At the Intersection of the Academy and Ministry

I am now a graduate of Harding Graduate School of Religion. (Please hold your applause.) Graduate school has had a profound impact on me. I am deeply grateful for my time at HUGSR, but eager to engage myself wholeheartedly in something new. I feel a burning desire to put the knowledge and skills that I acquired or developed at HUGSR to use. Perhaps this blog can be one forum for that goal. I am always searching for dialog partners.

My four years at HUGSR have refined my areas of interest in theological study. In the coming years I hope to explore several threads of thought to which graduate school has introduced me.

(1) The present search for a postmodern method for the interpretation of Scripture is especially relevant for the church. How do we read Scripture if we cannot avoid reading our own cultural conditioning into its narrative? My first post – eighteen months ago! – began this thread, to which I hope to return soon.

(2) I also believe the church ought to dedicate much more thought to the providence of God. The problem of evil (why does God allow terrible things to happen?) will always be with us and Christians need a “theology of suffering” to make sense of the struggles of this world.

(3) How does our understanding of the Christian life shape our approach toward life’s challenges – both daily activities and difficult hurdles (the question of ethics)? How does our Christian character affect our participation in society – in politics, economics, social issues, etc.?

(4) I am convinced that the absolute poverty of hundreds of millions of people is both an immensely important opportunity for the gospel and the greatest failure of the modern church. In most cases, I believe our guilt is due to ignorance. One must ask, how should Christians (particularly American Christians) respond to a world where many are poor? What is God’s view of wealth, poverty, and possessions? How do our ethical convictions inform our response? What does God’s providence mean for the poor? Has our reading of Scripture sustained or challenged unjust social structures and behaviors?

That’s quite a list of questions to ponder. Consider it my top four list – in no particular order – of questions for further study. I am uncertain as to where my inquiries will lead me, but my time at HUGSR has taught me that the greatest growth occurs while on the journey – not upon arriving at a conclusion. Journey with me.

I enter the blogging universe with a specific goal in mind. As I continue to seek the truth and draw nearer to God, I am conscious of the Christian community - my friends, brothers, and sisters in Christ - who share my pursuit. I am eager to share my thoughts and ramblings with others so that we might pursue a deeper relationship with our Creator together. I hope that you will dialogue with me as I stumble along in my walk with God and I pray that together we will grow and bear much fruit for God's kingdom.

I choose the title, "Seeking the Truth in Humility," because I believe we have reached an emerging new era in religious thought. American culture is shifting from the modern worldview on which we have thrived for so long. We question our ability to ascertain absolute truth as well as the structures that suppose to offer this truth. On the other hand, many are weary of the resultant relativism and individualism that deteriorates our society. I seek a middle ground.

We cannot escape our cultural conditioning or the presuppositions that shape our notions of truth, but we can be aware of them and how they affect us. We will never fully understand all the intricacies of God and his plan for his creation, but we can draw nearer to Him and into a deeper knowledge of his will. Our modern belief in objective certainty is shattered, but we do not give up our search for truth. Instead we proceed with greater humility.

So here I stand. I believe in truth. I acknowledge that I can only perceive truth through the linguistic and cultural concepts which God has allowed me to develop. From this point I venture out to find an ever-deepening relationship with the Father.

"From one ancestor God made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him - though indeed he is not far from each one of us." Acts 17:26-27