The Evolution of Faith

I finished my paper.  I turned it in.  I'm officially on spring break now!

In the course of putting John Calvin's Institutes in conversation with process theology, I was convicted of certain attitudes I've held in the last few years.

Due to the role of evolving theology in my own faith journey, I have become very critical of doctrine that I deem patriarchal, kyriarchal, oppressive, White Supremacist, misogynistic.  In my opinion, much of American Christianity has been corrupted by these beliefs, but most people in western churches are unaware--or unconcerned.

I struggled with how much of my new views to share with old friends, fearing their judgement or concern.  At the same time,  I wanted to Evangelize the Evangelicals with the Gospel of freedom I had experienced in Divinity School.  I wanted to see a revolution in Christianity.

But without reading the theology I had read, having the conversations I'd had, and making the friends I'd made, how could I expect others to understand where I was coming from?  How could my former communities of faith accept that I was now fully LGBTQIA inclusive, acknowledged God as being both masculine and feminine, and chafed against Conservative Christian interpretations of gender roles?

It's been a little over six months since I've been back in California.  I feel more integrated and balanced, like the New England views I came to could now come into a conversation with my upbringing.  I realize that there was a mix of pride and sincerity in my desire to see change.

Like I wrote in my paper today, most theology is an attempt to bring humanity closer to Divinity, in ways that the community of faith for which it is written deem to be life-giving and God-honoring.  Different stages of life and culture inform how we choose what we believe.  I have no right to judge others for how they choose to live out their faith.  If their beliefs are serving them well, then should not I rejoice with them?

After all, at previous points in my life, certain viewpoints I now reject did work for me.  None of us have a complete handle on God's intention for us, and we must remain open and humble, letting both difficulties and joys teach us how to live.  (For me, personal trials often led me to the end of certain theologies, forcing me to look for deeper ways of understanding and relating to God.)

At the same time, I desire to speak up if and when I feel people are being harmed by beliefs that are theologically and psychologically unsound.  Otherwise, what is the point of my own transformative journey of academic training and spiritual exploration?

Perhaps the key to the right attitude is to allow God's spirit to work and speak through me whenever and in whatever manner sHe deems best.  This is not about an agenda; it's about all of us coming closer to the Source of Life.  Conversation and communication take both heart and soul and mind--and so does loving God.  Love should be the starting point for any revolution.

There is room for dialogue between different viewpoints, and not just in papers written for school.