Besides their insistence on praxis and the application of the Word of God to agiven situation Liberation Theologies make ample use of tools of analysis touncove... » 

Besides their insistence on praxis and the application of the Word of God to agiven situation Liberation Theologies make ample use of tools of analysis touncover root causes of oppression. Now it is precisely with respect to thesetools that Liberation Theologies today find themselves on shifting grounds. Inintraecclesiastical circles cultural concerns have come to replace socioeconomic analysis whereas after the implosion of the East Bloc theliberationists proper also pay more attention to the issues of gender ecologyand indigenous movements. The contributions to this volume originating fromvarious continents discuss to what extent this shift in emphasis is desirableand acceptable and conclude that the cultural focus cannot possibly invalidatebut only enrich and complete the socioeconomic analysis. They moreover tryto assess the developments in light of globalization economics informaticson the one hand and postmodernity on the other. Given the impact of westernculture politics the question arises as to whether the native cultures willsucceed in keeping up their religious core values and structures of solidarity two elements so indispensable for liberative commitments Peeters 1998 «