " Bußschweigen " ) for one year by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. In 1986, he received the teaching license one month before the deadline back.

Heart of the conflict between Boff and the CDF was not - as with other liberation theologians - the accusation of Marxism in Christian camouflage rather emphasizes theological statements of his book were at the heart of the Vatican criticism. For he had found the " true church " of the Holy Spirit against the "wrong" church institution with their claims to power over the faithful and explicitly referred to the Reformation. He criticized the dogmatic sacramentalism and asked him the living, procedural Church of the opposite arms: In her - specifically in the form of more than 100,000 base communities in Brazil alone - he found the real " sacrament of the Holy Spirit " with the " charisma " and " organizing principle " ( chapter headings ).

Ratzinger's summons already named the points of conflict: he threw Boff before that

  • Jesus Christ had commanded no particular church figure for him, so other than the Catholic church model from the Gospel out would be conceivable
  • Revelation and dogma with him playing only a minor role, so there is no adequate protection is given against heretical distortion of the Christian faith ( Boff had in a chapter even praised the liberating elements of " syncretism " of popular piety );
  • 've Boff historic abuse of power of the church institution described unnecessarily polemical and irreverent and damaged the church unity with it.

After his justification before the Curia said Boff, that he had the dogma recognized as a safeguard against heresy; However, it was the living Holy Spirit himself, who in " timeless truths " protect the church from heretical solidification. The timeless conception of dogma could only lead to a loss of faith. Boff criticized the social function of the church hierarchy still sharp and gave her his hand, "religious exploitation " of the hopes of the poor people before. " From above " offered forgiveness showed a paternalistic understanding of the sacraments: "The Church of the rich for the poor denies the power of the people to free themselves. " The Curia refused to dialogue with the people themselves; European-influenced theologians could not understand the real experience of faith of the poor in the slums. Their dominance could only lead to further marginalization of the poor, political power, concentration and church- institutional hubris. However, he wanted the power of the Church in the " service " of the living, changing church of the poor, who shares her life with the people and privileges degrades justified.

Quotes

  • "If we do not change, we will die out like the dinosaurs. "
  • " In a few years we will all be socialists - either we share the little that we have, or will there be anything for anybody. "
  • " Today, new pastors are all trained in the mentality of the Vatican - turned inward, with no interest in social issues. "

Works (selection)

  • What comes after. Life after death. Otto Müller Verlag, Salzburg 1982, ISBN 3-7013-0646- X.
  • Church - power and charisma. Patmos, Dusseldorf, 1986, ISBN 3,491,772,931th
  • The case Boff. A documentation. Patmos, Dusseldorf, 1988, ISBN 3491776406th
  • Jesus Christ, the liberator. Herder, Freiburg, 1989, ISBN 3,451,207,192th
  • Our home the earth. The cry of the oppressed hear. Patmos, Dusseldorf 1996, ISBN 3,491,779,847th
  • The logic of the heart. New ways to mindfulness. Patmos, Dusseldorf 1999, ISBN 3491724228th
  • Cry of the earth, cry of the poor. Patmos, Dusseldorf 2002, ISBN 3,491,703,549th
  • Small sacraments. Patmos, Dusseldorf 2003, ISBN 3491770548th
  • House of Heaven and Earth - Tales of Brazilian indigenous peoples. Patmos, Dusseldorf 2003, ISBN 3,491,450,152th
  • Experiencing God. The transparency of all things. Patmos, Dusseldorf 2004, ISBN 3,491,703,743th
  • The Lord is my shepherd. Psalm 23 interpreted by LB Patmos, Dusseldorf 2005, ISBN 3-491-70388-3.
  • Fundamentalism and terrorism. Cambridge University Press, Göttingen 2007, ISBN 978-3-525-56443-1.
  • Virtues for a better world publishing Butzon Bercker, Kevelaer 2009, ISBN 978-3-7666-1285-4.
  • The earth is entrusted to us publishing Butzon Bercker, Kevelaer 2010, ISBN 978-3-7666-1355-4.
  • With Heiner Geissler: The future for Mother Earth. Why do we abdicate the crown of creation Claudius Verlag, Munich 2012, ISBN 978-3-532-62427-2.
  • Mindfulness. From the need to change our attitude Claudius Verlag, Munich, 2013, ISBN 978-3-532-62432-6.
Dogmatic theology Roman Catholicism in Brazil Protestant Reformation Basic ecclesial community Political theology Integrated Authority File
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