God

St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) spent 7 years writing his theological masterpiece, "Summa Theologica."  It was his attempt to present the entire breath of Christian theology in a systematic format. On December 6, 1273 Thomas was celebrating Mass when he heard Christ speak to him. Christ asked him what he desired. Thomas replied "Only you, Lord. Only you." Following this exchange Thomas had an intense, supernatural experience with God. It was so profound that he refused to go back to work on his masterpiece. When his assistant Reginald of Piperno begged him to return to his writing, Thomas replied,  "Reginald, I cannot, because all that I have written seems like straw to me." Thomas Aquinas left his sum of all theology incomplete and unfinished. He died 3 months later.

I share this story because I think it captures an important issue when it comes to the study of God, theology.  The issue is our words fall short, and yet we must use them. The issue is our finite minds will never fully understand the Infinite One, and yet we're driven to try. The issue is God is knowable but not completely. God is revealed and yet concealed, And most profoundly, God transcends human reason and human comprehension, and yet God was incarnated in human form.

Question: If we'll never fully understand the mystery of God this side of
heaven, why even try?

Two thoughts . . .

First, there is much we can know about the Infinite One. The Bible is filled with descriptions of God from mere mortals like us who encountered Divinity along the way. Here are just a few of the descriptions found in the scriptures: Mighty One, Faithful, Living, Eternal, Holy, Righteous, Rock, Redeemer, Savior, Almighty, Fortress, Judge, Strength, Justice, Truth, Compassionate, Forgiving, Love, Abba, Mother, Healer.

And secondly, Jesus Christ has made known the character of God. This is the centerpiece of Christian theology. "Christ is the image of the invisible God."  (Colossians 1:15). He's God's Word (Message) to us made flesh (John 1:14).

Prayer: What do we desire, O God? Only You, Lord. Only You. Give us hearts
to know you, minds to understand your ways, and spirits filled and guided
by your Spirit. Amen.

The First Amendment

Here's what it says:

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the  press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government  for a redress of grievances."

The First Amendment contains two clauses concerning the freedom of religion. The Establishment Clause states that the "Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion." The Free Exercise Clause adds, "or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." This amendment rejected the European model of a state religion.

When the amendment was ratified in 1791 it applied only to the federal government and its laws. States were still free to do as they wished. In fact, Massachusetts was officially a Congregational state until 1833. One of the churches I served was built using tax payer dollars. In colonial days all the residents of the village were taxed to pay for a new Congregational church. Those were the good ole days!

Shortly after Thomas Jefferson was elected president, Baptists from Connecticut asked him to declare a national day of fasting in order to help the country heal from a bitterly fought presidential campaign. Jefferson disagreed, feeling that the First Amendment established a "wall of separation" between church and state. Others presidents, government officials and courts have seen it differently through the years (see below). A few days after September 11, 2001 President Bush called for Americans to assemble in their houses of worship for noontime prayer for the nation. Most churches were packed.

Question: what are the advantages of a wall of separation between church and state? What are the disadvantages?

Question: Was the First Amendment meant to keep the church out of the state or the state out of the church? Or both?

Prayer: Holy God, thank you for the freedom to worship you in many and various ways. Inspire us to be a nation of worshippers. In your Name. Amen.

Extra Credit: Teaching About Religion

Question: What is the difference between teaching religion confessionally vs teaching about religion objectively?

Answer: the former is unconstitutional. The latter is not.

On a number of occasions the United States Supreme Court has affirmed that it is constitutional to teach about religion in the public schools.

Justice Robert Jackson in McCollum v. Board of Education (1948) wrote, "Music without sacred music, architecture minus the cathedral, or painting without the scriptural themes would be eccentric and incomplete, even from a secular point of view . . . Certainly a course in English literature that omitted the Bible and other powerful uses of our mother tongue for religious ends would be pretty barren."

Justice Thomas Clark in Abington v. Schempp (1963) wrote: "It might well be said that one's education is not complete without a study of comparative religion or the history of religion and its relationship to the advancement of civilization."

Justice Lewis Powell in Edwards v. Aguillard (1987) wrote, "Courses in comparative religion of course are customary and constitutionally appropriate."

Amen.

(The information in the "Extra Credit" section comes from Stephen Prothero's Religious Literacy, pp. 128-129.)

Evangelicals & Fundamentalists

The terms are often used interchangeably. But is there a difference between a Fundamentalist and an Evangelical?

The answer is yes.

Both groups frequently use a number of common terms (born again, saved and the lost, to name a few). And both groups stress evangelism, conversion, conviction, being public about one's faith, knowing the Bible and personal salvation through the atonement of the Cross of Christ.

But there are some differences.

Fundamentalists take a literal approach to every story in the Bible. Evangelicals are sometimes open to other interpretations, such as viewing some of the Old Testament stories as parables.

Fundamentalist reject evolution. Evangelicals vary on the subject.

Fundamentalists believe that the Bible is inerrant - perfect and without error on all subjects, including history and science. Evangelicals tend to use such words as "inspired" and "authoritative," meaning that the Bible is reliable and trustworthy in matters of faith and practice.

To Fundamentalists "mission" work is often primarily about spreading the faith.
Evangelicals tend to view it as ministering to the poor, sharing the faith in word and deed.

Fundamentalist are part of the Religious Right, conservative in their social and political views. Many Evangelicals lean that way but not all. In fact, there is an "Evangelical Left," folks with standard theological views but liberal socially and politically. As far as I know there are no left-wing Fundamentalists!

Fundamentalists tend to stick to themselves, often refusing to fellowship with those who are not doctrinally pure in their eyes. Evangelicals are more open and ecumenical.

And one more thing . . . Evangelicals tend to view the rest of us as in God's Kingdom and heaven-bound. Most Fundamentalists believe we're going down.

Question: What can we learn from our Evangelical and Fundamentalist friends?

Prayer: Loving God, help us to keep an open mind and learn from the diversity within your church. Amen.


Rev. Billy Graham





Tim Tebow

P.S. Given my own centrist theological perspective (don't we all think  we're the moderate ones?), it was difficult to write this entry. I always want to be respectful of those whose views are different than mine. But sometimes in teaching one must point out the differences. The goal is always to disagree respectfully. I hope I have done so.


Extra Credit:

The term "evangelical" comes from the Greek word, euangelion, which means, "good news." While the word is often used today as a noun and pronounced with a long "e," the same word in theological studies is pronounced with a short "e" and used to refer to theology that is Christ-centered, which by definition most Christian theology is! The Lutheran Church in the U.S. changed their name a few years ago to, "The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America." Most Lutherans are not Evangelicals as described above. It was however their way of saying, "Our central message is the Good News of Christ." In this way, most Christian churches are "evangelical" - with a short "e" instead of a long one.

Got it?



Sojourners Magazine - The Evangelical Left