Theology is reflection, a critical attitude. The commitment of love, of service, comes first. Theology follows; it is the second step.

The building of a just society means overcoming every obstacle to the creation of authentic peace.

As we progress, various shades of meaning and deeper levels of understanding will complement this initial effort.

But the poor person does not exist as an inescapable fact of destiny. His or her existence is not politically neutral, and it is not ethically innocent. The poor are a by-product of the system in which we live and for which we are responsible. They are marginalized by our social and cultural world. They are the oppressed, exploited proletariat, robbed of the fruit of their labor and despoiled of their humanity. Hence the poverty of the poor is not a call to generous relief action, but a demand that we go and build a different social order.

In the Bible poverty is a scandalous condition inimical to human dignity and therefore contrary to the will of God.

Theology is reflection, a critical attitude. The commitment of love, of service, comes first. Theology follows; it is the second step.

Christendom is not primarily a mental construct. It is above all a fact, indeed the longest historical experience the Church has had. Hence the deep impact it has made on its life and thought.