Janet Devries

“The challenge liberation theology puts forward is to understand Jesus as God-incarnate who demands that the church incarnate itself in the world: no, not in the centers of power and wealth, but in the peripheries that long to hear good news. Indeed, for so much talk about secularization as the great challenge to faith today, a theology of liberation suggests that it is idolatry, the temptation of the gods of money, power, and hatred, more than disbelief that is the great challenge.”
― Gustavo Gutiérrez, A Theology of Liberation: History, Politics, and Salvation 50th Anniversary Edition

“although the privileged of this world can accept the existence of human poverty on a massive scale and not be overawed by it (after all, it is something that cannot be hidden away in our time), problems begin when the causes of this poverty are pointed out to them. Once causes are determined, then there is talk of "social injustice," and the privileged begin to resist. This is especially true when to structural analysis there is added a concrete historical perspective in which personal responsibilities come to light. But it is the conscientization and resultant organization of poor sectors that rouse the greatest fears and the strongest resistance.”
― Gustavo Gutiérrez, A Theology of Liberation

“One of the great insights of the twentieth-century struggles for justice is that the great problems that we face, such as racism, poverty, and the climate crisis, are structural in nature. They have long histories and are embedded socially in ways that are often masked in day-to-day life.”
― Gustavo Gutiérrez, A Theology of Liberation: History, Politics, and Salvation 50th Anniversary Edition

“I don't know what it means to love God. Really, I'm not all that good at it. But I think one of the things it means is, just as in the case of loving anybody else, you stop and watch and wait. Listen for God. Stop and watch and wait for him. To love God means to pay attention. Be mindful. Be open to the possibility that God is with you in ways that, unless you have your eyes open, you may never glimpse. The speaks words that, unless you have your ears open, you may never hear. Draw near to him as best you can.”
― Frederick Buechner, The Remarkable Ordinary: How to Stop, Look, and Listen to Life