I was talking with a friend of mine about our pet peeves about the way theology is developed and discussed today. We talked for a bit about Listening to the Beliefs of Emerging Churches, then moved on to theologians as a whole.
His problem is that theologians generally write for other theologians. They tend to sit back positing, hypothesizing, and generally wondering out loud, but little (if any) of that is usable by the layman. They use a lot of words in order to sound smart, whether they are or not.
I add that while that’s happening, many of those who teach the church are reducing theology to pragmatism, washing out the foundation of their positions when they speak to the congregation. They are, in essence, discouraging people from thinking theologically about things by spoon-feeding them “life lessons” and “practical application”. The result is that people are unable to associate their beliefs with their everyday activities.
One example that jumped out at me recently is that a number of pediatricians support breastfeeding, but recommend a formula supplement. There are a lot of conclusions that people will draw from that, but few will see that this points to a lack of faith in God. If you have faith, and are able to associate your faith with everyday life, you’ll realize that God gave your baby every nutrient she needs for her first 6-12 months in the form of breastmilk. If God is providing, is there any need for a formula supplement?
I’m not saying that supplements are evil, and I’m not saying that you lack faith if you listen to your doctor. I’m saying that neither you, nor your doctor have been encouraged to think theologically about such things.
My friend says that it’s like theological texts are written in another language, and there are only a handful of skilled/called/responsive translators. We need more ministers to heed the call to teach their congregations to think theologically about life. Not just church life, but every part of their lives.
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2 responses so far...
I do what I can to balance between the ancient and contemporary theologians(and all that’s in between) . Our discussion centered around what we see happening today.
Blogs4God
Just read the Church Fathers of the first thousand years or so. They should keep you busy enough.
They’re not hard to understand intellectually- just hard to understand. Somewhat like the Good Lord.