Questions for Reflection
Many people find it helpful to use study questions to make sure that they’ve got the most out of their reading. The questions below will help you both to reflect on the approach set out in this book and develop your own.
1 Discovering theology: seeing things in a new way
1 How can we see the same thing in new ways? What difference does it make?
2 What is the distinction between seeing the world around us as ‘nature’ and as ‘creation’?
3 How helpful do you find C. S. Lewis’s idea of a ‘supposal’?
2 Theology as a ‘big picture’
1 What difference does thinking about Christianity as a ‘big picture’ make?
2 How might you summarize Dorothy L. Sayers’s argument about the identity of Christ in your own words? Why is this argument important?
3 How helpful do you find the idea of exploring a landscape of faith?
3 Theology: five criticisms
1 How might you summarize the five objections to theology that I note in this chapter in your own words? Which seem closest to your own concerns?
2 What might someone from outside the Christian faith find valuable in theology?
3 Why do you think so many Christians are hesitant about studying theology? What reassurances could be offered to them?
4 Wisdom: discovering the depths of faith
1 Set out in your own words Karl Popper’s idea of ‘the three worlds’. Does this help us to think about how we can use theology?
2 What can we learn by thinking about some of the New Testament’s ways of speaking about salvation?
3 How does theology help us to cope with uncertainty and doubt?
5 Wellbeing: discerning value and meaning
1 Why does meaning matter to people?
2 In what ways does theology help us to think about questions of meaning in life? You might like to focus on the doctrine of the Incarnation.
3 Why is the idea of ‘the heart’s desire’ so important to many people? And how does theology help to identify the goal of that desire and how it might be achieved?
6 Wonder: expanding our vision of life
1 Most people think that a ‘mystery’ is some kind of puzzle. In what way does the theological use of the term ‘mystery’ differ from this?
2 What is the link between Christian worship and wonder?
3 How does the doctrine of the Trinity try to grasp the mystery of God?
7 Conclusion: making theology matter
1 Why is it important to distinguish between learning about and learning from a theologian?
2 How does John Mackay’s distinction between the ‘balcony’ and the ‘road’ help us to think about how we can learn from past theologians?
3 How can we practise the art of seeing the world in a Christian way?