Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz (1648-1695) has been called the first woman theologian in the Americas. Michelle A. Gonzalez, assistant professor of theology at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California, looks at the life and work of this Mexican nun and sees an important pattern in her melding of beauty with a quest for truth and justice. Sor Juana, who began to read at the age of three, developed a passion for learning. Although it was a lonely pursuit ("My only Teacher is a mute book, my only schoolfellow an unfeeling inkwell"), she devoured works of literature, philosophy, theology, and science. As a cloistered nun, Sor Juana was able to use solitude as a seedbed for her poetry and plays.
Gonzalez quotes theologian Gustavo Gutierrez who observed in his book on another theologian of the Americas: "There are figures in history — few, to be sure — who leap the barriers of time to become contemporaries of all ages. These are people who immerse themselves so deeply in their own age that they remain relevant long after historical anecdotes and others of their own time are simple memories of the past." The author obviously believes Sor Juana belongs in among these luminatires. She explores her contributions to the present moment as a feminist, a pioneer of liberation theology, and a creative explorer of the link between beauty and justice. We especially appreciate Gonzalez's insights into the importance of beauty for religion, theology and spirituality.
