At John Knox Church, I have the privilege of leading a staff of 7 ministry directors and another pastor, and we meet once a week for a couple hours, for prayer, formation, and work. A couple years ago we read and discussed this book together as a staff. Some of the staff members have formal theological training, others do not. The book was accessible to the entire staff. For some, it was a helpful course of Theology 101, which gave them a framework or a roadmap for thinking about ministry decisions, as well as for life in general. The phrase, \u201cthinking theologically\u201d is a phrase we try to use often on our leadership board and our staff.<\/p>\n
For others who already formal theological training, this book became a simple resource for being able to explain theology to others who are newer to the faith. It provides a structure of building blocks that are easy to understand and even visualize. Perhaps the most memorable idea for our staff was the author\u2019s notion of \u201cfolk theology.\u201d This provided such fun conversation around the table as we rehearsed all the folk theologies that we have heard and some that we have even had to unlearn ourselves.<\/p>\n
The author defines theology in the beginning of the book in the broadest sense, from which one can easily conclude that it would be nearly impossible to imagine any human being not <\/em>doing theology at some point in her life: \u201cTheology is any reflection on the ultimate questions of life that point toward God. Hence both the Bible teacher and the anonymous letter writer are theologians.\u201d[1]<\/a> For our staff, especially those without theological training, this definition helped to remove the fright from the study of theology for lay leaders. In other words, the study of theology is not reserved for Ivory Towers, but for everyday people for everyday life.<\/p>\n Doubling down on this vision for the use of theology, Grenz writes: \u201cFirst, theology is inescapable for all thinking, reflecting Christians, and the difference between lay theologians and professional theologians is one of degree, not kind. Second, professional theologians and and lay theologians (all reflective Christians of whatever profession) need one another. Professional theologians exist to serve the community of faith, not to dictate to it or lord over it intellectually.\u201d[2]<\/a> This articulation of the study and use of theology was comforting for these staff members who finally understood that there is a level of theology for them that is fruitful and productive.<\/p>\n Many seminaries have a department called \u201cpractical theology,\u201d which is to be differentiated from \u201csystematic theology.\u201d From my perspective, this is a mistake at best and an abuse at worst. If theology isn\u2019t practical, than it isn\u2019t theology. If \u201csystematic theology\u201d isn\u2019t intended to show up in everyday life, than it is not Christian theology, but something more akin to intellectual masturbation (please forgive the vulgarity). Grenz articulated this general definition of what makes Christian theology, Christian: <\/em>\u201cChristian theology is reflecting on and articulating the beliefs about God and the world that Christians share as followers of Jesus Christ.\u201d[3]<\/a><\/p>\n Therefore, Chapter 7: Constructing Theology in Context <\/em>became the most useful for the purposes of ministry offerings from the staff.<\/p>\n The three important takeaways that are discussed in this chapter regarding Christian theology are:<\/p>\n Drawing from Romans 12, Grenz suggests that if the priesthood of all believers\u2014the everyday disciples of a congregation\u2014are going to take theology seriously, we must \u201cbecome dissatisfied with your present level of understanding. You must desire to deepen your comprehension of the Christian faith and be committed to growing toward mature thinking about God, yourself and the world.\u201d[4]<\/a><\/p>\n This means that our work of theology does not stop once we graduate from seminary, nor does it start when we begin seminary. Christian theology is more of a formation process that happens over a lifetime. It is part of our sanctification, and according to Grenz, it begins with metanoia<\/em>, the felt need to change our minds, our thinking, and therefore, our living. When we recongnize this need, there is a big, beautiful canvas on which God can paint his Truth in our lives.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Olson, Stanley J. Grenz & Roger E.\u00a0Who Needs Theology? an Invitation to the Study of God<\/em>. Downers Grove, Ill., USA: InterVarsity Press, 1996.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Stanley J. Grenz and Roger E. Olson,\u00a0Who Needs Theology? an Invitation to the Study of God<\/em>\u00a0(Downer\u2019s Grove: IVP Academic, 2009),\u00a013.<\/p>\n\n