The aspects of individuals towards nature, life and afterlife are influenced by their culture, religion or by their scientific knowledge. The study of such aspects, whether of people in the present or in the past, is what is referred to as anthropology. Some of the most controversial aspects of life, the afterlife and nature are based on religious beliefs. Theology scholars pursuing are bombarded with a heap of challenges and limitations that sometimes scare them off. Particular anthropologies that elicit fear from some people due to the numerous constraints and challenges that they possess are those of prolegomena, Christology, and pneumatology. A theology that covers these topics sometimes evokes fear from potential scholars driving some away in the process. The following report examines the reasons that generate fear in some people.
Thesis Statement
The lack of substantial and tangible evidence that proves certain beliefs are true and the sensitive nature of religious beliefs is the major fear that drives people away from the study of theology.
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Theology with Prolegomena
A prolegomenon refers to an introduction of a book that is characteristically critical and discursive. The essential nature of such introductions may be the reason behind the fear that makes some people afraid of such studies. Before getting to the scholarly level of theology in institutions of higher learning, most people will have been taught about a particular belief system either at home or at the various places of worship. Students at tertiary levels of study usually bear some experience in the field. The experience may be in agreement with the general belief system that a particular belief system advocates for and totally in disagreement with another. It is such critical nature of some theological studies that may be the source of the fear that drives them away.
Up to the point of tertiary levels of study, some people learn religion as a crucial part of being a moral person. To such people, religion and leading a moral life are inseparable. Critiquing a belief that someone has held close to their hearts since an early age, especially when it involves what is considered moral and just is a sensitive topic. Introductions that are critical in nature sometimes demean the religion that may be a pinnacle of the moral standing that one may hold or that the society may hold. It’s hard to overturn the beliefs that a person has taken place from the time they were children at a time when they base a large part of their achievements to the same beliefs. Criticizing the spiritual beliefs that some people bear may result to a highly polarized religious environment (Baksa, 2014).
Cohesion in the contemporary society means accepting the ideas of other people though different from those that we hold. Criticizing other people’s ideas and showing a senseless nature of the faith that is dear to some members of our societies are known for the divisiveness that it brings Fear of developing a mind critical of someone else’s beliefs may result to religiously divided beliefs. It is such criticism of other people’s beliefs and faith-based actions that have led to acts like the Jihad. In a world that is getting closer, people tend to be more tolerant of each other’s beliefs, and culture Prolegomena are as a result not that attractive especially if they are faith-based. Very few people want to be specialists in criticizing other people’s beliefs in such a tolerant society.
Theology with Christology Anthropology
Christology is basically the study of Jesus Christ. The word Christology originates from two words from the Greek language. The words that translate to Christ and consider when combined mean ‘study of Christ.' Jesus, the perceived Messiah of the Christians, is perhaps the most controversial figure in the history of human beings, second only to God himself. The study of Christ arouses fear in some people due to this divisive nature of the Christian faith throughout history and in the contemporary society. Christianity originates from the preceding religion of Judaism, which largely opposes the Messiahship of Jesus Christ. Studying the history of Christ has a lot of potentially controversial topics that even those in the faith disagree on.
Some of the biggest historical wars were based on religious divisions in which Christianity was a big part of. Studying about Christ may re-evoke the feelings that brought about some of these past conflicts. The person of Christ appears to be peace-loving. Several religious groups that affiliate themselves with the person of Jesus Christ have, nonetheless, been known for conflicts in history. The disagreement between the person of Jesus Christ and some of the political stance that Christ-affiliated groups have portrayed drives some people away from the anthropology of Christology. A good number of Christian missionaries that set camp in various would-be colonies in Africa, Asia, and the Americas came under the banner of Christ. What would later follow in some of these territories is slavery, genocide and the stealing of resources. Such a bad historical reputation may drive people away from Christology, especially if the person is a native of such former colonies.
Another reason that may evoke fear in some people on the idea of taking Christology is their ardent faiths in other religions. For an individual who is a staunch Muslim or even Jewish, they might find studying about the life and death of Christ as a pervasion of their beliefs. The three mosaic religions share a lot of similarities, especially in beliefs dating from the beginning of creation, but come to show sharp differences in latter parts of their religious books. Studying about the life and death of Jesus by Muslims and Jewish faithful presents them with a different narrative from the one instilled in them since childhood. Some of them may be afraid of exposing themselves to such ‘pervasions’ in respect to their beliefs (Maas, n.d.).
Pneumatology Anthropology
Pneumatology refers to the study of the Christian perspective of the Holy Spirit. It bases its arguments recorded in the Bible. The uniqueness of the Holy Spirit under pneumatology anthropology is that he is given a personhood. The Holy Spirit is seen as a supreme individual who is one-third of the Holy Trinity that is God. The Biblical view of the Holy Spirit is that of a person who is a driving force for God’s work. The belief is controversial among some Christians and definitely among other faiths which acknowledge the monotheism of God. The disagreement in the personhood of the perceivably invisible part of the Holy Trinity may drive some away from theology.
Most religions view the Holy Spirit as a non-person that is used by God in His work. The Holy Spirit comes as a weapon that does not possess life in it but sent by God to help people accomplish His work. A doctrine that views the Holy Spirit as a person is in some cases met with sharp criticism. A person who perceives the Holy Spirit a non-person may be afraid of studying pneumatology as it may ‘distort’ their knowledge and beliefs. The fear of seeing the spiritual world in a way that is different from that which one was taught initially might bring out some sought of fear. The ghostly nature that the personhood of the Holy Spirit preaches may be too much for some people to handle ("4. Pneumatology: The Holy Spirit", n.d.).
The aspect of faith works best if one does not dig in too deep into any spirituality. Spirituality and religion are meant to explain the unknown, but no religion satisfies the curiosity of a person to the point of no doubt at all. Not if one keeps on digging for more answers. This is ironic considering that religions are meant to explain the unknown. The acceptance of the faith as it is and other people’s faith as it is, however, brings a tolerance that makes the modern society a possibility. Basically, the fear of bombarding oneself with religious beliefs that contradict our own is the single greatest fear that drives people away from theology as a whole. The lack of evidence of some of these claims is not what drives a majority of people away as some do already hold their own religious beliefs that are widely not evidence-based. The explanation of the unknown will continue to be a topic that will remain appealing to some but too sensitive to others.
References
4. Pneumatology: The Holy Spirit . Bible.Org . Retrieved 23 September 2017, from http://bible.org/seriespage/4-pneumatology-holy-spirit
Baksa, P. (2014). Are You ‘Spiritual’ but Not Religious?. Huffpost . Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/peter-baksa/has-anyone-ever-told-you-_b_5587762.html
Maas, A. (1912). Christology. In The Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. Retrieved September 23, 2017 from New Advent: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14597a.htm
