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The Great Commission and Theology
Then Jesus came up and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’ I’ve already argued that Christian theology must begin with Christ, and I firmly believe that. So as I continue to explore what it means to be a theologian and what it means to do theology it only seems right to turn to Christ for my…
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The Art of Distinction
Theology has long been held by its admirers as the queen of the sciences. This may seem strange to the modern or postmodern ear, but think about it from the perspective of faith seeking understanding: “unless I believe, I shall not understand.” The corollary to faith seeking rational explanation is that faith is itself supremely rational. Until you understand theology you cannot hope to truly understand anything else. And thus theology is the most distinguished of all arts, the greatest pursuit of the mind of man. [Editor’s note: for those of you wondering who’s the king, let it go. Queens can also be #1.] My experience of theology leads me…
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The Journey of a Thousand Miles…
Everyone always starts with definitions. I used to think it’s what lazy people did to get their brains going: no matter what the topic or venue, you start by saying “the dictionary defines x as thus-and-such.” Only after I began to study philosophy did it really sink in that definitions matter. I mean, of course they matter, but beyond simply making sure that speaker and listener have roughly the same picture in mind when the word comes up, there is a matter of precision necessary simply to keep the speaker on-track. It’s too easy to equivocate without even realizing it (i.e. assigning different meanings to the same word). So we…
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The Aroma from the Kitchen
So you say to yourself, “I’m hungry. I think I’m going to whip up a fresh batch of theology.” Good idea! But where do you start? There are a lot of variations on the recipe. (Whatever number you’re thinking, double it. Then add some more.) How do you bake the good stuff? I’m not really sure, to be honest. I mean, I have the old family recipe, and I’ve taken some liberties here and there. But there’s always something missing… and I wouldn’t dare serve it at parties. (I’ve learned that lesson.) I once heard tell of a recipe that came down from on high, with pure gold lettering and…
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Forgiving the Reformation
A lot of people seem to think that seminary is where you get all the answers. They’re wrong. Well, either that or I just don’t go to one of “those” seminaries. My experience has been that instead of receiving answers to my questions, I’ve been stripped of many of the answers I thought I had and been given more questions in return. Now I don’t say this to complain; I happen to think that’s the way it should be. But that doesn’t mean every day is a party either. One of the ways I’ve been challenged in seminary was the place of tradition in my theology. Specifically it was the…