Bemoaning ... Part II

In my last post, I referenced a poll done by George Barna from which he came to some critical conclusions about the theological understandings of Americans. I hope you have read them and thought about them. Here are some questions and reflections I have:

*** I would agree that Americans need to think more about their theological beliefs. I have thought that for some time. Nearly 15 years ago, I used John Cobb's book, Becoming a Thinking Christian, in a study at the Hillcrest Baptist Church in Mobile Alabama. Cobb's position was that American Christian churches had abdicated their rightful role in helping their members reflect on Biblical teachings and how they apply to current reality.

*** I don't think using wisdom from other faith traditions in shaping one's morality is a problem. Truth in whatever form it is found and wherever it is found is still truth.

*** Having people serve as their own "theologian-in-residence" is also not a problem for me. I would actually prefer people wrestling with theological issues instead of accepting someone else's explanations wholesale. I would reiterate, however, having discussions about theological issues within the context of a church community ought be done.

*** Based on other things that I have read from Barna, I know that he has very conservative Christian beliefs. Thus, his theological understandings on some issues would be different from mine, even if we used the same language to express them. So, he would probably dismiss me as a person who is theologically in error as he would many others in the broader Christian realm. He would say that his beliefs are based on the Bible, as if he distilled the one and only truth from each passage. I would say that his beliefs are based on his understanding of the Biblical text. This leads to another question I have. Is Barna's theological perspective the only "correct" one or can one have different understandings and still be considered Christian?

What do you think, good reader? I would love for these two submissions to generate much discussion.