Leonardo Boff facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Leonardo Boff
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Boff in 2003
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Genézio Darci Boff
14 December 1938 Concórdia, Santa Catarina, Brazil
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| Spouse(s) | Márcia Monteiro da Silva Miranda |
| Relatives | Clodovis Boff (brother) |
| Awards | Right Livelihood Award (in 2000) |
Leonardo Boff (born Genézio Darci Boff on December 14, 1938) is a well-known Brazilian thinker. He is a Catholic theologian, a philosopher, and a writer. He used to be a Catholic priest. Boff is famous for supporting Latin American liberation theology. This idea combines faith with helping people who are poor and treated unfairly.
He is a retired professor from the Rio de Janeiro State University. There, he taught about ethics, the philosophy of religion, and ecology. In 2001, he won the Right Livelihood Award. This award recognized his ideas and work. He helped people understand how their spiritual beliefs, fairness in society, and caring for the environment are all connected.
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Early Life and Education
Leonardo Boff was born in 1938 in Concórdia, a city in Santa Catarina, Brazil. In 1959, he joined the Franciscan Order, a religious group. He became a Catholic priest in 1964. After that, he spent several years studying. He earned a special degree called a doctorate in theology and philosophy. He received this degree from the University of Munich in 1970.
Boff's doctoral project looked at how the Church could represent sacred and divine ideas in the modern world. It also explored how the Church could help people who were oppressed. His brother, Clodovis Boff, is also a theologian.
Understanding Liberation Theology
Leonardo Boff became one of the most recognized supporters of Latin American liberation theology. This movement started with thinkers like Gustavo Gutiérrez and Jon Sobrino. It aimed to connect feelings of anger about poverty and unfairness with messages of faith and hope.
Boff continues to be a figure who sparks discussion within the Catholic Church. He has often criticized the Church's leaders. He believes some of their views are too strict. He also has strong opinions on political matters.
Views on Society and Politics
Boff often speaks out about how power is used in society. He has also shared his thoughts on how different countries interact. For example, he did not agree with the Iraq War. He believed that some leaders acted like "fundamentalist states."
He also criticizes leaders in the Middle East. He has said that some rulers there are unfair. He points out that even though these countries are very rich, many people remain poor.
Boff supports the Campaign for the Establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly. This group wants to make the United Nations more democratic. They believe it would create a fairer international political system.
Changes in His Path
The leaders of the Catholic Church did not always agree with Boff's ideas. They felt his support for liberation theology made everything too political. They also thought his ideas were too close to certain political theories.
In 1985, a part of the Catholic Church called the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith told him to stop teaching for a year. This was because of his book Church: Charism and Power.
In 1992, Church leaders almost silenced him again. This was to stop him from joining the Eco-92 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. Because of this, Boff decided to leave the Franciscan religious order and stop being a priest.
Boff later joined a group of Catholic scholars. In 2012, this group released a statement. It called for changes in how authority works within the Catholic Church.
For most of his life, Boff has taught at universities. He has been a professor of theology, ethics, and philosophy in Brazil. He has also given talks at many universities around the world. These include the University of Lisbon and the University of Barcelona.
When Pope Francis was chosen in March 2013, Boff shared his thoughts. He said he was hopeful about this choice. He saw it as a sign that the Church might become simpler and more focused on caring for the environment. He noted that the new pope had some traditional views but also some open-minded ones.
Important Books
Leonardo Boff has written many books. Here are some of them:
- The Tao of Liberation: Exploring the Ecology of Transformation (with Mark Hathaway, 2009)
- Evangelio del Cristo cósmico (2009)
- El águila y la gallina. Una metáfora de la condición humana (2006)
- Ecología: grito de la Tierra, grito de los pobres (2006)
- Femenino y masculino. Una nueva conciencia para el encuentro de las diferencias (2004)
- La voz del arco iris (2003)
- El cuidado esencial. Ética de lo humano, compasión por la Tierra (2002)
- Fundamentalismo. La globalización y el futuro de la humanidad (2003)
- Mística y espiritualidad (with Frei Betto, 2002)
- Ética planetaria desde el Gran Sur (2001)
- Gracia y experiencia humana (2001)
- El despertar del águila (2000)
- La dignidad de la Tierra. Ecología, mundialización, espiritualidad (2000)
- La opción-Tierra: la solución para la tierra no cae del cielo (2008)
- Ecclesiogenesis: The Base Communities Reinvent the Church (1986)
- Church: Charism and Power (1985)
- Los sacramentos de la vida (1977)
See also
In Spanish: Leonardo Boff para niños
