It’s hard for me to believe, but after a rather long season away  (fall 2003) from seminary textbooks, discussion forums and take home exams, i’m back at it.

I entered a pre-doc M.A.Theology program at the Northwest extension campus of Fuller the Monday after our oldest son’s wedding (destination Vermont- beautiful!). Maybe i’m crazy, but i’m loving it!

To prepare for Systematic Theology, a pre-class requirement was to read and prepare a written response to/review of  “Who Needs Theology?” by the late Stanley Grenz and Roger Olson. Here are my reflections on that book:

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In several recent and separate interactions during a family vacation back east, conversations stalled when I mentioned that I was beginning a graduate course of study in theology. What about the word “theology” is so unexciting, uninviting and even distant to many of the people I know? Even many of my Christian friends and family find it difficult to understand why I would “pay good money” to pursue higher education in such an “impractical” field.

Stanley J. Grenz & Roger E. Olson, in their book Who Needs Theology? tackle this question with tenacity tempered by tolerance for the theologically-as-yet-to-be-educated among us. Utilizing a “spectrum of reflection” which includes “folk theology,” “lay theology,” “ministerial theology,” “professional theology,” and  “academic theology”[1] Grenz and Olson present a good case for raising the bar from bumper-sticker beliefs to well-thought out reasons for what we hold to be true. The authors further define Christian theology in particular, as “reflecting on and articulating the God-centered life and beliefs that we share as followers of Jesus Christ, and it is done that God might be glorified in all we are and do.” [2]

As a neophyte to the world of serious theological investigation and reflection, I found the chapters on “Theology’s Tasks & Traditions” and “The Theologian’s Tools” particularly helpful. To see theology presented, not as something intangible and incomprehensible for common folk like me, but rather as a set of steps or tasks performed using the wieldable tools of “the biblical message, the theological heritage of the church and the thought-forms of contemporary culture”[3] which shape a clearer understanding and defense of valid Christian beliefs encouraging. The tasks, as delineated by the authors, include both “critical” and “constructive” components articulated as action words that I can relate to like “examining” and “evaluating,” “categorizing” and “constructing.”[4] In the logical ordering of these theological activities the road to theological discovery appears less daunting.

In the chapter titled “Defending Theology,”[5] Grenz and Olson introduce four common complaints or arguments against the disciplined study of theology. This chapter rang especially true for my life and the obstacles in getting to this place (undertaking the formal study of theology after 40 years of “walking with Jesus”). Two of these complaints, the “Killjoy Objection,” which the authors report, consists of the concept that God and the Bible should be “enjoyed,” not “examined”[6] and the “Divisiveness Charge,” which, as the name suggests, charges that the reasonable study of God (theology) ends up in arguments and the “unnecessary division of Christians”[7] were leveled against me specifically during my deliberations on pursuing a theologically oriented course of study. I found the treatment of these complaints, and especially the authors’ logical defense against them helpful to solidifying my own convictions that formal theological investigation is right for me.

Though a Peanuts[8] fan in my childhood, I found the cultural references to that comic strip outdated. I also would have appreciated at least a simple introduction to and definitions for the various theological buzzwords such as “feminist theology,” “liberal theology,” and “inclusive theology.”[9] I did, however, appreciate the clear articulation of what Christian theology (and, indeed, a Christian) is to the authors: “‘A Christian is someone whose life makes it easier to believe in God.’ Good theology fosters this in us.”[10] Indeed, Grenz and Olson not only think that theology is a good field of study for Christians, but that it

is crucial to the entire task of living Christianly in both church and world. Living involves questioning. Living Christianly involves asking and attempting to answer questions about God and the world. Thus living Christianly involves theology.[11]

Who Needs Theology? According to the authors, we all do. As a new seminarian, I found this resource not only helpful in providing a clear introductory look at the field of theology, but encouraging concerning my own ability to pursue this course of study.  In fact, it may behoove me to carry a copy or two around with me in the event that I am caught in another conversation with a theological-naysayer. After quietly handing them a copy I can gently remind them that the Bible calls me to love Jesus “with all [my] mind”[12] too!

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[1] Grenz, Stanley J. and Roger E. Olson. Who Needs Theology? an invitation to the Study of God. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press (1996), 26.

[2] Ibid., 52.

[3] [3] Grenz, Stanley J. and Roger E. Olson. Who Needs Theology? an invitation to the Study of God. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press (1996), 92.

[4] Ibid, 80

[5] Ibid, 50.

[6] Ibid., 55.

[7] Ibid., 60

[8] Ibid, e.g., 36, 87, 134.

[9] These terms, and others similar, are bandied about in conversations, on websites and in sermons alike. I make no specific reference to a particular written work.

[10] Ibid.,133.

[11] Ibid, 148.

[12] Holy Bible, New Revised Standard Version, Mark 12:30.