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»The Church of the Poor« from Pope John XXIIIth to Pope Francis

Stjepan Baloban orcid.org/0000-0002-3138-3222 ; Katolički bogoslovni fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Zagreb, Hrvatska

Sažetak

At the beginning of his pontificate, pope Francis has put the conciliar idea of »the Church of the Poor« in the centre of attention again. Since the origins and meaning of the phrase »the Church of the Poor« is fairly unknown in Croatia, in this article the author, on one hand, gives an overview of the genesis of the idea of »the Church of the Poor« and, on the other hand, its (un)acceptance at the Second Vatican Council,as well as its development in the Church of Latin America. The author has limited this contribution to a discussion of the idea of »the Church of the Poor« in its various forms, without entering into a more basic discussion on theology of liberation. The article has been divided into three parts. In the first part entitled The Genesis of the Idea of »the Church of the Poor«: Pope John XXIIIrd and the Second Vatican Council, the author discusses and analyses reasons which led to the emergence of the idea, the role of pope John XXIIIrd, who introduced the idea to the official discourse of the Church before the Second Vatican Council, the attempt to apply the idea at the Council through a study group entitled »The Church of the Poor«, and the extent to which the contents of the idea are present in the Conciliar documents, although they do not specifically mention the name (of the idea). The second part entitled An Attempt to Concretely Apply the Idea of»the Church of the Poor« in Latin America: Great Expectations, Difficulties, Disappointments tries to show the development, albeit in panoramic way, of the idea of »the Church of the Poor« in the Common Sessions of the Church in Latin America: Medellin – Columbia (1968), Puebla – Mexico (1979), Santo Domingo – Dominican Republic (1992), Aparecida – Brazil (2007). It seems that the idea of »the Church of the Poor« appears as a guiding thought at these sessions, although the name itself has not been always at the centre of discussions, while these often focused on other concepts. The third part entitled Postconciliar Popes on Events in the Church in Latin America points out certain documents and acts of popes Paul VIth, John Paul IInd, and Benedict XVIth, as well as pope Francis, which are related to the original idea of »the Church of the Poor« that was developing in the post-conciliar time precisely in the Church of Latin America. Although the idea of »the Church of the Poor« has not been able to make a stronger impact at the Second Vatican Council, which would allow it to have a bigger influence on the whole post-conciliar Church, it has, nevertheless, continued to develop in the Church of Latin America and, thus, it has survived until today. As an active participant of events in the Church in Latin America and now the Bishop of Rome, pope Francis has become, on one hand, the authentic interpreter of events in the Church in Latin America and, on the other hand, now forty-eight years after the end of the Second Vatican Council, he has again put forth the definition of the Church in which, following Jesus’ example, at the centre of life and activity are the poor and those who have been affected by various hardships due to injustice done to them. The saint pope John the Good has decisively initiated a renewal of the Church, while pointing out its essential characteristic as »the Church of the Poor«. Pope Bergoglio, who, in short time managed to capture the heart of the contemporary human being with his words, gestures, and his way of life, encourages the Church to continue with its renewal. For both bishops of Rome »the Church of the Poor« was/is dear to heart. It is precisely in this segment that the Second Vatican Council must be seen as a still incomplete process and a historical challenge to the Church of Christ in the XXIst century.

Ključne riječi

study group »The Church of the Poor«; CELAM; theology of liberation; preferential option for the poor; Evangelii gaudium

Hrčak ID:

129330

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/129330

Datum izdavanja:

4.11.2014.

Podaci na drugim jezicima: hrvatski

Posjeta: 2.117 *