Department of Religion and Culture, Universidad Antonio Ruiz de Montoya

Title and Précis:

Catholic Lay Movements and Politics in Peru

     The documents Christifideles Laici and Aparecida stress the importance of lay Catholic involvement in politics. While dualistic tendencies conceive of the person as apolitical and view faith only as matter of personal conscience, this view contradicts the transformative reality and social challenges of the Gospel message. This project aims to describe and analyze the relation between some lay Catholic associations and movements and their political orientation with particular emphasis on the relation between doctrinal teachings and political conduct. The Sodalitium Christinae Vitae, Christian Life Communities, and Equipos Docentes movements will be examined in order to demonstrate the relationship between Catholic lay movements and politics in Peru.

Biography:

     Lic. Juan Carlos Diaz Lara is an instructor at the Universidad Antonio Ruiz de Montoya in Lima, Peru. He received his Licensure and Master's degrees in Philosophy from the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru. Lic. Diaz Lara teaches courses in Philosophy, Ethics, Religion and Culture. He is also the Coordinator of both the Institute for Faith and Culture and the Graduate Program in Religion and Culture at UARM.