• Why Do the Clergy Mix in Politics?
    Awake!—1987 | April 22

    • Civil Rights, Social Justice

      As mentioned earlier, however, some religious leaders are highly admired for their active role in politics for other reasons.

      An example from the United States is the Baptist minister Martin Luther King, Jr., a civil-rights leader in a long crusade against racial discrimination. Other clergymen have been in the forefront of struggles for the rights of women and certain minorities. Priests and ministers have turned politically active in support of causes such as voting rights, equal pay for equal work, and fair employment opportunities. Most recently, a “theology of liberation” has been promoted to ease the suffering of the poor, such as by distributing land to the impoverished.

      How do you feel about religious leaders’ involving themselves in politics in order to promote social action or “secular humanism,” as such issues are sometimes labeled? Even some clerics are uncomfortable with what they see happening. Keith Gephart, a fundamentalist clergyman, commented: “When I was growing up, I always heard that churches should stay out of politics. Now it seems almost a sin not to get involved.” A newspaper writer on religious issues noted: “Beginning in the early 1970s, fundamentalist Christians have gradually come to believe that political activism is a duty.”

      Even if the causes seem meritorious, consider how far such steps are taking the clergy, and see if you approve.

      What Is Liberation Theology Doing?

      Gustavo Gutiérrez, a Catholic priest in Peru, is widely credited with developing “liberation theology” in response to the plight of the poor. This trend is widespread among the clergy in Latin America and elsewhere. England’s Manchester Guardian Weekly reported that the Bishop of Durham attacked the government’s political philosophy and thus urged “advancing the cause of a ‘liberation theology.’”

      Is such a theology just an emphasis on concern for the poor, as urged in the Bible? Hardly. According to the Guardian, the bishop admits that “British liberation theology will take some of the diagnoses of Marxism very seriously.” This involves interpreting the class struggle of the poor by using Marxist reasoning. With what consequences?

      The National Catholic Reporter (July 4, 1986) carried the headline “Brazil’s Land Fight Pits Church Against State.” A fact underlying this conflict is that just a small number of “large landowners control 83 percent of the land.” Clergy-led rallies and marches are part of the “land fight.” And “fight” is a fitting word. The article said that “218 people were killed in more than 700 land conflicts last year, including Father Josimo Tavares, a Brazilian priest and land-reform leader, who was assassinated June 11.”