1. Lent, Liberation, and
Praxis: Doing Theology in
a World of Oppression

2. Introduction
 The significance of Christ‘s life, death,
and resurrection (His liberating act)
 What this should mean for us as
beneficiaries of this liberation living in a
world of oppression (Praxis)

3. Lent and Liberation
 From what have we been liberated by
Christ’s sacrificial act?
 Luke 4:16-21

4. What does it mean to be set
free from the oppression of
sin?
 Gal 5:1 ―For Freedom, Christ has set us free.‖
 Gustavo Gutierrez says that Paul is referring to
liberation from sin ―insofar as it represents a
selfish turning in upon oneself. To sin is to refuse
to love one‘s neighbors and, therefore, the Lord
himself. Sin -a breach of friendship with God and
others- is according to the Bible the ultimate cause
of poverty, injustice, and oppression.‖

5. Restoration of community
with God and neighbor
 ―Paul asserts not only that Christ liberated us; he also
tells us that he did it in order that we might be free.
Free for what? Free to love. In the language of the
Bible… freedom is not something man has for himself,
but something he has for others… It is not a
possession, a presence, an object, … but a
relationship.… Being free means being free for the
other, because the other has bound me to him. Only in
relationship with the other am I free. The freedom to
which we are called presupposes the going out of
oneself, the breaking down of our selfishness and of all
the structures that support our selfishness. The
fullness of liberation- a free gift from Christ- is
communion with God and neighbor.‖ –Gustavo
Gutierrez

6. How has Christ liberated
us?
 Isaiah 53:3-10

7. Praxis and ‗Doing‘ Theology
in a World of Oppression
 How should we as the beneficiaries of
Christ‘s liberating act behave in a world of
oppression?
 How are we called to continue his work of
liberation in the world?
 If the foregoing is our orthodoxy, then what
should be our orthopraxy?

8. Vessels of Restoration and
Liberation for the
Oppressed
 ―Because of the sufferings and struggles of the
poor, the church in its evangelization should seek
to urge all Christians to live their faith in such a
way that they also make it a factor for transforming
society in the direction of greater justice and
fellowship.‖ –Leonardo Boff
 Although salvation may begin in our hearts
changing us from within, it can not end there. It
should change our lives such that we, as the
Church, become vessels of restoration for the
oppressed within our communities and our world.

9. The kind of fast Jesus
chose
 Isaiah 58:6-9
 ―Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness will go before you…,
Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.‖