As I contemplate my religious, theological, and intellectual journeys I have found
myself in different places in different stages of life. a When I was in high school and
early college, I was very conservative in my thinking. a While in college I was
taught of the harmful pettiness of some of the leaders in the fundamentalist camps
(whether referred to as the New Christian Right (Ammerran, 1991). a I became
disgusted by “sky-box takeover” (McBeth, 1982) and as the way that the former
president of my seminary (Dr. Russell Dilday) found out that he had been fired. a
He was called in to a meeting to be told he was fired, during which the lock to his
office had been changed. a I quickly clarified my own terminology. a I was
conservative, but not fundamentalist. a But I was also being influenced by my best
friend was becoming increasingly liberal in his thoughts and theology. a I was
disturbed by the actions of those more conservative than me, but he was hurt and
angry. a I refused to “fall in line” in my theology, so I termed myself as a “thinking
conservative … maybe a moderate”. a Clinical Pastoral Education also challenged
my conservativism, but I was able to easily work through some of those battles
due to the biblical ignorance of our site director. a Eventually, life pulled me into a
diversified ministry in Army Chaplaincy. a I found that I could be pulled in all
directions, or I could establish my ground and stand on it. a My biblical and
language studies would not allow me to go with the strictly literal interpretation of
passages that was clearly written as an allegorical word picture. a Nor would my
studies allow me to condone the choices of many of those around me. a There
were a couple of sins that I struggled with, and yet was disturbed by how little I
struggled with them. a I prayed that God would give me conviction, and thus
motivation to stop doing them. a God gave me my wife. a Her theology was still
forming, but her convictions were solid. a The older I get, the more conservative I
get. a I also hold that the Bible is filled with allegory, word pictures, and sarcasm
that must be interpreted in the translation.
My mind has always functioned logically. a I have not struggled with the integration
of science into my theology, so long as science supported my theology. a One of
the biggest areas of contention was with the creation story. a Whereas I believe
and hold to a six-day creation, I also believe that God is great enough, powerful
enough, expansive enough to have created however He chose. a I do see the
issue that without Adam, Eve, and the serpent there must be another explanation
for the entrance of evil in the world (Entwistle, 2015). a I recognize that this issue
as well as the crossing of the Red Sea, the feeding of 5000, and multiple other
fantastic stories seem just that to many people … fantastic stories. a I assert again
that God is bigger, greater, more powerful, holier than I can fathom. a I am
completely okay with that.
Resources
Ammerran, N. (1991). Southern Baptists and the New Christian Right. Review of
Religious Research, 32(3), 213-236. doi:10.2307/3511207
Entwistle, D. N. (2015). Integrative approaches to psychology and Christianity: An
introduction to worldview issues, philosophical foundations, and models of
integration. Cascade Books.
McBeth, L. (1982). Fundamentalism in the Southern Baptist Convention in recent
years. Review & Expositor, 79(1), 85–103
