These are the 10 theologians you should know

By Yenny Delgado

When you think of female theologians does a specific name or scholar come to mind? 

Over the past few decades there have been numerous intellectual and theological contributions from women in the United States from both Protestant and Catholic backgrounds. Below, I present the contribution of the 10 most influential women theologians that you should know:

1. Emilie M Townes

Dr. Townes is a pioneer in Womanist theology. Womanist theology is a field of study in which the historical and current ideas of women of African descent in the United States highlight the critical engagement and traditions of Christian theology. She has developed a keen interest in critical thinking about women’s perspectives on topics such as health care, economic justice, and literary theory.

True to her academic work, she continues her research on women and health in the African diaspora in both Brazil and the United States.

Publications:

• Womanist Ethics and the Cultural Production of Evil (2006).
• Breaking the Fine Rain of Death: African American Health Care and a Womanist Ethic of Care (1998).
• In a Blaze of Glory: Womanist Spirituality as Social Witness (1995).
• Womanist Justice, Womanist Hope (1993).

2. Katie Cannon

Dr. Cannon was a specialist in ethics and black theology. In 1974 she became the first African American woman ordained in the United Presbyterian Church. She is credited with founding women’s theology and ethics as a field. Additionally, Dr. Cannon, founded and organized the Center for Women’s Leadership at Union Presbyterian Seminary.

Publications:

• Womanism and the Soul of the Black Community (1998.)
• Black womanist ethics (1988)

 3. Elizabeth Conde Frasier

Dr Conde is an ordained pastor of the American Baptist Church with more than ten years of pastoral experience and as a practical theologian.

She was founder of the Orlando E. Costas Hispanic and Latin American Ministries Program at Andover Newton School of Theology, served as full professor of religious education at Claremont School of Divinity, and as academic dean and vice president of education at Esperanza College of Eastern University. Director of AETH.

Publications:

• Atando Cabos Latinx Contributions to Theological Education (2021)
• A Many-Colored Kingdom: Multicultural Dynamics for Spiritual Formation (2004)

4. Diana Hayes

Dr. Hayes emeritus Professor of Systematic Theology at Georgetown University. Her areas of expertise are womanist theology, black theology, US liberation theologies, contextual theologies, religion and public life, and African American and womanist spirituality.

Dr. Hayes is the first African American woman to receive the Pontifical Doctor of Sacred Theology (STD) degree from the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium, and has also received three honorary doctorates.

Publications:

• No Crystal Stair: Womanist Spirituality. (2016)
• Forged in the Fiery Furnace: African American Spirituality. (2012)
• Standing in the Shoes My Mother Made: A Womanist Theology. (2010)

5. Kathryn Tanner

Dr Tanner her research links the history of Christian thought with contemporary issues of theological interest using social, cultural, and feminist theory. For eight years he has been a member of the Theology Committee that advises the House of Bishops of the Episcopal Church.

Publications:

• God and Creation in Christian theology (2004)
• The Politics of God: Christian Theologies and Social Justice. (1992)
• Theories of Culture: A New Agenda for Theology (1997)

6. Kelly Brown

Dr. Brown is Dean of Episcopal Divinity School at Union Theological Seminary in New York City. In 2019, she was appointed to the Bill and Judith Moyers Professor of Theology. Kelly is considered a leader in the field of womanist theology, racial reconciliation, social justice, and sexuality and the black church.

Publications: 

• Stand Your Ground: Black Bodies and Justice of God (2015)
• Sexuality and the Black Church: A Womanist Perspective. (1999)
• Resurrection Hope: A Future Where Black Lives Matter.(2021)

7. Wonhee Anne Joh

Dr. Joh theologian is a professor, and lecturer whose influence on the disciplines of religion, women’s equality, and the Asian-American experience has created a great deal of positive thought and discourse.

Publications:

• Heart of the Cross: A Postcolonial Christology.( 2006)
• Critical Theology against US Militarism in Asia: Decolonization and Deimperialization (2016)
• Engaging the United States as a Military Empire: Critical Studies of Christianity from Asian/Asian North American Perspectives. (2016).

8. Mary Shawn Copeland

Dr Copeland is a catholic theologian and former nun. She is Professor Emeritus of Systematic Theology at Boston College and is known for her work in theological anthropology and political theology.

Copeland has held positions at Xavier University of Louisiana, Yale Divinity School, and Marquette University. She worked as an adjunct professor in the Theology Department at Boston College for several years. She was the first African American to serve as president of the Catholic Theological Society of America.

Publications:

The Subversive Power of Love: The Vision of Henriette Delille (2009)

Enfleshing Freedom:Body, Race and Being (2010)

Knowing Christ Crucified: The Witness of African American Religious Experience (2018)

9. Loida Martell-Otero

Dr Martell-Otero earned a doctorate in Theology from Fordham University and is an ordained minister for the Baptist Church. She is currently Dean of Lexington Theological Seminary, where she also serves as professor of constructive theology. Dr. Martell pioneered the study of evangelical theology in the United States. She has published articles on evangelical soteriology, Christlogy, doctrine of God, biblical hermeneutics, incarnation, eschatology, globalization, and vocation.

Publications:

Teología en Conjunto: A collaborative Hispanic Protestant Theology (1997)

Latinas evangélicas: A Theological Study from the Margins. (2013)

10. Rosemary Radford Ruether

Dr. Radford is Catholic theologian known for her important contributions to the field of feminist theology. Her field of knowledge and writing is wide, with topics ranging from feminist theology and ecofeminist theology to topics such as anti-Semitism and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

She is a proponent of women’s ordination, a movement among Catholic religious people who affirm the ability of women to serve as priests, despite official sanction.

Publications:

• The Church Against Itself. (1967)
• Women and Redemption: A Theological History. (2012).
• Women Healing Earth: Third World Women on Ecology, Feminism, and Religion.(1996).

As you can see, the contribution of women in the field of theology in the United States is broad, and is growing.  These theologians have developed and expanded the field of thought and reflection in constant evolution and in a continuous exploration of aspects that previously went unnoticed and that are now highlighted. Their writings respond to our current contexts where women take leading roles and without a doubt, they contribute not only to the theological field but also to society itself.

You can also read more about Women Doing Theology in Abya Yala

______________________

Yenny Delgado– Psychologist and Theologian. Director of Publica and convener of Women Doing Theology in Abya Yala. She writes about the intersections between ancestral memory, decolonization, womanist and public faith. Currently, she is a doctoral student in Social Science of Religion at the University of Lausanne.

By Yenny Delgado

Colombia is on the verge of a historic election in which a woman of African Descent has the genuine possibility of being elected as Vice-President. Francia Márquez, 40 years old, who is of African Descent, could become the second in command of the republic. But what is the difference between the Colombian elections and the well covered candidacy in the United States of Barack Obama, who is African America, during his presidential campaign in 2008? Or during the candidacy of Kamala Harris, who in 2020 was elected the first female Vice-President of the United States as a woman of African and Asian ancestry?

Just as what happened in the United States, in Colombia people are making racist jokes about being governed by an “African,” and other disparaging comments making visible the racism that is often not so subtly hidden under the surface of Colombian society. On the other hand, people who support Marquez’s candidacy in Colombia have different approaches. They see an opportunity to show what equal rights and inclusion could look like in Colombia’s political sphere and offer a more progressive view of the country.

For the past decade, I have written about racism and the ideology of white supremacy in the United States. There have been few willing to engage in discussions or conversations for most of this time, especially with colleagues throughout Abya Yala. The view and thought has been that the problem is more contextualized to the north and the United States but does not accurately reflect situations throughout the continent. In the United States, it is clear to see the long history of persistent laws and customs that have supported practices that preferentially benefit individuals of European ancestry. In the South, these people claim, history is different, and it is different from the “Anglo” oppression. However, following the assassination of George Floyd by a police officer of European ancestry that was captured on video for the world to see amid a global pandemic, there has been a greater awareness and awakening throughout the continent of how our societies truly operate and the underlying opinions, subversive racism and white supremacist thoughts we hold as a society.

However, we often fail to realize similar histories and laws are pervasive throughout the continent, all motivated by the flawed idea of white supremacy. There are deep roots in the history of colonization that many people no longer want to talk about. In the conservative circles, it is about “old history.” In the liberal circles, they prefer to move quickly around “post-colonization.” Both prefer and desire to bypass the most tragic events in Abya Yala.

Not surprisingly, the resemblance between United States and Colombia history is the same. Colonization of the native population and the enslavement of Africans go hand to hand in all over the continent. Colonization and white supremacy were not invented in Abya Yala but in Europe, where they divided the territory between Catholics and Protestants; between Spanish and Portuguese; between English, and French. We can see the same colonialist agenda that was used throughout the hemisphere to ensure that in both the United States and Colombia, and other nations in Abya Yala, white supremacy remains the norm.

Marquez is from the Cauca Region. The region has a long history of exploiting individuals of African ancestry to mine golds and plant a variety of crops. During colonial times, enslaved Africans were bought, sold, or inherited between the Spanish and their descendants, also known as “Criollos”, whom the Spanish Caste system defined as Spaniards born in Abya Yala, in Popayan and other regions in Colombia Today, the sting of this period of slavery continues to plague the nation as racist rhetoric surrounds Francia Marquez’s candidacy.

The candidacy of Francia puts the finger on the wound. Her empowerment as a community leader and educated Afro-descendant woman breaks the silence. It forces the ruling to confront themselves and deal with a history of injustice and inhumanity. The comments towards Márquez’s candidacy, such as “she must go back to Africa” or “Colombia is not an African country,” seem to exemplify what many non-Black Colombians have long believed but have never openly said.

Marquez represents the face of a country with historical memory. Thanks to the brave presence of Marquez, Colombia can recognize and confront its history by seeing someone like her on the ballot. For this reason, Marquez puts on the table what the new Colombian generations want to discuss and how those generations desire to see the country move forward.

A few days before the elections, Colombia is again faced with deciding the next political administration, a difficult task, when the right-wing counterattacks with discriminatory speeches and the left and liberals promise to solve an ideological problem with laws.

Laws are powerful tools but are not the remedy. Everyone who wants to move forward needs to confront the consequences of colonization, which is indeed the original sin and basis of white supremacist ideology. We have a shared story across Abya Yala, and the current election should help us see the interconnectedness of this land and its real history.

Yenny Delgado

Psychologist and Public Theologian. Director of Publica and convener of Mujeres Doing Theology in Abya Yala. Ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church USA. She writes about the intersections between ancestral memory, decolonization, womanism, and public faith. 

The ten female theologians you should know

Abya Yala is a continent with a diverse population. In the last five centuries, the native people and their descendants have inhabited sacred lands with migrants from Europe, Africa, and Asia. These unique experiences of merging and interacting cultures, languages, spirituality, and backgrounds have led to a unique theological voice reflecting emerging from Abya Yala.

Indeed, Abya Yala comes from the Guna language and means “land in full maturity.” Since the 1970s, activists, writers, and academic descendants of the native population have adopted Abya Yala as the unified name of the continent in resistance to colonization and marginalization.

As women, we have been doing theology from different realities and reflections that have profoundly impacted the field and theological discourse. However, if we reflect on well-known theologians or those studying theology read, we often draw a blank.

Women’s work in the theological and pastoral world is diverse and significantly contributes. However, it is often invisible by a patriarchal system focused on the contributions of male theologians and geographically focused on reflection from a more European, Anglo-Saxon, and white vision.This is profoundly disturbing!

This list of 10 female theologians aims to address this problem, reflecting the breadth of Christianity and filling the current gap of silence and knowledge.

Here are the ten female theologians you should know:

1.Sofía Chipana (Bolivia)

A prominent voice of indigenous theology in Abya Yala, she values dignified and sacred life with the earth and respect for all life forms in her writing. She has worked with networks dedicated to theological reflection and articulating knowledge, wisdom, and spiritualities. She is a member of the Community of Indigenous Theologians of Abya Yala and the Andean Theological Community that fosters dialogue between the Andean peoples.

Quotables:“In the contexts of colonized peoples of Abya Yala, the Bible has been used as a colonizing instrument to alienate our identities, subjugate our territories and confine us to live as foreigners in our own lands.”

Publications: “Today’s tools for exegesis and hermeneutics” and “Apocalyptic: Stories for the recreation of life.”

2.Luzmila Quezada (Peru)

Luzmila has work has focused on the role of women in faith communities. She has a doctorate in History and Theology and has devoted herself to teaching Systematic Theology, Feminist Theology, and Gender. In addition to her academic work, Luzmila is an ordained pastor of the Wesleyan Church and coordinator of the feminist theologians of Peru.

Quotables: “Women’s doing theology results from a critical reflection that challenges traditional theology. It is a theology that starts from everyday life in response, overcoming all forms of marginalization, exclusion.”

Publications: “Re-appropriating our lives, bodies, and sexualities. Methodological guide” ,”Fundamentalisms and Sexuality. Gender and Religion. Pluralisms and religious dissidents.”, “Christian women, social mobility and citizenship.”

3.Ivonne Gebara (Brazil)

Ivonne works from Brazil and presents eco-feminism connecting the exploitation of nature with the oppression experienced by peasant women, who have been exploited and dominated just like mother earth. Women have been relegated to being reproductive sources in the service of a patriarchal, hierarchical system. In her work, she denounces violence against nature and connects the natural world and its ideological, anthropological, and mythical relationship with women.

Quotables: “For men, evil is an act one can undo. But for women, evil is in their very being.”

Publications: “Women healing the earth: ecology, feminism and religion, according to Third World women,” “The thirst for meaning. Ecofeminist searches in poetic prose” and “ecofeminist theology” among others.

4.Maricel Mena (Colombia)

Maricel is a theologian, biblical scholar, and researcher. She specializes in contextual theology, feminist black biblical hermeneutics, and gender, and currently works at the Faculty of Philosophy and Theology at Saint Thomas University and investigates other religions, comparative religion, and Abrahamic religions.

Quotables:“The feminist black biblical hermeneutics rescues the black woman from the role of poor, maid, and slave, a role invented by the scholars who formed the socio-religious imaginary and places her as the protagonist of a story of struggle and resistance.”

Publications: “Latin American Biblical Panorama, “Spirituality, Justice, and Hope from Afro-American and Caribbean Theologies,” “A Question of Skin: From Hegemonic Wisdoms to Emerging Wisdoms,” among others.

5.Carolina Bacher Martinez (Argentina)

Carolina is a doctor of theology and professor of Pastoral Theology. Her work and contribution are to participatory action research through the theology of the signs of the times. She is a member of the Church, Society, and State Group in Argentina and the Urban Theology Group “Spirituality Practices” of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires. She is vice president of the Argentine Society of Theology SAT.

Quotables: “Each one of us deserves to know, learn from our itinerary, and continue our work, renewed by the encounter.”

Publications: “He talks to us on the road. Preliminary considerations regarding the subject, objective and method of a pastoral theology.”

6.Elsa Tamez (Mexico)

Elsa has a doctorate in Theology from the University of Lausanne. She is an emeritus professor at the Latin American Biblical University in San José, Costa Rica. She specializes in Bible with a feminist perspective, and contextual biblical critiques brought new perspectives to these fields of study. 

Quotables: “‎God remains silent so that men and women may speak, protest, and struggle. God remains silent so that people may really become people. When God is silent and men and women cry, God cries in solidarity with them but doesn’t intervene. God waits for the shouts of protest.”

Publications: “The Bible of the oppressed,” “The amnesty of grace,” and “Struggles for power in early Christianity: a study of the first letter of Timothy,” among others.

7.Agustina Luvis (Puerto Rico)

Agustina has a long history of theological studies with a Ph.D. in Systematic Theology from the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago. Her work includes Pentecostal and feminist theologies. She writes about women and their pastoral work. Agustina is currently Dean of the Evangelical Seminary of Puerto Rico.

Quotables: “Language is never neutral. Our language can give life and can cause death. To use the term “illegals” to refer to undocumented people is a tactic that influences the debate on immigration and feeds hatred and violence.”

Publications: “Sex in the Church” and “Created in her image: A comprehensive pastoral for women.”

8.Emilie M. Townes (United States)

She has been a pioneer in Womanist theology, a field of study in which the historical and current ideas of Afro-descendant women in the United States are brought into critical engagement with the traditions of Christian theology. Emilie has a keen interest in thinking critically about Women’s perspectives on topics such as health care, economic justice, and literary theory.

True to her academic work, she continues her research on women and health in the African diaspora in Brazil and the United States.

Quotables: “Ethics and theology are intimate dance partners — theology helps me think through how I experience God; ethics helps me think through how I must respond to this experience and also act on it.”

Publications: “Feminist theological ethics,” “Womanist ethics and the cultural production of evil,” among others.

9.Geraldina Céspedes (Dominican Republic)

Geraldina is a religious of the Congregation of Dominican Missionary Sisters of the Rosary. She has a doctorate in Systematic Theology. Her missionary and theological career have passed in various communities. 

Geraldine writes about the dehumanizing treatment in which people are objects of consumption and in the face of pseudo spiritualities of prosperity and “happiness.” Her work confronts the abuse of women’s time and their corporeity. Women are consumed, and only their profitability is sought for the market and patriarchy.

Quotables: “Ecofeminism precisely seeks to place other epistemological, philosophical and cosmological bases that allow the construction of another vision of nature, of the human being and of God.”

Publications: “Eco feminism Theology healthy for the earth and its inhabitants,” “The theologies of liberation before the market and patriarchy.”

10.Ada Isasi-Díaz (Cuba)

Ada theological work revolved around the concept of exile and the experience of being an immigrant in the United States, where she criticizes the sexism and violence of the Hispanic culture, inherited from a colonizing and violent process on the continent. Ada wrote from every day, in the daily experience of life, as an epistemological framework in her reflection and writing.

Quotables: “To name oneself is one of the most powerful acts any person can do.”

Publications: “Womanist Theology,” “In the Struggle,” “The Continual Struggle”

These ten women theologians of Abya Yala are a source of inspiration and reflection with a perspective more focused on the equity and value of women, safeguarding their identity, and redefining their correct position in the world. Women immersed in the world of theology use their work to impact their congregations and the entire continent.

I invite you to read more about the theological work carried out in Abya Yala. In this way, we can promote the interest of more women to enter this vast, necessary and urgent field of reflection.

                              ____________________         

Yenny Delgado

Psychologist and Public Theologian. She is ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church USA. Director of Publica Theology and convener of Mujeres Doing Theology, International. She writes about the intersections between ancestral memory, diversity, gender and faith in the public square.

La reflexión teológica desde las mujeres ha pasado por diversos momentos. Mujeres comprometidas con la reflexión teológica liberadora integral aportan cada día en el quehacer teológico. Este es un espacio para para hacer teología en comunidad.

Acompáñenos este jueves 17 de febrero y sea parte de nuestra comunidad de teólogas, pastoras y seminaristas en Abya Yala.

Por Yenny Delgado

Cuando recordamos al Reverendo Dr. Martin Luther King Jr es imposible no reflexionar sobre su mensaje ” Yo tengo un sueño”. Sin embargo, su memoria y su voz profética van más allá de este único discurso.

Rev. King no solo tuvo como mensaje acabar con la segregación y apartheid que vivían los afro descendientes en los Estados Unidos. Dedicó su vida abogando por la justicia y la equidad.  

Al mismo tiempo que movilizaba a la iglesia a ser una comunidad inclusiva y unida contra la opresión mantenida por un gobierno abiertamente racista y discriminatorio. Dió respuestas en tiempo real a la necesidad de los afrodescendientes como a la población nativa, mujeres, inmigrantes y todos los trabajadores que vivían en empobrecimiento y exclusión. 

Es importante recordar que las políticas del gobierno estadounidense no solo guiaban la sociedad secular en el país, en la década de los 60’ la iglesia cristiana vivía también en segregación. Los líderes de la Iglesia blanca que practican la supremacía y exclusión, desde un sentido teológico equivocado y euro céntrico, mantenían los servicios de los domingos “solo para “blancos”. 

Rev. King diría en su tiempo ” Los domingos a las 11 am es la hora mas segregada en los Estados Unidos” mostrando la otra cara de los lideres religiosos que no siempre apoyaron el mensaje de igualdad e inclusión que lideraba Rev.King. 

La historia violenta e injusta en los Estados Unidos se debe entender dentro del contexto politico y religioso en el cual vivió y escribió Rev. King. Su voz profética y de denuncia no fue silenciada con su asesinato en 1968, su mensaje sigue presente hasta el dia de hoy.  Al 2022 seguimos viendo las injusticias y violencia dentro de los Estados Unidos por lo cual como iglesia tenemos que estar atentos cuando vemos:

• La lucha de muchas familias que viven en la pobreza y sufren los embates de ser trabajadores esenciales sin salarios dignos.
• El dolor de los jóvenes afrodescendientes que son sistemáticamente atacados, arrestados y, a menudo, asesinados por la policía.
• El sufrimiento y dolor de migrantes que sufren la separación familiar en la frontera sur.
• La lucha por defender el derecho al voto en Estados que buscan discriminar y recortar los derechos democráticos para hacerlos exclusivos.

La pandemia que vivimos en este momento ha hecho aún mas visibles las injusticias y la desigualdad en toda las sociedades. El mensaje de Rev. King nos insta a reflexionar en comunidad y tomar acciones para una mayor solidaridad entre todos y todas.

En este momento crucial de la historia, la iglesia esta llamada a practicar la justicia, equidad y compasión. Vivir en comunidad requiere diversidad étnica, ser en lo posible multilingüe y sobre todo respetar el derecho a las diferencias de cada persona.

¡Que Dios nos ayude a vivir los valores del Reino hoy!

Por Yenny Delgado

Hoy celebramos Epifanía, día que conmemoramos la visita de los reyes magos y que confirmaron el nacimiento de Jesús. Una sensación de clamor y bendición durante generaciones marcó este acontecimiento extraordinario y todavía es palpable en la actualidad. Jesús nació fuera de la tierra natal de sus padres y creció parcialmente en Egipto; como muchos niños y niñas hoy con familias refugiadas en todo el mundo, Jesús trae un mensaje para las familias que viven hoy días inciertos.

La narrativa y los primeros años de Jesús reflejan las luchas que enfrentan las personas en todo el mundo debido al empobrecimiento, la opresión y la desigualdad. Sin embargo, en medio de momentos difíciles. Celebramos su nacimiento, la celebración de Epifanía es un símbolo también de esperanza al empezar un nuevo año. 

Hoy según el calendario litúrgico leemos el texto Salmo 72: 1-7, y reflexionamos sobre esta oración:

“Dota al rey de tu justicia, oh Dios, al hijo real de tu justicia. 
Juzgue a tu pueblo con justicia, a tus afligidos con justicia. 
Que los montes traigan prosperidad a los pueblos, las montañas frutos de justicia. 
Que él defienda a los afligidos del pueblo y salve a los hijos de los necesitados; que aplaste al opresor. 
Que dure como el sol, como la luna, por todas las generaciones. 
Que él sea como la lluvia que cae sobre un campo segado, como aguaceros que riegan la tierra. 
Que en sus días florezcan los justos y abunde la prosperidad hasta que no haya luna.“

Esta oración es significativa porque es la voz de Salomón que le pide a Dios protección para todas las generaciones. Que sus vidas tengan suficientes días para ver los muchos soles y lunas a través de los años. Así como hay momentos de angustia e injusticia, vendrán tiempos de sanación, de verdad y florecimiento para las próximas generaciones.

Hoy en día, muchas personas en los Estados Unidos ven a las familias migrantes que cruzan la frontera sur como criminales, sin preguntar ¿QUIÉNES están migrando? Sin embargo, durante siglos, las personas han migrado a través de territorios entre el norte y el sur, este al oeste. Para ubicarnos, en nuestro continente Abya Yala nombre en idioma Guna: Tierra de sangre vital y tierra fértil nuestras ancestras han migrado buscando el mejor lugar donde habitar, ¿porqué ahora es considerado un crimen?

El proceso de colonización separaron territorios, empobrecieron a la población originarias y rompieron el continente en pedazos.Abya Yala fue dividido y se levantaron fronteras. Cuando hablamos sobre migración y refugiados no podemos desconectar a las familias, las comunidades y las naciones originarias de la tierra. La población originaria, la cual habita estos territorios por milenios no pueden ser excluidos por una frontera inventada, ¿cómo podemos pensar que K’iche, Cocopah, Gunas, Quechuas y Mapuches, ser extraños en sus propias montañas, ríos y tierras?

Como nativa descendiente, es mi deber ser parte de la demanda que tenemos, mantenemos viva una memoria colectiva que los últimos cinco siglos han querido borrar y no han podido. Aunque el gobierno nos ve como invisibles, todavía estamos aquí a lo largo de las generaciones. Como recordamos, “intentaron enterrarnos, pero no sabían ( los colonizadores) que éramos semillas”. La verdad es que estamos floreciendo, y es el momento de Dios para que el pueblo de Abya Yala se muestre y prospere, como escribe Salomón en los Salmos: “Que las montañas traigan prosperidad a la gente, las colinas el fruto de la justicia”. 

Recordemos que nuestros hermanos y hermanas migrantes que han atravesado la dura frontera; lo han hecho como la familia de Jesus, escapando persecución, hambre. Su migración es muchas veces forzada, la falta de lluvias hace que los sembríos no prosperen. la tierra no produce. Los cambios climáticos son críticos y la inestabilidad gubernamental revela injusticia sistemáticas. 

Aun cuando denunciamos las atrocidades cometidas por las autoridades en la frontera, debemos esforzarnos por conocer y dar la bienvenida a quienes cruzan. Para la población originaria, los muros fronterizos son nuevamente un símbolo de colonización. 

Hoy celebramos la Epifanía y recibimos el nuevo año pidiendo a Dios que las familias migrantes y refugiadas logren la libertad para todas sus generaciones.

La migración no es fácil, la despedida de los que más queremos es doloroso.

¡Dios proteja a nuestros hermanos y hermanas en su camino! 

Juntos oramos: 

Madre Tierra, 
Madre Creadora, 
Madre Dios, 
Pacha Mama, 
Te damos gracias por toda la Vida.

Desde el útero nos conociste, y desde el comienzo de nuestra vida en la humanidad, eres la Creadora plantando, derramando y produciendo vida en abundancia.

Madre Creadora gracias por proveernos el maíz y el frijol para crecer, 
Provéenos papa, maíz y quinua para alimentar a nuestra familia 
Provéenos un corazón para compartir y crecer en comunidad.

Tierra sin fronteras 
Tierra de abundancia 
Tierra llena de sueños 

Dios agradecemos tu cuidado porque, desde el principio, nos conociste.  
Creemos en su protección para nuestras próximas generaciones.