Vatican Muffles Brazil’s Liberation Theologian Boff

The Vatican has ordered Brazil’s controversial liberation theologian, Father Leonardo Boff, to maintain a period of silence in which he is not to write or discuss his work, the Vatican said today.

A Vatican statement did not say how long the period will last, but church sources familiar with the case confirmed press reports from Brazil that it is expected to last one year.

Boff, 45, one of the Roman Catholic Church’s foremost liberation theologians, was summoned to the Vatican last September to discuss his latest book, “Church: Charisma and Power.” The book criticizes the church for elitism and failing to take a firmer stand in defense of human rights.

Liberation theology ties spiritual liberation to economic and social freedom, and in its radical forms has been linked to Marxism and armed struggle, although Boff says that is not his interpretation.

The Vatican statement said Boff is to abstain from his work with a Brazilian ecclesiastical magazine and is not to attend conferences or engage in any new writing during the period.

It said Boff, a Franciscan, accepted the provisions “with a religious spirit.”