Theology | Ep.11
Theology is the final study in a liberal arts education. It is final both in the sense that it is the last thing to be studied, but it is also final in the sense that it is the one the others sciences are in service to. As one has studied the other sciences: math, history, literature, music, etc. the theological study has been there with him the entire time. Now, at the end, it is studied for itself. It sheds light on everything that has come before and opens the student’s mind to look at the things to come. All things culminate in the study of theology.
Theology is a study of the direct revelation of God. We study his word: what he has told us about himself. Theology therefore is not something that we can reach through our own reason. It must be shown to us, because it is beyond what is available to our reason in nature. There are three ways that schools typically attempt to study theology. One is that they insert it as a subject to be taught. They add to the existing list of subject a new one which they call “Bible.” This has the unfortunate effect of separating theology from the other subjects and indicates that they are not in any sense related.
A second, more noble attempt is to integrate aspects of Christian theology into the curriculum itself. When the students read a story or examine a creature in science they study them along side scripture. They compare what the Bible has to say to what they find in nature, and the one understanding informs the other. This seems better than the original approach, and it certainly is. However, it does not go quite as far as it ought.
The third, and final, approach is to weave theology into the very fabric of school life. In this method, the school not only teaches scripture in the classroom, but they also conducts worship and prayer services and encourage students to live virtuous, godly lives. The academics here are of a secondary nature. The primary focus is to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” (Matthes 22:37) This should also be the goal of a christian education, and it is what those in classical christian circles attempt to give to its students.
This type of education cannot be gained in a vacuum. To grow in love and knowledge of God requires community. A believer needs a community of people he can meet with to build him up in truth. However, a community we often neglect today is the community of saints who have gone before. They speak to us through their writings but also the traditions which they have passed down to us. Now certainly, just because something is tradition does not mean that it should be held to relentlessly. If a certain tradition is found to be in the way of sound biblical teaching then it ought to be altered to meet biblical standard. However, to do away with tradition is to spit in the faces of those who lead us to where we are today. It is to dishonor our fathers and mothers of the faith. Through their traditions they attempt to convey an understanding of God as he has revealed himself to man, and such tradition should not be cast off lightly.
The fact that God has seen fit to reveal himself to us, his creation, is a wonderful act of grace and love. It requires our attention and study, and through our study we find joy in being who we were made to be. We were created to worship and glorify our Creator, and theology directs us toward that end.
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Kevin Clark and Ravi Scott Jain, The Liberal Arts Tradition: A Philosophy of Christian Classical Education
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