Several years ago, while making the long drive up to north to see my family for the holidays, I was struck with what I believed to be a brilliant concept for a children’s book. I was so excited that I actually pulled off of the interstate to jot down my idea. In short, what I had imagined that day was a short illustration about how I viewed religion at the time. I pictured a magnificent mountain, bigger than any mountain here on earth, and the various paths taken from one creature to another to get to the very top. All creatures were different, but all sought to find their way to the mountain’s peak. It was a metaphor for how I viewed God and our uniquely individual paths to Him. I imagined a bird, a fish, a bear, a snake and a deer all …show more content…
I hadn’t ever considered myself much of a theologian until reading this book. What impressed me so much throughout the pages, was how the authors kept returning to the premise that we are all theologians, but that alone is not sufficient and that what we ought to strive for is “sound theology.” If I ever do get around to writing that children’s book, I think it should be from a more Systematic Theological approach, incorporating many theological sources as reference to the pursuit of God and only after a continuous and steady immersion into His Holy Word. I agree with the authors who stress that there is good theology and bad theology and what our world and the Christian church really need is more good theology. That is my hope and aim while taking on this particular path of Christian ministry. As I begin to sheepishly inform others that I am attending Dallas Theological Seminary, I am starting to see the looks of fear in peoples’ eyes as soon as the word ‘Theological’ leaves my …show more content…
Cultures change. Minds are changed. This is the way of the world. Which is why there is a desperate need for accurate Historical Theology- so that we can measure where we were in our faith, how far we have come, and if we are still holding true to our beliefs as time goes on. Are we making a lifestyle around good theology? Or are we going with the culture norms? Are we too free? Is there such a thing as too much freedom? We are blessed to have free will. By its very design, love, if it is not given and received freely, is not love at all. But just like love, faith should not necessarily quiver at truth. Blind love operates beautifully if you are comfortable not seeing fully. So too, stands ones’ faith. If my faith is “tore apart” because I choose to ask the challenging questions, entertain complex ideas, and re-examine long held historical traditions, how strong then is my faith? What I am certain of is that a healthy and sustainable relationship with God is one that is both from the heart and the mind. That is what I think excited me the most about reading Grenz and Olson’s book. The authors are not shying away from pointing out the Christian Church’s stigma of theology, but they are also not shying away from their shared passion of it, especially through the lenses of Biblical truth and historical and cultural