Theological Posturing

Last post I had a bit of a crack at science and how being draw into the "mythology of science" can make us look a little foolish. After going pretty hard on that last week, I have been forced to consider that this very same thing can so easily occur within theology - by which I don't just mean the academic realms of theological institutions but rather anyone who speaks about God. And more specifically, the God of the Bible and the Christian faith.

I want to put it out there that our theology makes us look like idiots when we get our posture wrong.
To write this post is something also of a confession...you see I know that I too have fallen into this situation, and continue to need to be aware not to fall into it over again. But I hope that these thoughts can draw us to a better posture in our theology.

Why use the word posture? I have posted already on how I believe we cannot lose sight of the body as a medium. But that I also believe it to be a medium that is from inside-to-outside biased. That our interactions with the world are a sign of the condition of our hearts, rather than the outside actions shaping the condition of our hearts. And so, it is in this sense that I want to explore how our bodily posture plays a role in our talk about God, and how quickly it can make idiots of us by the posture we take.

This is related to whether we take an active posture or a passive posture. An active posture, as I wish to define it, is the one that threatens to create theological idiots. A passive posture, calls us to something else, and if nothing else, tempers our ability to look like a fool.

An active posture is where predominantly we see ourselves as the active party in our theology and God as the passive party. Where we are busy with getting a grip on God, getting a grip on his Word, getting a grip on his action in the world. It is this active posture that leads us to assume that our theology is primarily about gaining certainty on who God is, what God has been about, and what God is still about in our world. It's a process of concretisation. Of taking control. Of in the words of the genie in Disney's Aladdin (1992) - "PHENOMENAL COSMIC POWERS! Itty-bitty living space". 

When God says through the prophet Isaiah "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be?" (Isaiah 66:1). We say, "Well I've built you this nice little metaphorical house in which you can stay for the rest of my days". That way it's nice and safe - no surprises - and I can live out my days in peace.

I believe that to this God says "you fool". You see, God did that whole phenomenal cosmic powers in an itty-bitty living space when he turned up as Jesus. And Jesus, with great vigor set about shattering the religious metaphorical living spaces that had been created for God. Jesus' most cutting words were always to those proud religious types who thought they had everything sorted out. Jesus called again and again for a passive posture; one that continually recognises that to do theology is to open oneself for God to act upon us. To risk that God may just change and shape who we are, redefine our certainties, strip away our arrogance such that we recognise afresh our dependance on his grace.

To be in an active posture in our theology is to stand before God beating our chests and demanding that He (and everyone else for that matter) reshape Himself (or themselves) to us, our agendas, our positions, our ideas and contexts. In other words, to act like a fool. To be in a passive posture in our theology is to fall on our face before God and risk that as we worship him, by his grace, he will reshape us to the likeness of  who he revealed himself to be in Jesus.