Decolonial theology in Abya Yala

The concept of decoloniality in Abya Yala encompasses a historical, socio-political, and theological framework for understanding the colonial processes that have impacted the continent since 1492. While independence movements in the 18th and 19th centuries are often hailed as significant breaks from the colonial powers of England, Spain, and Portugal, the enduring structural legacies of colonial rule persist well beyond the formal attainment of independence. These legacies remain challenging to comprehend for those in privileged positions who continue to benefit from the remnants of colonialism.

Coloniality must be understood not merely as a historical event but as an ongoing struggle against systems of governance, epistemologies, and structures inherited from the colonial experience, implemented by Europeans and their descendants to maintain power and control in Abya Yala.

Understanding the colonial process from a Native perspective requires examining experiences, ancestral memories, spiritual beliefs, and political approaches to liberation. This article acknowledges that many attempts to swiftly transition to a postcolonial analysis—predominantly influenced by individuals of European descent through philosophical, socialist, and theological frameworks often overlook essential elements. These proponents of postcolonial or superficial decolonial ideas urge Native theologians to disregard their experiences and struggles and adopt a postcolonial mindset that promotes secular governance. However, they fail to recognize that the spiritual beliefs of Natives peoples are intricately linked to political realities. From a Native viewpoint, we cannot hasten this transition, as Natives communities continue to grapple with the enduring effects of coloniality within republican institutions.

A decolonial theology in Abya Yala offers a critical framework for all who genuinely seek sociopolitical and religious decolonization. A theological understanding of the crucifixion, particularly as it relates to the suffering of Natives peoples, loses its relevance if the promise of resurrection does not manifest in the lived realities of historically impoverished and marginalized communities.

Coloniality as Historical Structure and Present Reality

Decolonial theory emphasizes that coloniality did not end with the dissolution of empires. As Quijano, peruvian thinker and sociologist, argues, coloniality persists through epistemic domination, racialized hierarchies, and economic dependency. The 35 countries have been created over the last 249 years; rather than dismantling these systems, they have been consolidated under new elites, European descendants in the majority, who have maintained the same structures of power and dominance.

For Native peoples and Afro-descendant communities who are coming together and find themselves marginalized and impoverished, independence did not translate into political agency, territorial restitution, or liberational theology. Instead, coloniality adapted itself, shifting from imperial rule to “democratic administration”. However, land remained concentrated in the hands of the colonizers and retained power and authority. The church theology maintained the crucified as an example of eternal sacrifice for the crucified of history, without offering more hope of resurrection or good living to construct solidarity.

Base on the description the situation of coloniality must be recognized as it is:

• A historical fact rooted in the act of invasion, genocide, dispossession of native peoples, slavery, and subjection of Native peoples.
• A system of governance that shaped republican institutions.
• A narrative framework dividing society into colonizers/colonized, visible/invisible, powerful/powerless, Christian/”pagan,” black and brown impure, whiteness ideal supremacy, landowners/servants

This dualistic logic produces a linear historical narrative that positions native and Afro descendant peoples as remnants of a past to be surpassed. However, native ancestral acknowledgment and wisdom time is circular, and what appears to be decline is often a return, a reemergence of ancestral memory and identity from native peoples, who are here with the demand and move to be heard.

In today’s Abya Yala, the spiritual and socio-political landscape demonstrates that community resistance has not only endured but has intensified over time. Communities in Guatemala, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia among others are mobilizing against extractive corporations, corrupt governments, and legal frameworks that continue to dispossess them. Their struggles are not isolated or merely reactive; they are deeply rooted in their identity as descendants of Indigenous peoples who have been dispossessed of their land and are now reclaiming their vital role in safeguarding life in its entirety.

Despite the false promises of a better life under modern republics, many communities continue to suffer from forms of structural oppression, facing inadequate healthcare and working under exploitative conditions that perpetuate impoverishment, exclusion, precarious labor, and institutional neglect. This situation illustrates how colonial violence is reproduced across generations.

The Empty Cross as a Symbol of Resurrection

Abya Yala theology offers a framework for interpreting colonial history through the lens of crucifixion, leading toward the concept of resurrection. For the past 500 years, Indigenous peoples have faced a form of crucifixion. The theology promoted by colonial and postcolonial churches has often focused on themes of suffering, resignation, and sacrificial endurance—aligning with systems of control and representing the “crucified peoples of history.”

As Kichwa anthropologist Patricio Guerrero points out, humanity is presently undergoing a profound reordering of life, one that involves significant changes in meaning and our perception of time. In my previous essay discussing the Abya Yala theological approach, I argued that the resurgence of Indigenous cultures across Abya Yala can be viewed as a collective resurrection. This revival encompasses the renewal of ancestral knowledge, the strengthening of community, and a reaffirmation of spiritual identity.

As Abya Yala theologians discuss, our approach is deeply rooted in our identity as indigenous descendant peoples, distinguishing us from those who rely on the ambiguous, colonial term “Latin America,” often linked to a lineage that explicitly favors European ancestry and the privileges associated with whiteness.

Decoloniality from a native perspective emerges through the cultivation of relationships, communal reflection, and the deep practice of corazonar, which harmonizes heart and mind.

As we move ahead, it’s important to embrace the Empty Cross as a sign of resurrection. Letting go of religious ideas that focus on suffering and consolation after death is key, since these often maintain colonial power about life and after life. Decolonial theology instead seeks to celebrate resistance, good living, dignity, justice, and freedom for all.

The concept of Resurrection powerfully conveys of believe and practices of resistance and sacrifice, honoring those ancestors whose struggles enable our presence today. The saying “They thought they could kill us by burying us, but they did not know we were seeds” vividly demonstrates how hardship can inspire resilience, transformation, and new beginnings.

Decoloniality in Abya Yala extends beyond merely rejecting colonial narratives; it emphasizes the development on pedagogies of liberation grounded in ancestral memories of resistance and challenges to Eurocentric perspectives that we no need anymore. This approach acknowledges the presence of alternative ways and sources of ancestral wisdom. Indisputably, Abya Yala theology today seeks to cultivate a new historical perspective that is inherently ancestral, communal, political, and prophetic.

Yenny Delgado is an Abya Yala theologian. For more than a decade, she has engaged with faith communities, social movements, and local governments to advocate for decolonial education. She is the director and Founder  of PUBLICA Theology and the convener of Women Doing Theology in Abya Yala, an ecumenical, womanist, and intergenerational theological community. She is recognized as a leading and foundational voice of Abya Yala Theology.