But what does any of this have to do with “liberation”? The answer is twofold: partly it is personal liberation, partly social. Archbishop Romero provides a good summary of the former sort of freedom:
“We have never preached violence, except the violence of love, which left Christ nailed to a cross, the violence that we must each do to ourselves to overcome our selfishness and such cruel inequalities among us. The violence we preach is not the violence of the sword, the violence of hatred. It is the violence of love, of brotherhood, the violence that wills to beat weapons into sickles for work.” (The Violence of Love)
We must overturn so many idols, the idol of self first of all, so that we can be humble, and only from our humility can learn to be redeemers, can learn to work together in the way the world really needs. Liberation that raises a cry against others is no true liberation. Liberation that means revolutions of hate and violence and takes away lives of others or abases the dignity of others cannot be true liberty. True liberty does violence to self and, like Christ, who disregarded that he was sovereign becomes a slave to serve others.” (The Violence of Love)
He also speaks to the latter:
“When we struggle for human rights, for freedom, for dignity, when we feel that it is a ministry of the church to concern itself for those who are hungry, for those who have no schools, for those who are deprived, we are not departing from God’s promise. He comes to free us from sin, and the church knows that sin’s consequences are all such injustices and abuses. The church knows it is saving the world when it undertakes to speak also of such things.” (The Violence of Love)
“The church must suffer for speaking the truth, for pointing out sin, for uprooting sin. No one wants to have a sore spot touched, and therefore a society with so many sores twitches when someone has the courage to touch it and say: “You have to treat that. You have to get rid of that. Believe in Christ. Be converted.” (The Violence of Love)
Here we see liberation from the chains of self, from the desire to say “I am and always have been correct,” when in reality God always calls us beyond ourselves. Here we see liberation from what our cultures tell us is correct, from the drowsiness of a world always filled with sin and injustice. But note that we do not overcome these with any typical violence, but with the violence of love, with the willingness to turn to others in love and humility, to stand for truth even as we speak as God would have us do. It seems to me that, at bottom, the Gospel itself gives us this hermeneutics of liberation:
Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand, for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute. You will even be handed over by parents, brothers, relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives. (Luke 21:14-19)
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