Camilo Torres: Priest, Liberation Theologian, Guerrilla Fighter(Routledge Studies in Modern History)

Camilo Torres: Priest, Liberation Theologian, Guerrilla Fighter takes an in-depth look at the intense story of Colombian figure Camilo Torres Restrepo (1929–1966). Torres was an acclaimed young liberal who became a priest, a sociologist, a forerunner of liberation theology, and a revolutionary politician who sought to end 130 years of terrible human suffering in his country and to replace it with a Christian humanism based on “efficacious love.” This goal proved challenging to accomplish, and Torres ultimately found his way into the ranks of the Colombian ELN guerrilla movement, in which he was killed in February 1966, leaving behind a prophetic hope. This book is a vital resource for historians and students of Latin America. It especially appeals to those interested in church policy, the theology of liberation, and guerrilla movements. As the first English-language publication on this subject in 50 years – since the last account of Torres’s life in 1975 – it breaks new ground. Furthermore, it represents the first exploration of how Jewish thought influenced Torres’s theoretical framework, adopting a prophetic justice perspective that resonates with the struggles of Colombia and similar regions in the developing world. This is not just a historical account; it’s a call to understand and confront injustice wherever it exists.

Table of Contents:
Contents Acknowledgments List of Maps List of Illustrations Introduction An Unforgettable Evening Goals of the Book Structure For whom is this book intended? Chapter 1: Colombia: Basic Information and Fundamental Problems General Historical Aspects The Political and Economic System "El Bogotazo" of 1948 and the "Outbreak of Violence" (La Violencia) The Lessons of the "Independent Republic" The Culture of Violence – Colombian Style Chapter 2: The Global Catholic Church and the Catholic Church in Colombia The Catholic Church and Modernity The Church in Colombia The Colombian Church and the Question of Social Welfare Chapter 3: Camilo Torres: Biographical Aspects Childhood and Adolescence The Belgian Period: Studies in the Shadow of an Era of Crisis A Religious and Professional Career Tests of Torres’s Approach Chapter 4: The Crystallization of Camilist Theopolitics Torres's Social-Theological Rationale Rebellion is Inevitable: Why must Christians be revolutionaries? On the Necessity of Structural Reform: Camilist Thinking The Omission of Jewish Tradition from Camillist Thinking One Step before a Theopolitics of Liberation Chapter 5: The United Front of the People (Frente Unido del Pueblo) as a Third Center of Power The Platform of the Movement The Crucial Day The 12 Messages Evaluating the Messages The Disagreement with the Church and Torres’s Defrocking Delegitimization and Character Assassination: The Day after the Defrocking Chapter 6: The Failure of the Movement's Campaign A Final Effort: The Meeting at the Bavarian Brewery Between Optimism and Pessimism The Final Message from the Mountains The Reasons for Failure Chapter 7: Joining the Guerrillas A Moment of Truth and Isolation Torres and the National Liberation Army (ELN) “A Prophet is not without honor except in his own town and his own home.” Chapter 8: The Camilist Legacy New Social Perspectives A New Species of Apostolism The Medellín Conference Chapter 9: Torres: The Catholics’ Che Guevara? Similarities: Biography The Tendency to Theorize Reality The Symmetry of the Failure and of the Hope for a Heroic Return Che Guevara and Camilo Torres: Theologians of Liberation Differences A Che Guevara of the Catholics alone? Epilogue A Return to the Unforgettable Night A Final Look Camilo Lives! Bibliography Index

About the Author :
Eitan Ginzberg is a retired associate professor of history and culture at the Kibbutzim College of Education in Israel, a senior lecturer at Achva Academic College, and a Research fellow at the Sverdlin Institute of Latin American History and Culture at Tel Aviv University. His research focuses on the history and culture of Mexico and Latin America, as well as the study of genocide. Dr. Ginzberg is the author of numerous articles and several books, including Lázaro Cárdenas, gobernador de Michoacán (1928–1932) (1999); Revolutionary Ideology and Political Destiny in Mexico, 1928–1934: Lázaro Cárdenas and Adalberto Tejeda (2015); The Destruction of the Indigenous Peoples of Spanish America: A Genocidal Encounter (2018).