Faith, Power, and Abuse: Rethinking Obedience in the Catholic Church. A Latin American Case Study with a Focus on Peru

Abstract This article examines the paradox of obedience in the Latin American Catholic Church, particularly in Peru. Traditionally regarded as a path to spiritual growth and communal harmony, obedience can also serve as a tool for manipulation and abuse, blurring the boundaries between divine and human authority. Drawing on post–Vatican II Church documents and sociological and cognitive history approaches, this article critically examines how certain ecclesial structures and dynamics may contribute to systemic dysfunction, creating conditions that can enable abuses to persist. It argues that obedience, often framed as submission, consolidates power in the hands of a few, fostering environments prone to exploitation. The Sodalicio case, treated here as a document-based case, illustrates how rapid expansion can obscure ethical and spiritual flaws, with mortification and perfection misused to justify harm. By combining critical diagnosis of abusive configurations of obedience with a constructive theological proposal, this article calls for a critical reinterpretation of religious narratives and practices, advocating for ecclesial reform that transcends technical protocols and addresses the systemic issues sustaining abuse.