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Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding

Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2020.

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Other Authors: De Beer, Stephan F
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2021
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access_status_str Open Access
author2 De Beer, Stephan F
author_browse De Beer, Stephan F
author_facet De Beer, Stephan F
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2020 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2020.
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institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
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provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2021
publishDateRange 2021
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publisher University of Pretoria
publisherStr University of Pretoria
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spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/78490 Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding De Beer, Stephan F joel.aguilarramirez@gmail.com Aguilar Ramirez, Joel David UCTD Mimetic Theory Scapegoat Mechanism Non-Sacrificial Collective Woundedness Violence Theology theses SDG-03 Theology theses SDG-04 Theology theses SDG-10 Theology theses SDG-11 Theology theses SDG-16 Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2020. Guatemala City is a city of contrasts, a city that meshes beauty and affliction. The beauty is reflected in the landscape and its people; affliction, however, is woven throughout Guatemalan history and expressed through the collective woundedness of Guatemalan society. After more than five hundred years of colonialism and coloniality, and twenty-four years after the signing of the peace accords between the army and the revolutionary movement in 1996, Guatemalans still carry their collective woundedness into all areas of personal and public life. For that reason, this dissertation responds to the question, what will a practical theology of peacebuilding look like in Guatemala City in response to the collective woundedness of Guatemalan society? In order to respond to the question presented above, I use the paradigms of practical theology, liberation theology, and mimetic theory in dialogue with each other to provide a relevant, contextual, and liberative response. In the search for an answer, I interviewed fourteen grassroots leaders from the CMT Guatemala network, and I explored their faith practices in relation to the Guatemalan collective woundedness. The process follows three steps. Firstly, I provide a description of the Guatemalan context, and the theory-laden practices of the interviewed grassroots leaders. Secondly, I framed the dissertation within contextual theology in order to develop a practical theology of liberation that is contextually relevant and cross-contextually applicable. Finally, the theory-laden practices that the interviews and focus groups called forth helped me propose a practical theology of liberation that responds to the Guatemalan collective woundedness through the ethics of what I call Human Catechism. Human Catechism is a term conceived in community, though proposed for the first time in this dissertation. Human Catechism begins with the ethics of love. It is the process of developing faith practices that help us reimagine each other’s humanity in the midst of global sacrificial theology. In this dissertation, I propose that Human Catechism is a practical theology of peacebuilding and liberation that seeks to heal the collective woundedness of not only the Guatemalan context, but also other environments around the world. This dissertation contributes in three ways to the field of practical theology. Firstly, it applies René Girard’s mimetic theory to field of practical theology. Secondly, it provides a tool that could be used for contextual analysis. I developed interdependent categories for contextual analysis that can easily be translated to other developing countries of the global south. Finally, it contributes at the local level empowering grassroots leaders to begin conversations that will allow them to decolonise their faith practices, and hermeneutics. ae2026 Practical Theology PhD Unrestricted SDG-03: Good health and well-being SDG-04: Quality education SDG-10: Reduced inequalities SDG-11: Sustainable cities and communities SDG-16: Peace, justice and strong institutions 2021-02-12T09:37:30Z 2021-02-12T09:37:30Z 20/10/01 2020 Thesis Aguilar Ramirez, JD 2020, Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding, PhD Thesis, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd <http://hdl.handle.net/2263/78490> S2020 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/78490 en © 2020 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle UCTD
Mimetic Theory
Scapegoat Mechanism
Non-Sacrificial
Collective Woundedness
Violence
Theology theses SDG-03
Theology theses SDG-04
Theology theses SDG-10
Theology theses SDG-11
Theology theses SDG-16
Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding
title Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding
title_full Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding
title_fullStr Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding
title_full_unstemmed Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding
title_short Living, laughing, and loving in Guatemala City : a practical theology of peacebuilding
title_sort living laughing and loving in guatemala city a practical theology of peacebuilding
topic UCTD
Mimetic Theory
Scapegoat Mechanism
Non-Sacrificial
Collective Woundedness
Violence
Theology theses SDG-03
Theology theses SDG-04
Theology theses SDG-10
Theology theses SDG-11
Theology theses SDG-16
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/78490