Cross Communion Paradigm: Reimagining Liberation Theology from the Perspective of the Catholic Church

Theology of Liberation is regarded as an essential elaboration and concrete theological reflection of the Second Vatican Council. As part of the development of mission in the modern world, theology aids the Church in responding beyond the option for the poor project and to discern and act on situations other than economic issues. However, theology is often associated with leaning toward ideologies deviating from the Church and shrouds the possibility of formulating a theology aligned with it. This paper intends to present a theology of liberation affiliated with Church teachings toward a proposed Cross Communion paradigm. The framework will utilize the vertical and horizontal dimensions of the Cross model: the vertical aspect focuses on communion with God with the spiritual, magisterial, and transcendental dimensions, and the horizontal element focuses on communion with society and its sociological, temporal, and historical dimensions. Founded on the Scriptures and the teachings of liberation, elaboration of the concept of freedom, and the Social Teachings of the Church, the paradigm presents distinguishing elements responding to a form of split-level Christianity that reduces faith to verticalism or horizontalism and Marxist tendencies in theology. Also, analysis of general views of liberation from theological and non-theological perspectives, aligned or not aligned with the Church’s teachings.