Founded in 1974, it is the official publication of the School of Theology, Philosophy and Humanities at the Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana. The journal covers the fields of Theology, Humanities and Social Sciences. Publicación oficial de la Escuela de Teología, Filosofía y Humanidades de la Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana. Su temática abarca los campos de la Teología y de las Ciencias Humanas y Sociales. Su objetivo es presentar algunas reflexiones e investigaciones de actualidad en estos campos del saber. Los contenidos de la revista están dirigidos a los estudiantes, docentes, investigadores, egresados, profesionales de las áreas teológicas y a los lectores afines a este saber.

News

The Globethics library contains articles of Cuestiones Teológicas as of vol. 42(2015) no. 98 to current.

Recent Submissions

  • The grassroots community as an experience of resilience: Testimony of parishioners from a Catholic parish in Lima during the COVID-19 pandemic

    Dejo, Juan; Villarroel, Nino (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-12-12)
    This study is based on a constructive-interpretative epistemological standpoint that integrates psychology with theological reflection. It analyzes significant experiences within a Catholic parish in a low-income neighborhood in Lima, Peru, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly focusing on the absence of God or religious communal experience. These experiences are examined through the construct of ambiguous loss, which explains situations characterized by the inability to verify the loss of what is loved. Based on a series of semi-structured interviews with a representative group from this parish and in line with the qualitative intent of this research, four moments in the experiences are identified through a hermeneutic analysis (Creswell, 2013). While the first two moments emphasize the emotional suffering caused by the pandemic at a level of desolation, uncertainties, and frustrations guided by the apparent absence of God, the latter two demonstrate a continual identification and spiritual search in non-traditional forms of God's presence. In other words, these four stages reveal a path from the painful experience of absence to the consolation brought by resurrection and new possibilities of presence. This process illustrates the resilience of the grassroots ecclesial community and the ability to reconfigure the presence of God through the redefinition of traditional religious and sacramental mediations. Simultaneously, it unveils the growth in the spiritual agency of the laity.
  • The image of crucified Christ in the art of cláudio pastro: an investigation based on the artist's personal collection

    Souto, Hilda; Luiz Fernandes, Márcio (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-12-11)
    The object of study in this article is the figure of Christ naked on the cross, a graphite pencil drawing that is part of the paper collection of the visual artist Cláudio Pastro (1948-2016), under the custody of the Monastery of Nossa Senhora da Paz. The main objective is to analyze this image with aesthetic and theological criteria, addressing unprecedented aspects not presented in the public work, deepening a reflection on who Jesus is in Pastro's work. The methodology used is Genetic Criticism, which focuses on the creative process. The method suggests a permanent dialogue between the originals (sketches, studies, notes, etc.) and the final work. The drawing was analyzed with reference to authors from the fields of visual arts, theology, and the History of Sacred Art, indicating the necessary developments that occurred in the representation of the crucified Christ in different historical periods. In the specific case of Pastro, his essential features in representing Christ naked on the cross depict the kenosis of God, who, humbling himself to human condition and becoming flesh, became man without ceasing to be God.
  • The Memory of Slavery as a Source of Justice and Solidarity: Exegesis of Deuteronomy 5:15, 15:15, 16:12, 24:18, 22

    Mela, Facundo (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-12-11)
    The slavery endured in Egypt is a tradition that runs through the entire Scripture. Among its numerous mentions, the book of Deuteronomy presents five texts with a similar wording: 'remember that you were a slave in [the land of ] Egypt' (Deuteronomy 5:15, 15:15, 16:12, 24:18, and 24:22), inviting to recall the oppression and act in favor of the poor, as God did. In this work, firstly, these five formulas are analyzed using various instances of the historical-critical method. Then, in the second part, an exegetical exercise is carried out, highlighting how the memory of slavery in Egypt becomes an exhortation to care for the poor, allowing them to celebrate the Sabbath and Pentecost, freeing Hebrew slaves, and taking care of the needy. In a world where human trafficking, slavery, inhumane working conditions, hunger, and other forms of oppression persist, this study seeks to contribute to the reflection on how a painful memory can be transformed into a liberating praxis.
  • Blessed and praised be YHWH, the God who loves and protects His servants: A Semitic Biblical Rhetorical Analysis of Psalm 34 and its relationship with 1 Peter

    Gonzaga, Waldecir; Ferreira Belem, Doaldo (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-12-11)
    Psalm 34 reveals a beautiful, thematic unity in the psalmic text about the glory of YHWH. The vocabulary used for the poetic construction of this declaration of total trust in the hands of God, as the one who rescues His people and protects them (v.23), has captivated Jewish and Christian readers throughout the centuries. It strongly survives in liturgies, meditations, and individual prayers. Its impact on Christianity is evident in the biblical text, as the entirety of verses 13-17 is quoted in 1 Peter 3:10-12. Therefore, the synchronic method of Semitic Biblical Rhetorical Analysis will be used, identifying verses 12-13 as the central and essential part of Psalm 34. The method also explains why such an extensive quote in 1 Peter plays such a central role throughout the letter—hence the exegetical commentary focuses on this 'combined use.' Complementing the former with preliminary steps of the Historical-Critical Method not only helps to historically situate the psalm but also provides significant pastoral considerations on how believers of all generations find communion, especially in times of adversity. Thus, the psalmist invites in verse 9 to 'taste and see that YHWH is good.'
  • THE LAY VOCATION: From Conciliar Awakening to Ecclesial Missionary and Social Leadership

    Philippi Machado , Ariél; Martins, Clovis (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-12-11)
    The Second Vatican Council marked a turning point in the history of the Church, standing out for its dialogical, pastoral, and proactive function. Lay vocation is a concept that helps understand the Council's proposal to engage the Church in dialogue with the world. Based on this perspective, the research aims to reflect on the collaboration of the vocation of laymen and women in dialogue with the world and their mission to witness faith in the various structures in which they live. In light of this, the question that arises is: What attitudes are required of lay Christians in the context of the new evangelization? The objective is to highlight the common dignity of all believers from baptism onward. Additionally, we seek to enumerate and characterize the mode of Christian collaboration between laymen and women in the ecclesiastical community and in society at large. The research, documentary and bibliographical in nature, focuses on the central theme of vocation and baptismal dignity. The ecclesiastical renewal highlighted by the Second Vatican Council implies a commitment to fidelity to the triple role already lived by Jesus Christ and inherited in baptism. The results are proposed in terms of practical application for the ongoing formation of laymen and women, as subjects in the Church and in the world, outlined in pastoral notes for those responsible for the follow-up of the lay vocation in communities and dioceses.
  • Christian existence as overcoming worldly concern. A hermeneutic-phenomenological approach to The Lily of the Field and the Bird of the Air, by Søren Kierkegaard

    GONZÁLEZ SUÁREZ, LUCERO (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-08-09)
    This article constitutes a hermeneutic-phenomenological approach to Kierkegaard's The Lily of the Field and the Bird of the Air. The purpose of these pages is to reveal the essential features of Christian existence as a mode of factual life. In the first section, the condition of possibility and the characteristics and ethical implications of the latter are exhibited. The second reflects on the alternative of following Christ or opting for the search for recognition. The third section shows that the imitation of Christ is the only way to become oneself. The thesis that we want to demonstrate is that Christianity is the form of existence that allows us to overcome worldly concern.
  • The theological interview: contexts, procedures and contributions to the theological-practical task

    Bacher Martínez, Carolina (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-08-09)
    Within the framework of a synodal Church, which deepens the instances of listening and theological-practical investigations that assume intradisciplinary dialogue in its method, we present the use of the interview technique in theological work with a practical approach. Firstly, the interview technique is briefly described from the social sciences, indicating possible modalities and underlining its collaborative condition. In a second moment, the text explains the various research contexts in which its use can be framed: the research stage, the interrelation with other techniques and the research approach assumed. In a third instance, the proposal indicates the procedures for its preparation, realization and theological interpretation, delving into this last aspect. Fourthly, some examples are offered as well as the proposal to consider the practice of the theological interview as an instance of conversion of theologians. Reflection is offered from research and theological-practical teaching on these topics, in order to contribute to those who are new to empirical theological studies.
  • Familia y ecología humana

    Múnera Vélez, Darío (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 1993-12-30)
    Hablar de familia y ecología humana es también hablar de ética y familia. Esta relación de conceptos pone una serie de interrogantes que muestran la complejidad del asunto. ¿Cómo viven las familias hoy? ¿Cómo les afectan las circunstancias económicas, sociales, ecológicas, culturales, políticas y morales del mundo en que viven? ¿En qué valores creen y en cuáles han dejado de creer? ¿Cuáles son sus problemas, aspiraciones y derechos? Todas son preguntas válidas y requieren respuestas adecuadas, pues no nos pueden resultarindiferentes las variantes socioculturales que configuran los rasgos de la familia actual.
  • Humanae vitae reflexiones antropológicas

    Córdoba Palacio, Ramón (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 1993-12-30)
    Las apasionadas polémicas que desató la promulgación de la Carta Encíclica "Humanae Vitae", de Paulo VI, el 25 de julio de 1968, centradas sobre lo oportuno o no oportuno de los diferentes métodos de regulación de la natalidad -y cuyos ecos no se han extinguido aún-, contribuyeron significativamente a que se prestara muy poca atención y fuera poco estudiado y difundido el aspecto. profundamente humano que se presenta en ella sobre el amor conyugal, la dignidad de la función paternal, el respeto por la persona humana y, especialmente, por fa mujer.
  • Un poco de historia de la doctrina social de la iglesia en América Latina: Academia de historia eclesiástica: lanzamiento de nuevas Obras

    Múnera Vélez, Darío (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 1993-12-30)
    En el contexto de los 500 años de evangelización y en esta ceremonia académica en la que se presentan tres importantes obras académicas, quisiera rescatar el valor de la historia de la Doctrina Social en América Latina: Medellín-Puebla Santo Domingo. El año 1991 fue el año de la Doctrina Social de la Iglesia, fue el año del Centenario de la "Rerum Novarum" y, por tanto, el año de la última encíclica social de Juan Pablo II: "Centessimus annus".
  • Wedding metaphor in Scripture

    Angulo Ordorika, Ianire (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-08-09)
    Understanding the relationship between God and his people or between Christ and the Church in a conjugal way is a commonplace in the Judeo-Christian tradition. The frequency of this matrimonial imaginary does not silence the question about its origin or the fact that it is used so frequently to refer to a religious experience. This article addresses the complexity of the nuptial image and gets to the roots of its display in the Bible. To do this, after getting closer to understanding metaphors as a cognitive tool, we will explain the reasons that facilitated resorting to the marriage experience to understand the Alliance, as an essential element of the religious experience of Israel. We will also offer a quick overview of its deployment in Scripture by tracing the presence of the nuptial imagery beyond the passages in which it is evident.
  • Emotions and the resignification of reality in Laura Montoya Upegui

    Gil Tobón, Jenny Alexandra; Garcés Giraldo, Luis Fernando; Giraldo Zuluaga, Conrado (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-08-09)
    Given the growing interest in the life and work of Saint Laura Montoya Upegui, this article aims to locate, from the autobiography Historia de las misericordias de Dios en un alma, some strategies or resources used by the saint for the resignification of reality in the face of undeserved misfortune and uncontrolled circumstances. In the research process, the hermeneutic method of Hans-Georg Gadamer (1993) is applied, consideringintertextuality as a dialogic relationship, to establish a dialogue with the thought of the philosopher Martha Nussbaum. In society, within the global and the particular, the problems are there to remember their leading role in the human condition. These make visible the need to acquire awareness in the face of perpetual uncertainty. Therefore, one’s belief system, imagination and emotional self-knowledge become an important key to resignify reality, guide decisions and find meaning in a society indifferent to social problems and in which reigns a set of thoughts that are assumed as true and that can reflect the degree of freedom in decision-making or, on the contrary, lead to excessive normative theories that threaten human dignity. The above aspects are clear proof that in Laura Montoya's autobiography there is a thread of retrospective that allows her to recognize emotions, confirm who she is, live her greatest passion and find meaning in facing difficulties. Finally, these results represent only one step in the research process facing the work of a prolific writer.
  • Perfil teológico del Papa Juan Pablo II sobre la familia

    Agudelo Ceballos, Beatriz (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 1993-12-30)
    La pregunta sobre la familia encierra en su interrogante un discurso de fondo que pide búsqueda, análisis profundo, reflexión sobre el sentido desde un ámbito de comprensión antropológico iluminado por la fe, y unos retos que llaman a la transformación. Los jóvenes se preguntan hoy por la familia muchas veces desde el cuestionario de la institución misma.
  • La libertad: fundamento prerreflexivo del sentido metafísico

    Schmidt Andrade, Ciro E. (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 1993-12-30)
    Siendo la metafísica la ciencia de los principios a priori dé todo conocimiento y de todo conocimiento que se derive-de esos principios, es un intento por alcanzar condiciones generales originarias de las que no se puede desprender. En ese sentido decimos que es trascendental, en cuanto se refiere a modos de conocimiento más que a objetos en sí ( 1 ). Por ello envuelve un riesgo y una audacia; pues supone traspasar los límites de lo "seguro" para el hombre, que es lo verificable, supone genio de aventura, inquietud, sentido de lo humano y sentido de lo absoluto.
  • “Cristianismo anónimo”

    Restrepo Posada, Jorge (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 1993-12-30)
    En la Era Patrística surgió la Doctrina del "logos Spermatikos", que puede resumirse en los puntos siguientes: Existencia de una revelación original, hecha al hombre por el Logos, en el momento de crearlo (Gn. 2,7) grabándole en el corazón la ley natural, como norma necesaria para el discernimiento moral; es decir, le reveló un conjunto de verdades religiosas y morales suficientes, para su orientación (y el de la humanidad) en relación al destino eterno, que le señalaba, como a "imagen y semejanza de Dios" (Gn. 1,27).
  • Historia de la teología moral cristiana

    Zuleta, Guillermo (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 1993-12-30)
    A primera vista, el ámbito de la investigación moral parece sumamente amplio. Su extensión coincide con el campo de la existencia humana en el mundo. La experiencia moral afecta al hombre en todas sus dimensiones personales, sociales y existenciales; se trata de una experiencia que pasa al interior de todas las estructuras de la convivencia humana y toca indistintamente todas las formas y modalidades a través de las cuales se expresa la persona.
  • Methods of Biblical Exegesis

    Gaitán Briceño, Tarcisio (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2022-06-17)
    Biblical texts are the product of a sometimes long and complex writing process. They were written in social and cultural circumstances that left marks in the content. The authors followed literary guidelines according to the purpose of the different writings and represent the intent to respond to situations in the target communities that challenged their religious faith. Knowing this complexity of elements that are "behind the text" is a requirement for the Bible scholar if he wants to access the richness of its content and the meaning it had for the first readers. Therefore, biblical study requires methodological processes appropriate to the characteristics of the texts that allow discovering their depth and relevance for the Church today. The scientific tradition has been developing different methods of proven effectiveness that today seem to be essential for the academic study of the meaning of biblical texts. This article exposes them grouped into three categories: diachronic, synchronic and contextual. Previously, the necessary steps to begin work with the texts of Scripture are explained. 
  • El “clima eclesial” de la recepción latinoamericana del Vaticano II como trasfondo del pensamiento del papa Francisco

    Polanco, Rodrigo (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-04-21)
    The article reviews Latin American theological-pastoral literature from the years comprised between 1965 and 1968 in order to perceive the particular way in which Vatican II was received in Latin America. This reveals a certain 'ecclesial climate' which understands that the conciliar process has not ended. This invites a change of mentality that must be articulated in new structures that allow the participation of everyone in the responsibility and mission of the Church. Understanding this 'ecclesial and pastoral ecosystem' from which Francis drew in his early years allows us to understand the orientations that the synodal process is providing.
  • Scar, Scripture, and Resurrection. Feeling-Thinking-Living the Christian Experience in the Present Time

    Espinosa Arce, Juan Pablo (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-04-21)
    The article proposes a reflection on the theology of resurrection from the perspective of the scar. Through an epistemic approach from sociology, psychoanalysis, and theology, we will try to consider some points to approach the challenges of the Christian experience in the present time. First, the paper offers an introduction to the problem and then a theoretical approach from sociology and psychoanalysis. Third, it proposes some intuitions about the theology of resurrection and discusses how it assumes the points studied in the first sections. Finally, the article concludes with some reflections on how the Christian life can be better understood from the perspectives offered in this article.
  • The strategy of coexistence in the First Letter of Peter. An example of the application of the sociological method 'spatial critique'

    Schultz Montalbetti, María José (Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, 2023-04-19)
    The objective of this work is to offer a new reading key of the strategy of the First Letter of Peter. The result is the product of a sociological exegesis based on the methodology that spatial critique proposes to apply to the object of study; as an example, 1 Peter 2:11-17 is analyzed. The contribution of these methodological tools is the appreciation of the emphasis, points of encounter and differences between the prevailing ideology in Mediterranean society in the 1st century and the discourse of the letter. The study of the spatial categories first, second and third space applied as heuristic questions to a representative fragment of the letter offers results that allow proposing a new appreciation of the author's strategy, the transformation of spaces of coexistence through the good conduct of the believers

View more