So, what do you think Benedict16 intends with these "small communities"

[patrice]

I've heard mentioned, 2 or 3 times in various media the last few days, within the context of the Church's Latin American issues, e.g. http://www.salon.com/news/feature/2005/04/20/latin_america/

This is what they are "going to do" about social justice in Latin America?

How does that work: Give them a Bible and tell them to show up for Mass when a priest passes through town?

OR - Will they be Frierian communities, a la Paolo Freire's Pedagogy of the Oppressed? e.g. http://www.paulofreireinstitute.org/ss_freire-eng.html - A means by which the lowest level of grassroots people discover and address their problems themselves. Probably too good to be true.

[chicagiana]

1. Ratzinger is a fascist ...

What he means if for these people to shut their holes, do what their told and hand what little pettance they make over to their church. Their reward will come in the after-life.

[patrice]

2. OK, so what do you think of Friere?

[Zoskie]

3. I'm not sure Benedict intends anything with small communities

I don't read the Salon article as saying small communities in Latin America are something Benedict supports (or doesn't support, for that matter), and I haven't seen anything else in the media about this. I think the Salon article is just laying out the problems of the Church in Latin America which Benedict will have to deal with, and these include liberation theology and already-existing small communities.

As far as small communities goes, the liberation theology movement's small communities in Latin America were indeed based upon Friere's Pedagogy of the Oppressed. Small communities gathered to reflect upon the Bible in light of their own experiences of oppression, which leads them to praxis. Because the oppressors of the time were largely right wing dictatorships, some of the praxis tended toward Marxism, which was antithetical to then-Cardinal Ratzinger and Pope John Paul II. The Vatican documents issued in the 80's, while not precisely condemning liberation theology, did condemn its Marxist side, and indeed some Latin American liberation theologians were silenced.

However, even though somewhat underground now, liberation theology does survive, both in Latin America, and in other forms such as feminist and black liberation theology. (Once people learn to reflect upon and deal with their own oppression, I don't think a little thing like Vatican condemnation can stop them.) I read the Salon article as simply indicating that one of Benedict's challenges will be dealing with the liberation theology and the small communities in Latin America; I didn't see any indication there that he is in favor of them. If you've seen other articles in the media that suggest he is in favor of the small communities, I'd be interested in seeing them--that would really give me hope!