Karl Barth and Liberation Theology

The greatest contribution of Karl Barth and Liberation Theology is the way it challenges scholars to consider the liberative nature of the gospel ... [W]ill surely give progressive scholars hope to carry on. * Reading Religion * The essays collected in this volume help us to catch sight of the importance and fruitfulness of the many and diverse engagements afoot between contemporary liberation theologies and the theology of Karl Barth. Readers will come away with a renewed appreciation of both the present liveliness of Barth’s dogmatic legacy as well as the ongoing and manifold refraction of the freedom of the gospel in the midst of the concrete struggles of social-political existence today. There is much here to think with and act upon. -- Philip G. Ziegler, University of Aberdeen, UK Karl Barth wrote that 'Freedom is God's great gift.' While political liberation is not the whole of the Gospel, Barth–like the liberation theologians of the Global South–affirmed God's judgment on the side of the poor and powerless over against tyrannical abuse. This book bears witness to the viability of reading Barth in new and different contexts in order to incarnate God's righteousness in human structures, however imperfectly. -- Rubén Rosario Rodríguez, Saint Louis University, USA Both terms – “Karl Barth” and “Liberation Theology” – represent complex and contested histories. Any suggestion of “conversation” will therefore be as complex and contested – as this volume wonderfully shows. Authors from diverse backgrounds and persuasions speak with informative, often inspiring, often challenging voices – without one common agenda, but not to be ignored. -- Dirk Smit, Princeton Theological Seminary, USA At a time when theologians are often either pondering classical doctrinal themes or pursuing liberationist commitments, this collection of essays is a magnificent effort at bridge building (without pontificating). The encounter between liberation theologies and Karl Barth could help reboot not just liberationist studies or Barth scholarship: it may spark new insights among all those, across the globe, who pay close attention to their social and political context as they reflect upon God’s self-manifestation in Jesus of Nazareth. The conversation between liberation theology and Karl Barth has been sparse and often disappointing in the last half-century. This volume is a magnificent and compelling step towards a fruitful, mutual engagement. -- Christophe Chalamet, Université de Genève, Switzerland Dugan and Jones have gathered exactly the kind of theological scholarship that our field needs most: the kind that engages a 'canonical' thinker best by remembering what liberation theologians have taught us over the last half-century, that dogmatic labor is inherently contextual, vulnerable and responsible to the call of God in place and time. Barth remains vital to the extent that he–despite his shortcomings–understood the work of dogma in this way. This volume invites students and scholars to continue learning, alongside Barth, from the full range of liberation theologians who call us to remember the dogmatic tradition as one invested in the work of justice, critically attentive to material, historical, and political conditions. -- Michelle Chaplin Sanchez, Harvard Divinity School, USA This book is a game changer because it defies the dichotomy between Barthians and liberationists. Each of the diverse authors brings what they know to their encounter with Barth so freely that the book becomes not only about Barth, but also about the calling of each of us to do justice together in this world. -- Cynthia Rigby, Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, USA