Our Sterile Academic Theology

Last updated on: August 6, 2014 at 8:00 am by David Mills

Our Sterile Academic Theology 2014-08-04T01:58:03-04:00 David Mills

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“I think it is part of our endless colonial mindset that we wait for ideas, especially about philosophy and theology, to come from Europe,” says Marilynne Robinson, interviewed by the Jewish Daily Forward.

Then when they arrive they are not quite assimilable to our own assumptions and values — though this is never acknowledged. People try to adapt to them, which suppresses original thought, and then a new idea drifts in, the older one is half-abandoned, and on it goes. We are a very religious culture with a fundamentally sterile academic theology. The intellectual fads we generate here are usually cranky objections to the fact that the Bible is not agreeable in every detail to our wildly untypical lives — that it is sometimes better suited to the experience of the many hundred generations who have lived and died before us.

American Life

Previous Post

August 5, 2014

How You Enter

Next Post

August 6, 2014 A Lesson From the Egyptians

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Abortion & life American Life Anglican Affairs Apologetics Art and artistry Beer Capitalism's downside Catholic converts Catholic issues Catholicism & public life Catholicism in general Christianity & culture Christianity & the Jews Conservatism Conservative problems Death Do unto others Dogs Ecumenical friendship Evangelicalism Evil in the world Family Friendship Heroes How we should live Islam It's a funny old world Jews Judaism Israel Judaism justice Liberalism Life issues Marriage Mary Mass Media Modern culture good & bad Modern life as it is lived Modern Religion Mormonism People Personal reflections Politicians Protestantism Race Rand & Randiansm Secularisms Sexualities Society justice equality freedom The papacy & the pope Uncategorized Worship Writing & Language

Select a Month January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who said, "I am the Alpha and the Omega"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Jesus Paul John Moses