What makes you think?

Recently I have spent a fair amount of time thinking, researching and working with ideas of Theology.  What does it mean and most importantly why do we care?

Religion is one of those places in our lives that has it's own language.  When I first entered seminary it became clear very quickly that everyone there spoke a language that I didn't know.  What was hermeneutics, soteriology or dogmatics?  I had no clue about my theology of salvation, redemption or any thing else for that matter.  I remember someone coming up to me after a class and saying they would really like to talk about my theology of redemption, he really liked it and wanted to know more.  Walking away all I could think was what had he heard me say that he deemed theology and what did he want to know more about? 

What I knew at that point in my life was that I love God with a passion that just wouldn't go away.  My belief in God and my experience of God was one that was central to my life and my understanding of how I lived.  God was something that was ever present in my life, even when I turned my back.  It was this unshakable thing inside me that no one could take away.  Somehow I knew that the only way my life would make sense would be if I could bring a message of hope, healing and love that I knew to be God, to those in my midst. 

But what was this whole Theology thing? 

A definition of Theology is: "The study of religious faith, practice, and experience, especially the study of God and of God's relation to the world."  Well, that is actually very helpful.  I wonder if you take a breath and reflect for a second, could you share how you feel about God, why God matters, or why God doesn't matter.  Maybe God matters profoundly, but the Church or religion makes little difference.  How do we give thanks for the many blessings in our lives, and where do we look to for courage, hope and direction?  What does community have to do with God, is it necessary or helpful?

Words are a wonderful and necessary thing.  But, in many instances, they can bog us down, confuse us, or even make us feel less than.  I would invite you to think of yourself as a theologian for a while.  Look at the world through the lens of faith.  Where do you see God?  Why are you reading this post at all?  Making meaning of your life through the lens of your faith is theology. 

"Where people pray is church, where there is church there is no loneliness."  Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Over time I have come to know and apprecite the language of our faith and of the religious traditions.  Reading and coming to know about those in our past that spent much time in prayer and reflection giving voice to the mystery that is God is an amzing gift of the church.  It also allows us to deepen our faith in ways we cannot imagine.  Let us begin again by reminding ourselves how much God matters to us and why.