Only Christian believers can or should be theologians Essay Example for Free

Only Christian believers can or should be theologians Essay Using quotations from at least three written texts (ancient and/or modern), argue the case for or against the view that only Christian believers can or should be theologians Before attempting to answer this question, one must define some principles of the nature of Christian theology. It is obvious that anyone may create a theology based purely on ideas from ones own imagination, with no boundaries or guidelines to it. Such a theology may be creative, intelligent, and reasonable, but could not be classed as Christian theology. Something must act as a rule and a guard, lest the Christian religion break down into nothing more than dispersed, individual, self-made theologies. Theology in a Christian context must and does find its foundation in Scripture, the supreme authority to life and thought (Vanhoozer 1998, p. 380). Now that the thing that is to be interpreted in the building of Christian theology has been identified as Scripture, one may ask the question of who is able and qualified to interpret it. In 1860, Benjamin Jowett published his essay, On the Interpretation of Scripture. He argued that the Bible should be regarded as any other ancient collections of literature, using tools of literary and historical scholarship. He implied that a critic who stands apart from traditional beliefs and practices is in a better position to find the true meaning of the text, as these traditions had obscured their true meaning. In other words, only those with the right scholarly tools and who were willing to suspend any belief in the text that they may have are able to correctly interpret it (Vanhoozer 1998, pp. 378-379). However, Jowetts view of interpretation omits the spiritual and the ethical dimensions of Biblical interpretation. Vanhoozer writes: To call the Bible Scripture does not make its warnings or its promises something other than warnings or promises, but rather reorients them to the larger purpose of making wise unto salvation . (Vanhoozer 1998, p. 380). Jowetts approach to interpretation requires an objective reading of the text. But can one properly interpret the Scriptures from such a standpoint? To answer this, one must examine the relationship between the reader, the text, the author, and the story. Upon reading, the reader reads the text, and in doing so reconstructs the author in his own imagination, creating an implied author, and bringing the story to life (actualising the text) from the marks on the written page (Voelz 1995, 1997, pp. 218- 219). Voelz goes on to state that the intended recipient of the text is: a reader of whom the author is conscious, one who may also be called implied. And this implied reader stands in the same relationship to the actual reader as the implied author stands to the actual author; he is, again, a construct, not in the real world, and he is detectable (only) in the text. Who then is a valid interpreter of a text? It is he who conforms to the expectations of the author. It is he who conforms himself to the given texts assumptions. It is he who becomes the implied reader and only such a one of a given text. Which means that an objective reading of a text is not only impossible; it is not to be desired! (Voelz 1995, 1997, p. 219) One can see that what is needed for correct interpretation of Scripture, is a subjective, rather than objective reading of the text. Voelz argues a reader interprets within a community, having developed the beliefs and attitudes of the implied reader, through discussion, experience, and training within that community which understands and appreciates the context of the implied reader. Therefore: A valid interpreter of a text is that person who assumes the role required as it were, by a given text who becomes the reader implied or called for by that very text. And such a one is formed to assume that role by a community, a community which has assumed that role itself. (Voelz 1995, 1997, p. 220) This, however, does not make every Christian communitys interpretation infallible, because humans err; thus different Christian communities often disagree on the interpretation of certain parts of Scripture. But, as the Church is a community within which these documents were produced, received, and preserved, Vanhoozer states: [The] Bible is more likely to be misunderstood by an unbelieving and unaffiliated individual than by a believing and practising member of the church. (Vanhoozer 1998, p. 378) In the case of the New Testament, the books were produced, received, and preserved by the Christian community, and following Voelzs argument, one has to be within a Christian community, and taught to read Scripture by that community, to be able to correctly interpret the New Testament. The issue of the interpretation of the Old Testament is one that is referred to in the New Testament. Speaking of the reading of Scripture by the Jews: Yes, to this day, whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. (2 Cor. 3:15-16 ESV) According to Pauls argument, the Jews do not believe, therefore they cannot, in their unbelieving state, be the implied reader of the Old Testament Scriptures. Apparently, simply being within the Jewish community is insufficient to correctly interpret these Scriptures, as more than a simple, straightforward understanding of the Hebrew text is needed. Luke 24:45 ESV reads, concerning Jesus and his disciples, Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures. Minds must be opened, veils taken away. The Christian community must teach readers to interpret even the Old Testament books. Only within the Christian community can ones mind be changed in the proper way (Voelz 1995, 1997, p. 226). The reason for this is clear from the New Testaments claims regarding the Christocentricity of all Scripture, Old and New Testaments: You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me (Jn. 5:39 ESV. Cf. Mt. 2:4-6, 14-15; 1 Cor. 10:11, 15:3-4; 2 Cor. 1:20; Heb. 9:11-12; 1 Pet. 1:10-12) In order to be within the Christian community, one must adhere to and confess its creeds. Voelz writes: Therefore, to adhere to the creeds gives one an orientation to the books of the NT. which is congenial to them and which allows/enables one to interpret them in accordance with their intention [Adherence] to the creeds enables one to matrix the signifiers and meanings of a text for interpretation and then to interpret that matrix in a way which is congenial to the text, for the creeds are of one piece with that text and provide, as it were, the interpretive key,determinative for the meaning of the complex signifiers under construction [The] creeds help to determine which readings of Scripture are the apostolic/Christian readings which may legitimately be drawn from them. (Voelz 1995, 1997, p. 222) It was precisely the misuse of Scripture by heretics, which caused the early Church father, Tertullian, to write regarding them: [We] oppose to them this step above all others, of not admitting them to any discussion of the Scriptures. If in these lie their resources, before they can use them, it ought to be clearly seen to whom belongs the possession of the Scriptures, that none may be admitted to the use thereof who has no title at all to the privilege. (Roberts Donaldson 1994, 1995, Vol. 1 p.250 -Chapter XV of On Prescription Against Heretics. See also: chapters XVI, XVII, XVIII, XIX pp. 250-252) Tertullians belief was that the Scriptures were the property of the Christian Church alone, and not to be handled by those outside of it. Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, against the Valentinians, wrote: [They] endeavour to adapt with an air of probability to their own peculiar assertions the parables of the Lord, the sayings of the prophets, and the words of the apostles, in order that their scheme may not seem altogether without support. In doing so, however, they disregard the order and the connection of the Scriptures, and so far as in them lies, dismember and destroy the truth. By transferring passages, and dressing them up anew, and making one thing out of another, they succeed in deluding many through their wicked art in adapting the oracles of the Lord to their opinions. (Roberts Donaldson 1994, 1995, Vol. 3. p. 326 -Chapter VIII of Against Heresies) In conclusion, there seem to be many problems opposing the idea of those outside of the Christian Church being theologians, not least the question of motive, as the early Church fathers addressed. For these reasons, I believe that theology is a matter only for those within the Church. Bibliography * Roberts, A. Donaldson J. (Editors); 1994, 1995; Ante-Nicene Fathers; Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishers, Inc. * Vanhoozer, K. 1998; Is There a Meaning in This Text?; Leicester; Apollos/IVP. * Voelz, J. 1995, 1997; What Does This Mean?: Principles of Biblical Interpretation in the Post-Modern World; St. Louis, Missouri; Concordia Publishing House. * The Holy Bible English Standard Version; 2001, 2002; Wheaton, Illinois; Crossway Bibles

Don Quixote :: essays research papers

In Don Quijote’s time, reading was the only entertainment in the home. Most people weren’t very well educated anyway so some couldn’t tell the difference between pretend and reality. That’s is probably why people who read the bible took it so literally. The clergymen were more educated and knew how to take advantage of the people. People were so afraid of what it had to say; they did whatever it said so they would be doing good. Don Quijote did the same thing as those religious people, he believe exactly what he read. Unfortunately for him, those books were outdated; there were no knights in armor anymore. He convinced a less educated man to come with him on his travels. His sidekick was not as educated but he had common sense. When Quijote went to attack windmills thinking they were giants wanting to fight. His sidekick knew better but Quijote refused to believe him when he heard they were windmills. In today’s world, no one really reads anymore but TV has affected many people’s minds and people usually believe what’s on TV. One example is fashion. All the latest trends are on TV and everyone is wearing them. Everyone wants to fit in and be beautiful and popular like on TV where everyone is always prefect. It seems so exciting to live like that and it probably is but no one actually lives in a perfect world. Watching too much TV can make you a buffoon. Unless a person watches nothing but education TV, it’ll start to rot your brain. It will also make you a buffoon because it’s expensive to keep up with the trends. Trends change in a matter of months so only a buffoon would go out and buy a whole new wardrobe every time. Don Quixote :: essays research papers In Don Quijote’s time, reading was the only entertainment in the home. Most people weren’t very well educated anyway so some couldn’t tell the difference between pretend and reality. That’s is probably why people who read the bible took it so literally. The clergymen were more educated and knew how to take advantage of the people. People were so afraid of what it had to say; they did whatever it said so they would be doing good. Don Quijote did the same thing as those religious people, he believe exactly what he read. Unfortunately for him, those books were outdated; there were no knights in armor anymore. He convinced a less educated man to come with him on his travels. His sidekick was not as educated but he had common sense. When Quijote went to attack windmills thinking they were giants wanting to fight. His sidekick knew better but Quijote refused to believe him when he heard they were windmills. In today’s world, no one really reads anymore but TV has affected many people’s minds and people usually believe what’s on TV. One example is fashion. All the latest trends are on TV and everyone is wearing them. Everyone wants to fit in and be beautiful and popular like on TV where everyone is always prefect. It seems so exciting to live like that and it probably is but no one actually lives in a perfect world. Watching too much TV can make you a buffoon. Unless a person watches nothing but education TV, it’ll start to rot your brain. It will also make you a buffoon because it’s expensive to keep up with the trends. Trends change in a matter of months so only a buffoon would go out and buy a whole new wardrobe every time.

Homophobia

Homophobia among University Students The term homophobia, sometimes referred to as homonegativity and sexual prejudice, refers to an unreasonable fear, avoidance, and discrimination of homosexuals. Society has greatly changed their views on homosexuality over the years, yet homophobia still exists today. Extensive research has been conducted on homosexuality and how it affects our society. A previous study aimed at measuring homophobia examined literature on the topic since 1987.It was found that while society has seen a reduction in homophobia over the past twenty five years, discrimination still remains to be an issue (Ahmad & Bhugra, 2010). Another study was conducted at a university that examined the impact of college sexuality classes on students’ attitudes toward homosexuality. This study used a comparison group and had participants of both groups take two surveys, one at the beginning of the semester and one at the end.This study found that a sexuality curriculum can he lp to reduce homophobia by exposing students to accurate information (Rogers, McRee & Arntz, 2009). However there continues to be issues with measuring such a sensitive theme for reasons such as, measuring an attitude is difficult to do, and acquiring honest responses can also be a challenge. The present study aims at measuring homophobia among university students by asking a wide range of questions around the central theme. Methods ParticipantsParticipants were ( ) male and ( ) female undergraduate psychology students from a California university. Materials A survey was developed around six main themes. Those sixt themes were then divided among six groups, three in each lab, and each group developed five to ten questions that would measure their assigned theme, and research five to ten more questions from research articles. Seventeen questions were developed to measure homophobia. One question asked if marriage between homosexual individuals is acceptable.Another question asked whe ther homosexual couples are as qualified to raise children as heterosexual couples. Another question asked the participant if they would end a friendship upon discovering a friend was gay. Most answers were presented on a likert scale, using anchors 1=strongly agree; 2=agree; 3=neither agree nor disagree; 4=disagree; 5=strongly disagree. 1=strongly agree; 2=agree; 3=neither agree nor disagree; 4=disagree; 5=strongly disagree. However to ensure increased reliability, some questions were deleted and replaced with new ones and the survey was administered a second time.Procedure The survey was posted on psychsurveys. org for three days. Participants were emailed a link to access to and complete the survey. After the survey was complete, a reliability analysis was done, and some of the questions were replaced with new ones. Participants then had another three days to log back into the survey and re-take it. Results Discussion In order to increase this scale’s reliability, a larger survey should be used in the future to assess homophobia, with more in depth questions about feelings and attitudes around homophobia.Directly asking participants whether or not they are homophobic would create a floor effect because it is unlikely that anyone would identify themselves as homophobic. Instead, many carefully thought out questions should be used. Developing questions to assess a feeling like homophobia is a difficult task. Questions need to be worded in such a precise way as to not lead the participant into answering untruthfully. Questions need to be neutral so that the participant does not feel pressured to answer a certain way.In addition, the answer format was not ideal for all questions in the homophobia section of the survey. Answers were mostly reported on a likert scale for statistical purposes, while open-ended responses may have been more insightful. Furthermore, the sample used in the current study was all college students from California. Had this survey been administered to non-students from a more conservative state, or at a religious gathering, the results that were obtained may have been greatly different. Conclusion ReferencesMcCann, P. D. , Minichiello, V. , & Plummer, D. (2009). Is homophobia inevitable? : Evidence that explores the constructed nature of homophobia, and the techniques through which men unlearn it. Journal of Sociology, 45(2), 201-220. Retrieved from http://jos. sagepub. com. libproxy. csun. edu/content/45/2/201. full. pdf html (McCann, Minichiello & Plummer, 2009) Ahmad, S. , & Bhugra, D. (2010). Homophobia: An updated review of the literature. Sexual and relationship therapy, 25(4), 447-455. Retrieved from http://web. bscohost. com. libproxy. csun. edu/ehost/detail? [email  protected]&vid=1&hid=122&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ== (Ahmad & Bhugra, 2010) Rogers, A. , McRee, N. , & Arntz, D. (2009). Using a college human sexuality course to combat homophobia. Sex education, 9(3), 211–225. Retrieved from http://web. ebscohost. com. libproxy. csun. edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer? [email  protected]&vid=1&hid=122 (Rogers, McRee & Arntz, 2009)

Health Care Reform and the Supreme Court - 540 Words

Article Review Health Care Reform and the Supreme Court (Affordable Care Act) The article entitled Health Care Reform and the Supreme Court (Affordable Care Act), is a summary article on the three days of arguments made before the Supreme Court of the United States on the new Affordable Care Act, commonly referred to as Obamacare. As the article states, this case could very well be the one case that both President Obama and Chief Justice John Roberts are most remembered for. The article begins with a review of the third day of arguments in which the court took up the question of whether or not the entire law had to be struck down if the individual mandate was found to be unconstitutional. It was only last year that an Appeals Court in Atlanta found that the individual mandate, which requires every American to wither purchase health insurance or pay a penalty, was unconstitutional. However, the Appeals Court also found that the rest of the law was constitutional. It will be up to the Supreme Court to now decide if the individual mandate is constitutional or not , and if not, then whether the rest of the law can stand without it. The next part of the arguments dealt with the Affordable Care Acts expansion of Medicaid. The court is to decide whether or not the expansion of Medicaid is unduly coercive to the states. While the new law does give the states more money to expand Medicaid, it also adds a number of new regulations which the states feel give too muchShow MoreRelatedThe First Reading By Sarah Helene Duggin973 Words   |  4 PagesObama care reform introduced by Obama and the New Deal reform introduced by Roosevelt. She highlights how these two reform are similar because in both there are two categories of people. There is people are favorable to the reform while other see the reform as a threat. 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