Welcome to The Theology Whisperer, a series of short blog posts on theology and theological education. What do we bring to the table when we do theology? Today it is common to note a need for attention to problems of self-referentiality and contextualism in any formal thinking activity. But four decades ago, when it …
The moral task of theology
Welcome to The Theology Whisperer, a series of short blog posts on theology and theological education. Does theology have a moral or ethical function? Should it have such a function? If, as the Puritan divine William Perkins put it, theology is the science of living blessedly forever, then theology is linked to discipleship and the …
The constructive task of theology
Welcome to The Theology Whisperer, a series of short blog posts on theology and theological education. In previous posts I outlined the descriptive and critical tasks of theology; in this post (and the next), I want to look at theology’s constructive task. By this I mean theological work characterised not only by good biblical interpretation …
The critical task of theology
I suggested in a previous post that the relationship of Christian theology to Christ, church and Scripture is what distinguishes it from other kinds of theology. If theology is anchored in particular understandings of Christ, church and Scripture, then it should take seriously the challenge of defending and promoting reasoned thought and reflection on this …
Who invented theology?
Welcome to The Theology Whisperer, a series of short blog posts on theology and theological education. A fascinating sentence appears at the end of Genesis chapter four in the Hebrew Bible. After recording the birth of Enosh, Adam’s grandson by Seth, we read that “At that time people began to call on the name of …
iDigress 