Princeton Theological Seminary and the Birth of Liberation Theology

Abstract

Resumo: No ano de 1968 Rubem Alves apresentou sua tese de doutoramento “Towards a Theology of Liberation: An Exploration of the Encounter Between the Languages of Humanistic Messianism and Messianic Humanism” no Princeton Theological Seminary (PTS). Publicada como A Theology of Human Hope (1969), sua obra foi a primeira a utilizar o termo “Teologia da Libertação”, e teve grande influência no florescimento da teologia latino-americana na última parte do século XX. A tese não é apenas parte de uma longa ligação histórica do PTS com a Teologia da Libertação. À luz da contribuição inovadora da obra de Alves, este ensaio apresenta primeiro o papel do Princeton Theological Seminary como um dos lugares do nascimento da Teologia da Libertação; segundo, investiga o conteúdo e significado da teologia de Rubem Alves.Palavras-chave: Rubem Alves. Princeton Theological Seminary. Teologia da Libertação.Abstract: In the year 1968 Rubem Alves presented his doctoral dissertation “Towards a Theology of Liberation: An Exploration of the Encounter Between the Languages of Humanistic Messianism and Messianic Humanism” at Princeton Theological Seminary (PTS). Later published as A Theology of Human Hope, Alves’ work was the first to use the term “Theology of Liberation” and provided some basic impetus for the late 20th century flourishing of Latin American theology. Alves’ dissertation, however, is only a single part of a nearly century-long story linking PTS to the birth of Liberation Theology. It is, however, a greatly misunderstood story. In light of Alves’ innovative contribution, this essay attempts two things: first, I will tell the story of PTS’ role as one of the birth places of Liberation Theology in the United States, and second, I will investigate the content and meaning of Alves’ theology.Keywords: Rubem Alves. Princeton Theological Seminary. Liberation Theology.