Theology Of Everyday Life

ALL THE BUSINESS OF LIFE - BY ROBERT BANKS 1987 - albatross books pty ltd An Intellectual Pilgrimage This book presents many issues in everyday life faced by Christians and proposes what is considered as worthy Christian practical living. The author observed that the Christian laity has focused too much on doing but not enough on thinking since theology is very much avoided by laity. It is also felt that Christian preaching and teaching have failed to connect us to real-life situations and dilemmas. The Credibility Gap What is needed is a theology of everyday life, a value system to live by. Hence, a Christian needs to think through his faith/theology and organise his own conclusions which can stand up to public scrutiny. The theology must come from the wisdom distilled through quiet & disciplined reflection on the word of God. The Christian should also be aware of the emergence of secular/political theology, personal/social ethics, lay & liberation theology which are not very balanced on their own. Hence, the author recommended pastoral/applied theology as a holistic response to everyday issues. The author highlighted ten theses to explain the current gap between our Christian belief and our daily life: 1. few apply or know how to apply Christian belief to our workplace 2. there is minimal connections between faith & spare time activities 3. there is little sense of Christian approach to routine/monotonous activities 4. our everyday attitudes are shaped by dominant values of our society 5. our current spiritual difficulty is stemmed from daily pressures 6. our everyday concerns receive little attention in church 7. our theological institutions do little to address life issues 8. our everyday issues are tackled too theoretically 9. only minority of Christians are interested in Christian books/theological courses 10. churchgoers failed to admit that there is gap between belief and life and ordinary Christian fears the cost of integrating belief with life.

The Texture Of Daily Life general social pressures busyness - poor in term of disposal time for other things besides work mobility - nomadic hence tend not to be involved in community debt - spending more than earn - loss of freedom for Christian work conformity - too much choices security - the haves want more of it but the poor can't afford regulation - lost control to manage our own affairs Routine Aspects Of Life commuting - car vs. public transport cost vs. convenience shopping - manipulative ads, quasi-religious appeal of shopping mall sleeping - lack of sleep/dream due to little faith that God can take care of us eating/drinking - family togetheness, hospitality, religious purpose corrupted by gluttony hospitality - early church hospitality and evangelism hobbies - escape from family/social responsibilities or creativity? gardening - link to nature Work And Leisure work - employment, housework, schoolwork, voluntary work leisure - most impt to australians/nz. - does it bring us closer to God? Central Features Of Modern Life 1. popular attitudes/values - how to bring the light of gospel to bear on these eg. images of reality, motivations, their values/beliefs/goals 2. comms and relating - types eg. discussion, email, mass-media and the available resources - relations under stress 3. social rituals/activities - enforces waiting eg. jams, family events, popular rites, club membership, civic celebrations, Secular Idols/Religions obsessed with objects eg. house, car, tv, computer, credit card - matl possession, guaranteed security, family, education pursuit, work, sport, fitness/health, self/sex fulfillment

from Jaques Ellul - faithful to revelation through a new way/style of life with full commitment eg. communism did it altho' lost cause. spiritual conviction to dictate lifestyle not economic situation to drive our orientation The Reality Principle superficial to have quick answers to life questions/issues takes time to be matured criteria to order life's issues for long-term and short-term support group needed to support/review our actions - church in the home - home church - more than cell group - every other sunday - proper worship but more informal - whole day affair - to meet the need of members when they arise inculate model learning (role model) wh. is displaced by formal schooling. lack of role models in public life good to gather same professional people to write SOP on applications of Christian values. use of wkshop in participative env. open to discsussion & learning - more heads better than one personal theology - applied in personal major decision - how much is God involved - put yourself in a biblical story and assess our own response itensive short-term theological trg helps. eg. ministry of the laity course at new college, berkeley - the vision, renewal in mind and life, biblical studies for laity, historical and cross-cultural studies for laity, theologival and ethical studies, integrative studies and practical exp[erience, lay spirituality, laity in the church, lay people in society and culture, lay people in workplace and marketplace. lay theology is not a simplified version of academic theology, rather a corrective to it, making theology more applicable to the whole Christian community. A People Theology Every person is theologian - ordinary Christian can best identify their everyday concerns work out a theology by themselves - professional theologians sud not be paternalistic. - everyday theology is cooperative effort between ordinary Christian and professional theologian. - a workable theology of everyday life requires practical testing by ordinary

Christian the west learn for rather than through practice-concentrate on learning for rather than through action -problem with Christian pedagogy is meant for info instead of for transformation. theological insights come from personal experience/suffering. puritans relate theology to business life very well Theology Of The Whole Person - towards holistic approach of life - our character develop through life's complexities/decisions - need to have our own story - like the bible stories - allow time for God and a close grp of Christian friends to teach me to have an integrated Christian life (doctrines and ethics) beware of the idolatry of modern-day work/job and principalities/power idea of covenant to state of responsibilities to others theology of the Spirit appreciation of eschatology admire Soren Kierkegaard and Karl Barth ??? consult other secular matl eg. literature, history, psychology A New Paradigm For Theology professional theologian to work with other specialists and be a servant an insightful/powerful personal theology has a decisive/comptemplative character. need apostolic (barefoot) theologian for a more down-to-earth kind of life means drop in status + risk