Learning Theology: Tracking the Spirit of Christian Faith

by Amos Yong

Theology—the attempt to come to a deeper, more faithful understanding of one's encounter with God—is something to which all Christians are called. In Learning Theology, Amos Yong invites the reader to lay claim to that calling and to see it as yet another opportunity to love God.

Written for those taking their first course in the subject, this book introduces the foundational sources and tasks of theology. It asks what difference theology makes in our lives, how it can influence the way we write and study, and how we understand other forms of learning as part of the Spirit's leadership. Yong encourages the reader to see all of life through the lens of faith, and Learning Theology offers tools to more thoughtfully and faithfully perform that task.

Genres: Theology

220 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 4, 2018

About the author

Amos Yong is the J. Rodman Williams Professor of Theology and Director of the Ph.D. in Renewal Studies program at Regent University Divinity School in Virginia Beach, VA. He is the Co-editor of Pneuma, the journal of the Society of Pentecostal Studies.

Reviews

[Books Of The Way · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is meant to be an introduction to theology approached from a wesleyan-quadrilateral (read: methodist) approach. But in practice once you are past the initial definitions of the Wesleyan Quadrilateral you can see his own biases, politics and prejudices at first slowly leaking, then gushing through the contents. Just a few examples:

- The author makes many moral claims and sweeping generalisations with absolutely nothing to back up his assertions. One example here: "Although all Christians accept and even confess the person and work of the Spirit, a few conservative protestant traditions do so only in word". Which? He doesn't say, but if you are a conservative evangelical or an anglo-catholic, expect to see frequent flippant assertions levelled at you...

- The author seems to be a proponent of the awfully racist "Critical Race Theory" under the guise of "intersectionality" which he crowbars into this "theology" book. He has very firm views that your experienced level of "oppression" and exclusion from society is determined entirely by your sex and skin colour. That's all there is to you, apparently. Shockingly, he composes a mental image of some sort of hierarchy of races which he seems to assert as reflecting reality in his mind: "Whiteness has become privileged and normative, with blackness...at the bottom of the social hierarchy. In between are the shades of 'yellowness' and 'brownness'." Again, he has no sources or information to back up this absolutely outrageous and racist racial hierarchy he's projecting as a reality.

- The author furthermore seems to imply that your upbringing from your parents completely dictates your ethical worldview: "In general, it might be that Kant's categorical imperative...underlies the ethical worldview that we grow". In this section of "Socialisation" he also seems to take a few choice swipes at homeschooled children, implying that homeschooled children are the result of insecure parents: "This is in part why some parents homeschool their children, because they are concerned that their values and perspectives might not be shared in these wider environments". Again, he does not back any of these assertions up. We just have to accept all of his views as he heaps them throughout this diatribe. Remember, this is supposed to be Theology!

I could go on. This supposed book is supposed to be an introduction to theology but to me at least, it seems to be more about how Amos Yong views his world and faith through the lens of his extremist left wing politics.

- It includes sweeping generalisations against groups he apparently has an axe to grind with (as aforementioned)
- It is deterministic in that he views people as purely products of their parents and demographics with no agency or individualism
- It is prejudiced in the most fundamental sense, in that it makes massive assumptions on the viewpoints and life experiences of entire peoples, on basis of race and gender alone.
- People are not individuals, they are all members of huge monolithic "groups" and this is essentially collectivism. You are not an individual, you are a "white person" or a "black person" and he heaps ignorant assertions at you purely because of your skin colour....Very Christian.
- It uncritically adopts strands of Critical Theory such as the racist Critical Race Theory with no counterbalance of opposing viewpoints. It is presented as an incontestable truth.
- The text is full of the authors own ignorant, racist, bigoted opinions, viewpoints and ideas with nothing to back it up at all. No sources, no references, no examples.

This is supposed to be an academic textbook for theology but after the initial chapters it reads like a Vice article. I wouldn't recommend this for an introduction to theology but would instead highly recommend the following (particularly if you are Anglican/Episcopalian):

- Christian Theology: an Introduction by Alister McGrath
- Anglican Theology by Mark Chapman
- The Heritage of Anglican Theology by J.I. Packer

More theology, less extremist, racist politics thank you. Not a big request.

[Heidi]

Read for class and therefore will not be giving it a rating. An interesting introduction to the study of theology.