Toward a Theology in Culture: A New Encyclopedia

The overall objective of this course is to develop a church-based approach to the task of mastering the Scriptures and then to bring them to bear on the life and problems of churches who are living and ministering in their cultures and to be able to do so at a critical level—that is at a level of awareness of the immediate cultural and global trends that bear on the shaping of men’s worldviews.  Specifically, this means that each person studying the course would:

• Develop a firm conviction of the need for the church to return to the center of the theological enterprise; and the importance of the study of theology to the life of the leaders and the communities of faith themselves, so that they can address cultural and global issues with clarity and relevance— both as a form of kerygma (proclamation of the gospel) and of didache (teaching).

• Develop a clear understanding of what Paul meant by the perpetual passing on of the deposit, and what the role of getting in-depth training and developing critical thinking by faithful men, is over an extended period of time, with the view that these faithful men would keep churches, and whole movements of churches on course, thus creating a perpetual preservation of the apostles’ doctrine.

• Develop an understanding of theological encyclopedia (what ought a minister of the gospel to study and in what order); and develop an integrated approach to the theological disciplines which will allow a logical and effective access to existing resources.

• Gain an understanding of the tremendous shifts that are taking place in theological studies at this time in history, and the different traditions which are attempting to become the dominant new paradigms; and to develop a method for building a belief framework and doing theology in culture, which is both culturally relevant and remains true to the apostolic faith.

• Develop the perspective and method for guiding others to build their own belief framework and begin build a contemporary belief framework in his own cultural setting, including an extensive doing categorization for doing theology on an ongoing basis within that framework; as well as theology in their cultures.