1971–1988

Liberation Theology and "Third World" Theologies: Theology as Critical Reflection on Praxis

In A Theology of Liberation (1971) Gutiérrez defined theology as "critical reflection on Christian praxis in the light of the Word of God": theory is the second act after praxis, and the starting point is the situation of oppression. Míguez Bonino put forward the criterion of "orthopraxis, not orthodoxy." All the currents, according to Grenz and Olson, regard theology as contextual and refuse to recognize the normativity of the Western academy; most use Marxist social analysis, comparing this with the Fathers' and Thomas's use of Plato and Aristotle. González includes here black, feminist, Asian and African theologies as well, which seek to reconstruct all of theology rather than "apply" it.