In the last one hundred years alone, more that 200 million people have been killed as a consequence of systematic repression, political revolutions, and ethnic or religious war. The aftermath in places such as Rwanda, Central America, and South Africa have shown that achieving a lasting and just reconciliation is a difficult and delicate task. This book argues that there is an inherent correspondence between God’s gift of reconciliation through Christ and the pursuit of social and political reconciliation among human beings. It contends that liberation theology in general and Jon Sobrino’s wor ... More

In the last one hundred years alone, more that 200 million people have been killed as a consequence of systematic repression, political revolutions, and ethnic or religious war. The aftermath in places such as Rwanda, Central America, and South Africa have shown that achieving a lasting and just reconciliation is a difficult and delicate task. This book argues that there is an inherent correspondence between God’s gift of reconciliation through Christ and the pursuit of social and political reconciliation among human beings. It contends that liberation theology in general and Jon Sobrino’s work in particular offer the basis for a Christian spirituality of reconciliation that effectively overcomes conflict by attending to the demands of truth, justice, and forgiveness. Building on Sobrino’s Christology, the book envisions a Christian discipleship inspired by Jesus’ merciful praxis and the eschatological values of God’s Kingdom. Prioritizing the perspective of the victims, it insists on the need for the restoration of societal justice while also pursuing the forgiveness that allows for the rehabilitation of the oppressor. The book presents a spirituality that urges Christians to follow the structure of Jesus’ life and to engage conflicted reality with the same spirit of honesty, fidelity, and trust that empowered Jesus’ life. In turn, this reconciling spirituality sets the foundations for a theology of reconciliation from a liberationist perspective: one that is rooted in God’s revealed truth, mercy, and justice.