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| Dominican priest Gustavo Gutierrez suffered years of criticism over the liberation theology |
This is a radical departure from the previous Popes! I can hardly believe my eyes! -Bill
http://en.mercopress.com/2013/09/15/pope-s-meets-with-the-father-of-liberation-theology-vatican-media-praises-the-peruvian-priest
Sunday, September 15th 2013 - 20:16 UTC
Pope’s meets with the father of liberation theology; Vatican media praises the Peruvian priest
Pope Francis' September 11 meeting with Dominican Father Gustavo Gutierrez was an informal one, held in the in the pope's residence, the Domus Sanctae Marthae, and not listed on his official schedule., reports the Catholic News Service. However the news that Pope Francis had received the 85-year old Peruvian priest, who is widely considered the father of liberation theology, has excited interest far beyond the Vatican's walls.
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| The prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Archbishop Gerhard L. Muller is a supporter of Gutierrez. |
But within a single week in early September 2013, the Vatican newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, published an interview with Father Gutierrez, an article by the theologian himself, and two articles praising his work -- one of them by the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Archbishop Gerhard L. Muller.
Following years of Vatican criticism of liberation theology under John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, these events might seem to indicate a reversal of policy under Pope Francis. It would be more accurate to say they represent the fruit of a long and painful process, through which the church has clarified the nature of its commitment to the world's poor today.

