Thoughts on Theology

Theology (without going to a dictionary - because really what fun would that be) is basically studying God and the things of God. I guess if I were to be literal it would be "the study of God" (theos-God & -ology-study of), however it is more commonly used in the broader sense.

By the time I was done with seminary theology was not a very pleasant word. The primary books we read in my systematic theology (a very organized structured way of studying The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) class were written in a way that said something about God, restated it, quoted a few people who had said the same thing, and then referred back to that same statement a few pages later. (At least it seemed that way. It took a whole lot of caffeine to get through those things.)

Other people have recognized problems with the whole word "theology." An article in the April 2007 article of Catalyst (http://www.catalystresources.org/) felt that the word "theology" had been so co-opted that the author attempted to open up a discussion about "Thinking Christianly" as a wider way to look at life from a Christian perspective than merely the academic framing of theology.

Without a doubt, theology can be extremely boring.

I much prefer Paul Wesley Chilcote's statement about John and Charles Wesley's take on theology. "For the Wesleys, theology was never meant to be either boring or irrelevant. The ultimate purpose of theology is transformation. And central to this understanding was their view that everyone is called to be a theologian. As you live out your life daily, you are continually acting out and reflecting upon who you are and to whom you belong. For the Christian, Jesus Christ is the central reference point in that ongoing process, the goal of which is to be changed by God into more loving, more Christlike people. This is theology, and nothing could be more exciting or relevant in our lives. Everyone has a legitimate role to play in this unfolding, transformative process within the community of faith." (Recapturing the Wesley's Vision, p. 15-16)

When I was fresh out of seminary my mentor told me that as a pastor I was going to be the resident theologian of the churches I served. I thought he was nuts. I didn't want to be as boring or as repetitive as the books I had read. However, if theology is really about "reflecting upon who [we] are and to whom [we] belong," I can get into that.