Monday, September 26, 2011
What's a "Theology"?
Theology:
This seems to be something that most Evangelicals have fallen into - when we as Christians study something, trying to ask "WWJD" or some other way of relating it to God, we are developing a "theology." And I am growing to dislike the linguistic formulation. You see, it leaves a certain essential out of the equation - US! Intellectualizing about something is a way of keeping at a distance. If we "develop a theology of presence" we don't have to actual practice it.
In science, theory does not always, in fact rarely, precedes experimentation. Any explanation for a physical phenomena is typically derived from known data, gathered from experimentation, and then the theory developed is tested with new and different experimentation.
Not to mention that fact that if we are personally practicing the presence of God, we are attuned to Him, that often He will guide us without the need for reflection and study. He will develop character in us that answers our issues without the intellectual exercise. Do you think we needed "theology" before the fall?
the field of study and analysis that treats of god and of God's attributes and relations to the universe; study of divine things or religious truth; divinity.I had to look it up when Matt Anderson said
...we need a ‘Theology of Presence’Matt's point? - he is trying to figure out what it means to be a Christian in an age of social networking. That's a heck of a good question, but does it rise to the level of "theology"?
This seems to be something that most Evangelicals have fallen into - when we as Christians study something, trying to ask "WWJD" or some other way of relating it to God, we are developing a "theology." And I am growing to dislike the linguistic formulation. You see, it leaves a certain essential out of the equation - US! Intellectualizing about something is a way of keeping at a distance. If we "develop a theology of presence" we don't have to actual practice it.
In science, theory does not always, in fact rarely, precedes experimentation. Any explanation for a physical phenomena is typically derived from known data, gathered from experimentation, and then the theory developed is tested with new and different experimentation.
Not to mention that fact that if we are personally practicing the presence of God, we are attuned to Him, that often He will guide us without the need for reflection and study. He will develop character in us that answers our issues without the intellectual exercise. Do you think we needed "theology" before the fall?
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