RIP Father Gustavo Gutiérrez - Death of Liberation Theologian Fr. Gutiérrez who was Friends with Cardinal Müller

The Catholic Dominican priest and theologian, Father Gustavo Gutiérrez, has died at age 96. He was a pioneer of liberation theology, a movement advocating for social justice and the liberation of the poor.
He died during the night of Tuesday, October 22, at the age of 96.
According to Vatican News he "challenged the Church to reconsider its role in a world marked by social inequality and commit more fully to the defense of the weak."
He was well known in the 1960s as a response to massive social inequalities in Latin America. Fr. Gutierrez' liberation theology emphasised that the Christian faith must tackle social issues of poverty and exclusion in order to remain credible.

Fr. Gutiérrez's 1971 book A Theology of Liberation was foundational to this movement and has deeply shaped theological thought in Latin America and beyond.
He was born in Peru in 1928, and initially studied medicine before turning to philosophy, psychology, and theology. Gutierrez was ordained a priest in 1959 and entered the Dominican Order in 1999.
For decades, he taught at the Catholic University of Lima, focusing on the social challenges facing people in his homeland and across Latin America.
In an interview with Vatican Radio in 2015, Fr. Gutiérrez said, "poverty is death", he said, "it destroys people and families. The Church understands this better than in the past."
One of the most charming stories about Fr. Gutiérrez was his friendship with the German theologian Cardinal Gerhard Müller, one-time head of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith—the same office that had once voiced its concern about aspects of liberation theology.
Cardinal Müller spoke to Vatican News about the death of his friend, whom he called “one of the great theologians of our time.” Liberation theology had a far-reaching impact on the Catholic Church and on society. It challenged the Church to reconsider its role in a world marked by social inequality and commit more fully to defending the weak. He received a Ph.D. at Universite Catholique de Lyon, France.
Biography from Notre Dame University:
After studies in medicine and literature in Peru, Gustavo Gutierrez studied psychology and philosophy at Louvain, and eventually took a doctorate at the Institut Catholique in Lyons. He is most well-known for his foundational work in Latin American liberation theology, A Theology of Liberation: History, Politics, Salvation. His other major books - which have been translated from Spanish into multiple languages besides English - touch as well on issues of spirituality and Latin American history, and include, We Drink From Our Own Wells: The Spiritual Journey of A People, On Job: God-Talk and the Suffering of the Innocent, The Truth Shall Make You Free, The God of Life, and Las Casas: In Search of the Poor of Jesus Christ. His essays have appeared in Theological Studies, La Revista Latinoamericana de Teología, and Páginas. He has also published in and been a member of the board of directors of the international journal, Concilium.
Gutierrez has been a principal professor at the Pontifical University of Peru, and has been visiting professor at many major universities in North America and Europe. He is a member of the Peruvian Academy of Language, and in 1993 he was awarded the Legion of Honor by the French government for his tireless work for human dignity and life, and against oppression, in Latin America and the Third World. He is currently working on a book exploring the historical background and continuing theological relevance of the preferential option for the poor.