Who do I follow? Psychology, Theology, Philosophy...Part II

With confidence and humility, we must enter the conversation of integrating various disciplines in order to understand God and His interaction with His world.

But How do we begin to integrate various disciplines with discernment while keeping their integrity intact?








In our Theology 1 class, The Wesleyan Quadrilateral, has been suggested as a way to do integration with confidence and humility.

The quadrilateral is not an endorsement of Wesleyan view, but a simple tool to utilize in our Theological Method.

Who Do I Follow? Psychology, Theology, Philosophy....Part I

Who is right? Can I share my views with someone who disagrees with me?

Is faith blind? Can I trust in reason, and still trust in God? 

Am I too emotional? Can I bring psychology into my faith? 

Will it matter if I participate in church, or just be non-religious? Can I forsake (or learn) from tradition, and still have faith? 

What if I don't "feel" God? Can I use my daily experience to guide my faith?

Our Theology 1 class is studying Theological Methodology--or the method by which we study God.

The Theological method we bring to the Scriptures leads directly to our Theological conclusion. (i.e. if I don't believe in miracles, and I study the bible, I will minimize or even debunk the bible of the supernatural).

But what makes up the "method" we bring to the Scriptures?

And who can contribute to the theological knowledge we conclude?

Which disciplines give us clear knowledge of God?

Do I really know God?

Have you ever wondered if you really know God? Have you ever stopped to think, "Is this just my parent's faith? Or am I just accepting what my church has taught me without wondering what I think is true?" Can we simply live a life based on other's study of the Bible and God? Is it important for me to think about my own methods of coming to conclusions about who God is for my own walk with God? How do I know which method to use? How do I allow both general and specific revelation inform my beliefs about God? Our class will be addressing these questions as we dive into the process of how we come to right beliefs and conclusions about God and how these beliefs inform our behaviors.

We will be taking 3 Classes this Semester. Here is our first class:

Theology 1: Introduction- Revelation & Nature of God

We will be studying the nature, method, and rationale of Christian Theology. Revelation, both general and special, inspiration, canonicity and illumination of Scripture. The doctrine of God, including His existence, attributes and Trinitarian nature.

Books

         

Week 4 & 5- Disconnects in the Christian Life

Often in our lives, as in our spiritual experience, there is a disconnect between what we know of God and what we experience of Him daily. This is not merely a personal issue of heart/head disconnect, but as John Coe explains, it is an issue handed down from the seminarians who are leading our churches. Within seminary itself is a heart/head disconnect, rooting from the modernist mindset that "seminary was not a place to train men and women to be Godly, but to train Godly men and women for the ministry" (B.B. Warfield).  They will train students in the Word, but often not in the Spirit. 

This is significant to every Christian person because the disconnect between "where I truly am" and "my spiritual and character ideal" has created a sanctification gap in daily life and in the church.  Is this similar to your experience?