Quotes About Theology

For without His power at work in our hearts, we easily become unaware of the need all around us, or within us, so that we either go through the motions of Christianity or become slaves to a works-based theology—which may fool others but doesn't impress God. Working

Notice that Tabor assumes Jesus couldn't have been resurrected. He was simply reburied by some unknown figure, and the idea that he was resurrected inexplicably emerged later.

Many, if not most, theological liberal scholars have backgrounds as fundamentalists or evangelicals.

This oral tradition took the form of doctrinal summaries, hymns, and sacraments that underscored the fundamental theology of the church

Dethroning Jesus seeks to determine whether we have the right to get to that kind of a discussion or whether Lessing's ditch is so great that we should simply throw up our hands and do the best we can to muddle through.

Finally, the Gospel of Thomas lacks what we might call an "incarnational perspective.

The first is "divide and conquer." Here related themes are split apart from each other and isolated so one is early and another is late. The second principle is that "difference equals either disagreement or a distinct theology," so we can again lift out and separate what goes back to Jesus and what the church came to say later.

Second is the rise of higher criticism

The false argument has been used that only a man can represent a male Jesus. But this portrays an inadequate understanding of the incarnation. The Son of God, in assuming our humanity, became a man, not to sanctify maleness, but our common humanity so that, be we men or women, we can see the dignity and beauty of our humanity sanctified in him.

I expect that in the long run, when we get right down to the fundamental stuff of the universe, we'll find that there's nothing there at all—just nothings moving no-place through no-time. On the day that that happens, I'll have God and you will not—otherwise there'll be no difference between us.

The theological denigration of women was a major revision of the assumptions that had informed the Christian movement from the gospels forward. Jesus himself modeled an egalitarian respect toward women: In Christ, 'there is neither male nor female.

The massive sexual dysfunction of the contemporary Catholic Church began with Augustine.

the dominant ways of thinking about culture and cultural change are flawed, for they are based on both specious social science and problematic theology.

IN A MILIEU WHERE the church and its people are so quickly and roundly criticized for their shortcomings, it is easy to overlook a central theological truth; that is, that however inadequate or pitiful the church may seem at times (and may, in fact, be), where the scripture is proclaimed, the sacraments administered, and the people of God continue to seek to follow God in word and deed, God is at work; the Holy Spirit is still very much active.

theology moves in the opposite direction of social theory,

faith is not fundamentally a developmental phenomenon

The conspicuous absence of the lynching tree in American theological discourse and preaching is profoundly revealing, especially since the crucifixion was clearly a first-century lynching.

any analysis of the gospel which did not begin and end with God's liberation of the oppressed was ipso facto unchristian.

From ancient theology to contemporary psychology, our words shape our story and this story becomes the framework for our behaviors; and our behaviors determine the way we lead our life and the way we run our organizations.

I believe the causes that create them [serial killers] are theological in nature, rather than societal. I believe they make a conscious choice to erase God's thumbprint from their souls.

I'm a scientist, not a theologian. I don't know if there is a God or not. Religion requires certainty. Revere and respect Gaia. Have trust in Gaia. But not faith.

If biblical theology is a way to get into another world, the world inhabited by the biblical authors, you have a right to understand my intentions. My hope is that you cross the bridge into their thought-world and never come back. I hope you will breathe the air of the Bible's world, recognize it as the real Narnia, and never want to leave.

Though God is beyond our comprehension, we can know him and speak meaningfully about him because he has revealed himself to us in the written and living word.

Our view of human problems determines who is qualified to speak to them. If sin is the primary human problem, then those with the theological and practical expertise in dealing with sin – in its varied and complex forms – should lead the way in the field of people-helping. Unless we have an accurate and robust conception of sin, the church will concede much of its work to outside professional and will be ill-equipped to cooperate with them when needed.