The Theological Smorgasbord 12.28.2024

    There are a couple keys to enjoying a buffet or smorgasbord. Key number one: Know what you like and why. Items that you know you like are easily appreciated, and because you might eat them more often it is not the time to indulge in your favorites. Key number two: Portion control. Don’t go crazy until you know what you’re dealing with. Don’t get so much that you can’t evaluate texture and flavor. Third Key: Don’t confuse exotic or novel with good. There are some things which are just wrong, or bad. There is a temptation to think “OH, it’s new, exotic, or “in”, I love it!” When in fact, you don’t like it That’s fine. Don’t surrender your judgment for the applause of others. Fun fact. This is not really about food, but theology.

    What characteristics do buffets and the contemporary theological landscape share? Variety. Breadth. Novelty. Antique interest. Too much focus on practicality. Most of all a propensity to uncontrolled, undisciplined consumption leading to a form of theological nausea. The keys I mentioned for dining at a Buffet should allow us the ability to nibble without overdoing it.

It is not possible to fully map dining with study, so allow me to take the keys I mentioned above and turn them into heuristic categories that will help us to benefit from the theological buffet without overindulging. 

1. Your formative diet.

    Like your diet, your baseline theology is derived from what you consume. In the vernacular— “you are what you eat.” Historically, most Christians had a consistent diet based on their tribe. Some were more exotic; others might be called bland. Each shared allegiance to the saving Gospel of Jesus but differed in the particulars.

    I am who I am by birth and choice. I am a part of the independent Christian Churches/Churches of Christ. We have some very close siblings (Non-instrumental Churches of Christ) and conflicted siblings (Christian Churches, Disciples of Christ). We also have some cantankerous uncles (various Baptist and Presbyterian bodies.) What I am today, is a function of that historic theological diet. 

    The importance of this key is in knowing that this is the case. For too many believers both across the evangelical landscape and within my tribe the theological smorgasbord has seemingly become the opportunity for uncontrolled, almost hedonistic theological consumption. Which is fine—so long as you “know what you “like” and why”. The moment a person becomes confused about the formative content of their diet is the moment that they risk a kind of theological nausea brought on by an increasingly unfamiliar, unbalanced, or unhealthy diet.  

    I want to say “Keep that in mind” when you are exploring alternative theological cuisines…but I’m not entirely sure that enough people—even in church leadership know, understand, and respect the difference in various theological traditions. I love M&Ms. But I’m starting to realize that the feel-good sugar rush is not necessarily a good thing. The same is true with feel-good sugar rush theology. 

2. Portion Control. 

    Once we understand what we like, and why—the diet that made us who we are, we can sample from the theological smorgasbord with some discretion. The next key is portion control. We need to know what the great theologians of the past have said—even when they are in error. We need to sample what they offer, not binge. The growth of the Church over two millennia has been encouraged by geniuses who have both spurred that growth and hindered it. Historic theology and the history of effects in Biblical interpretation have by necessity been experimental. Inaccuracy or errors of omission are not as egregious as malicious errors of spite. Given our calling each of us is responsible for understanding both the broad strokes of orthodox theology and the minutia. 

     We need to read Calvin, Luther, Wesley, Bonhoeffer, Barth, and Wright. We won’t always agree, but there are times when they are correct, and we need to be able to incorporate correct interpretation and theology wherever we find it. 

    A balanced diet of the right portions from a variety of what is offered on the theological smorgasbord not only keeps us aware of what the broader Church has taught, and it is teaching it ensures that we are in the Biblical mainstream. Our reading diet should be both curious and broad. We should approach the smorgasbord willing to try virtually anything, in small portions until we know whether and how it will contribute to a balanced, Biblical diet. 

3. Appropriate judgment. 

    Judgment is an intellectual skill. Our judgment improves as we exercise it with diligence, deliberation, and discretion. If we never sample any other cuisine, we will soon find that we are ill-equipped to even notice when something is sound or unsound. Good judgment allows us to be particular and specific without being provincial and snobbish. Everyone, everywhere, at all times thinks that their native cuisine is the “best.” It is always a shock to the system to discover that others have produced foods that are different, yet flavorful. Theology is often the same way. We all have a lot to learn from each other if we use our critical faculties appropriately and have an open dialogue with those from other exegetical traditions or theological backgrounds. 

    We are who we are because we think we are right. That is appropriate. If we were not grounded in our own theological and exegetical traditions, we would lack a firm foundation when tested. We could not express our distinct identities. We would not really have anything to offer except for the generic, watered-down theology that is now available everywhere. 

Summary

    It is time for each of us to attend to our diet. Some foods offer an ecstatic rush to our theological tastebuds. The ecstasy is temporary. If the Church continues to seek out these adrenaline rush moments without due reflection, we will soon be in the place where congregations will seek to surround themselves with preachers and teachers who will willingly cater to their twitching tastebuds. They will abandon classic cuisine--the tried-and-true recipes from the past. Rather, they will look for preachers who serve as Avant-Garde chefs who make drama, decoration, and experience the heart of their work rather than a mastery of the basics.

When that is the diet of the Church, we will feel full, but be malnourished. And a malnourished Church has little to offer to a starving world.