The crucifix added to the Sacred Art Pilgrim Collection this week was inspired by the Liberation Theology movement in the Roman Catholic Church of Latin America, which took its name from an influential book by the Peruvian Dominican Priest, Gustavo Gutierrez, first published in 1971. Father Gutierrez called on the Church to become actively involved on behalf of the poor in the struggle against social, economic, and political injustice in the Developing World. The ceramic piece now on view in the image gallery of the Crosses & Crucifixes page of the Schools of Sacred Art section is made in the style of Ceramic Artist Edilberto Merida, a follower of Father Gutierrez who molded sacred figures in clay, using the impoverished farmers of the Andes Mountains as his models. The piece combines elements of traditional Inca pottery and the Spanish Colonial Art style. (John Kohan)