Che Guevara and revolutionary Christianity in Latin America

The thesis, firstly, examines the degree to which revolutionary Christianity in Latin America was influenced by Che Guevara and, secondly, seeks to identify aims and objectives shared by Che Guevara and revolutionary Christianity in Latin America. The four expressions of revolutionary Christianity studied in the thesis are: Camilo Torres in Colombia, "The Movement of Priests for the Third World" in Argentina, "Christians for Socialism" in Chile, and revolutionary Christianity during the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua. These groups and individuals cover the period of the emergence and development of revolutionary Christianity in Latin America from the mid 1960s to the mid 1980s. The research has identified three key points of influence, three shared aims and three shared objectives. I argue that Guevara was influential (1) as a revolutionary icon, (2) as one who legitimised Christian participation in revolutionary struggle and (3) as one whose concept of the "new man" was used and developed by some Christian revolutionary thinkers. The three shared aims are identified as (1) socialist/communist society, (2) national liberation and (3) the emergence of the "new man". The three shared objectives are identified as (1) revolutionary unity, (2) taking power and (3) conscientisation. The thesis concludes with a summary of the research findings and an examination of Guevara's "new man" alongside the Christian concept of the "new being in Christ". The thesis proposes a synthesis of Guevara's "new man" with the "new being in Christ" by means of the establishment of small scale Christian co- operatives.