What is Theology?
What is Theology?
25 September of 2013
What is Theology? A.W. Tozer said, “The devil is a better theologian than any of us and is a devil still” and Henry Ward Beecher spoke the following words, “Theology is a science of mind applied to God”. Inside every person there is a voice of a theologian. Human minds like A.W. Tozer and Henry Ward Beecher have contributed to the ideas of theology just like millions of others. As long as an individual believes something about God, then that person is practicing theology in its simplest form. Since our beliefs about YHWH dictate how we live knowing about theology and what it is becomes an important aspect of life. This essay will provide a summary definition of theology, define theological task, cover various approaches used to define theology, and it will cover 3 sources for the theological task according to Grenz.
Definitions
Theology is noun used to describe the study of religious truths of God. This includes studying God’s characteristics, God’s universe, and religious concepts. Guthrie’s definition of theology is, “The quest for the ultimate truth about God, about oneself, and about the world (Guthrie, 1994). It is amazing that Beecher would consider theology to be like science because theology is not studying facts, systems, quantitative, and qualitative data from an objective repetitive manner. Instead, theology is meant to learn about Yahweh and all that falls under Him. It is to engage and connect the theologian in a relationship process to Yahweh. As the lecture states theology, “is done to guide the church in its ongoing tasks and challenges” (GCU, 2011). Since theology is not like hard science’s most of Yeshua’s followers would agree that theology is best described as a “theological task”. Theological task is a process that has been going on for years. Early thinkers, theologians, and scholars have been studying Yahweh and contributing ideas for future
25 September of 2013
What is Theology? A.W. Tozer said, “The devil is a better theologian than any of us and is a devil still” and Henry Ward Beecher spoke the following words, “Theology is a science of mind applied to God”. Inside every person there is a voice of a theologian. Human minds like A.W. Tozer and Henry Ward Beecher have contributed to the ideas of theology just like millions of others. As long as an individual believes something about God, then that person is practicing theology in its simplest form. Since our beliefs about YHWH dictate how we live knowing about theology and what it is becomes an important aspect of life. This essay will provide a summary definition of theology, define theological task, cover various approaches used to define theology, and it will cover 3 sources for the theological task according to Grenz.
Definitions
Theology is noun used to describe the study of religious truths of God. This includes studying God’s characteristics, God’s universe, and religious concepts. Guthrie’s definition of theology is, “The quest for the ultimate truth about God, about oneself, and about the world (Guthrie, 1994). It is amazing that Beecher would consider theology to be like science because theology is not studying facts, systems, quantitative, and qualitative data from an objective repetitive manner. Instead, theology is meant to learn about Yahweh and all that falls under Him. It is to engage and connect the theologian in a relationship process to Yahweh. As the lecture states theology, “is done to guide the church in its ongoing tasks and challenges” (GCU, 2011). Since theology is not like hard science’s most of Yeshua’s followers would agree that theology is best described as a “theological task”. Theological task is a process that has been going on for years. Early thinkers, theologians, and scholars have been studying Yahweh and contributing ideas for future
References: Chrisitan Quotes (2012) Theology Quotes. Via Web Source: http://christian-quotes.ochristian.com/Theology-Quotes/. Retrieved 9/25/2013. Grenz, S. J. (2000). Theology for the community of God. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdman 's. Grenz, S. J. and Franke, J. (2001). Beyond foundationalism: Shaping theology in a postmodern context. Louisville, KY: Westminister John Knox. Guthrie, S. (1968). Christian doctrine. Teachings of the Christian church. CLC Press McGrath, A. (Ed.). (2006). The Christian theology reader. (4th ed.). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. Reed, P. (2013) Class Discussion: Tapestry. Via Web Source: www.gcu.edu. Retrived 9/24/2013.