Lula, Freire, liberation theology

Abstract

Carlos Alberto Libanio Christo, popularly known as Frei Betto, is a leading left wing Brazilian activist and thinker. Originally from Belo Horizonte (he now resides in São Paulo), Frei Betto is a lay dominican friar who has made a name for himself as a journalist and popular educator. He has for years been involved in popular education in the Christian Base Communities (Comunidade de Base ) especially among metallurgical workers in São Bernardo do Campo. He is also closely connected to one of the two most vibrant movements in Latin America , the Movimento dos Sem Terra (Movement of Landless Peasants ). His books in Portuguese , Spanish and Italian cover a wide range of subjects, including a volume (translated into Italian ) consisting of a series of interviews on the topic of ' Christianity and Revolution ' with Fidel Castro. A former key figure in the Brazilian student movement , he was arrested , following the 1964 military coup in Brazil , for activities deemed " subversive " These and other experiences , including popular education experiences , are captured in a book with Paulo Freire and Ricardo Kotscho which is available in Portuguese and Italian , the title in Portuguese being Essa Escola Chamada Vida ( Attica , 1984). Frei Betto shared some of his views , concerning the church , Paulo Freire , postmodernism and Neo-liberalism , in an interview with us carried out in a São Paulo restaurant in the very early hours of Tuesday, April 28, 1998 after we had accompanied him to a long talk he gave to a group of industrialists in the Brazilian megalopolis. We were in São Paulo to attend the first International Paulo Freire Forum organized by the Paulo Freire Institute on the first anniversary of the Brazilian educator' s death. The interview was made possible through the help of Frei João Xerri, OP, known in Brazil as Frei João who acted as interlocutor throughout the interview. Most of Frei B etto' s responses were translated from Portuguese to English by Lilia Azevedo. We updated the interview in 2004 by adding three new questions, the ones concerning Frei Betto' s work in popular education in São Bernardo do Campo and elsewhere, Lula' s presidency and the pontificate of Pope John Paul II. These were translated by Helen Hughes. We thank Frei João Xerrifor making this update possible.