As a non-religious person who is nonetheless interested in the Catholic church from a historical POV, it always struck me how the Church transformed itself more or less overnight in the past 50 years. From Pope John XXIII's Vatican II through Paul VI endorsing liberation theology in a roundabout way through an encyclical and more importantly the promotion of Gustavo Gutierrez to Cardinal. Now with Gutierrez having been elected as Pope John XXIV, it seems the Church stands without peer as a vehicle for social justice and aid to the impoverished. While it may not have been popular in it's infancy I can scarcely imagine how the Catholic Church might look today if there had been some sort of reactionary movement back to the Latin rites and strict hierarchies of the "old church," and especially if some Cardinal had thought to label liberationism as socialist during the Cold War.
So what do you all think? What would a church without liberation theology look like, and how would you get that result?
(OOC: My knowledge of Catholic history is limited to Pope-watching, so if I've taken any extraordinary liberties let me know)