Professional. Theologically Sound. Trauma-Informed.
Professional. Theologically Sound. Trauma-Informed.
Public Theology
Public theology is about bringing fresh insights to bear on issues of current concern — issues like the economy, crime, and punishment, community cohesion, climate change, international development, and peace-making. Public theology looks to go, not ‘left’ or ‘right’, but deeper. It seeks to raise the quality of public debates and sometimes even reframe them (1). The vocation of the public theologian is to testify to their faith and in doing so to further the good news of Jesus in all our publics. At the same time, the aim of this public theological discourse ought not to be to colonize other publics for Christianity(2).
Public theology informs the faith community when moving beyond personal discipleship and church life into the public square (3).
Consequently: Public theology is always public, speaking in public places and addressing the public issues for the sake or benefit of the public interest. This article identifies public theology as reflective endeavors and tasks of the Christian community seeking to address the societal ills and concerns. The aim of public theology is to bring hope to the culture that is increasingly cynical about common human future (4).
Public theology is a purposeful effort to place our faith in the public square and make room for others to join us. One of the best ways to do this is through our own stories of faith. Acting as a public theologian means I intentionally let my theology inform my personal experiences to engage publicly in social issues. My faith is no longer exclusively an internal dialogue with God, but rather a public conversation between myself, God, and society — informed and infused by my experiences. Moreover, I don’t express my public theology simply by sharing my testimony. I also advocate for the vulnerable based on both my good and bad experiences in the church. By sharing the story of my suffering through the framework of my theology, I can help others to regain their view of God, which may have been eclipsed by their own pain (5).
Conclusion
Drawing on the Bible, key figures from church history, and Christian theology, I, Vonnie E James, joins with de Kevin J. Vanhoozer and Owen Strachan (2015) who in their book, The Pastor as Public Theologian: Reclaiming a Lost Vision offers a clarion call for pastors to serve as public theologians in their congregations and communities. The most important role is to be a theologian mediating God to the people. The church needs pastors who can contextualize biblical wisdom in Christian living to help their congregations think theologically about all aspects of their lives, such as work, end-of-life decisions, political involvement, and entertainment choices (6).
References
(1) Tombs, D. (2022). Centre for Theology and Public Issues. University of Otago, PO Box 56
Dunedin 9054.https://www.otago.ac.nz/ctpi/otago123594.pdf
(2) Donnell, O. K. (2018). What Is Theological about Public Theology?Political Theology Network. https://politicaltheology.com/what-is-theological-about-public-theology/
(3) Fountain, J. (2021). Window on Europe. Evangelical Focus Europe. https://evangelicalfocus.com/window-on-europe/14104/public-theology
(4) Resane, K. T. (2019). Response of public theology to the voices of the voiceless in pluralistic South Africa. Verbum et Ecclesia, 40(1), 1-7. https://dx.doi.org/10.4102/ve.v40i1.2006
(5) Codone, S. (2020). Public Theology Isn’t Just for Academics. Christianity Today Magazine.
(6) Vanhoozer, K. J., & Strachan, O. (2015, 2020). The pastor as public theologian: Reclaiming a lost vision.
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