The poor we love in theory: Do we treat them like theirs is the Kingdom of God?
blackcatholicmessenger.org
The Church preaches solidarity with the poor but its institutional habits may betray a deeper hypocrisy — and liberation theology's "preferential option" is the lens that exposes the gap.
Preferential Option for the PoorLiberation TheologyCognitive DissonanceVirtue Ethics
Theory Briefing
- Fabian Adderley challenges whether the Church's institutional life actually reflects its stated preferential option for the poor.
- Liberation theology demands structural solidarity, not just charitable sentiment — a standard the article implies the Church routinely falls short of.
- The gap between professed values and lived practice is a textbook case of cognitive dissonance playing out at an institutional scale.