The Most Important Study in the World that is Often Ignored

Let LIVE

Nuren

Jul 27 2011 |19:38

I often played Cricket and Soccer after school hours during my childhood. While we were in the classroom having our last class of the day, we friends would communicate through a sign language about where would be playing. We were so excited about the game, that as soon as we left the school, we would run to playground with our hearts pounding with joy.

We would be cracking jokes and laughing merrily, while on our way to playing Cricket. We would imagine ourselves as international Cricket heroes. We would imitate shots of great Cricket batsmen, and dive in air like those gravity-defying fielders to take stunning catches. Somehow we felt that the future of Cricket was on our shoulders. We played Cricket with such passion, and so did with Soccer often. That ecstatic fun would last for about an hour and a half.

Then the tragic part would start. I would have to get back to home, have a quick bath, and then leave for tuition, where we were expected to study and solve our homework tasks for about three hours. Though I was a topper of my class and so the tuition teacher was lenient with me, going to tuition was still a pain for me. I often devised plans so I could avoid going to the tuition. I even wished that my tuition teacher meet with an accident and get admitted into a hospital, so we could have some holidays. ( I admit that my tuition teacher was sincere and taught us very well).

My journey to the playground was filled with excitement and fun. My journey to the tuition was filled with melancholy. Depending on where I think I am going, I feel either happy or sad. If my little journeys such as where I am going in my everyday life, can have impact on my thinking, how about the BIG journey called LIFE? What I believe about where I am going after this life, will influence my day-to-day decisions in this life.

Thus, our journey in this life ultimately depends on our answer to the question “Who do we think that God is like?”. This is called Theology. Webster’s dictionary defines Theology as “the study of God and of God's relation to the world”. Theology is like the Director for our lives. Right Theology will guide us to the true destination and help us live a happy, practical and positive life. Wrong Theology will lead us to destruction, fool’s paradise and escapism, though it may yield short-term happiness.

Since our day-to-day decisions in this life are dependent on our views of God, it is important to get our theological views right and not be patronizingly ‘generous’ about accepting every other spiritual theory as true. Sure, we must respect others for what they believe, but we need not necessarily agree with them that they are right. We must learn to agree to disagree. We also need to agree that just because a spiritual theory is long-held, we do not have to accept it. We need to explore theological integrity and coherence carefully, from as many angles as possible, before embracing it.

Everyone is a theologian whether he admits or not. Everyone is an evangelist. Everyone has something to say for, something to say against. Let us not behave patronizingly saying "We need to accept every spiritual philosophy as true” or “all gods are equal". No one accepts ‘every’ philosophy as true, or no one knows ‘every god’ in this universe to make such an observation. People say such things superficially when they do not mean it.

Right Theology interprets things as it is, and not the way it appears to be. For example, a tree is a tree is a tree is a tree is a tree, no matter whether we interpret it as a Sun, a computer or a stone. Out of ignorance or for our benefit, we may decide to call or treat a tree as a stone or computer, but it is still a tree. Thus, truth is not relative.

Since Theology is so important, let us not think of God as an old fashioned mythological concept. Friendly discussions about God should be encouraged, and not to be looked down in a smug manner. It is sad that it is becoming hip these days to ridicule elders and others’ spiritual beliefs. Someday, I will not be surprised to find such ‘Truth is relative’ philosophies causing people to commit atrocious sins like killing their own family members, or even ‘sleeping’ with their parents.

I am sorry to put it so frankly. But that is where the world is heading right now if we are not careful about filtering out false philosophies about God. People are leaving behind moral principles, and embracing fascinating philosophies which are alluring them to live a degraded life style.

While people can be superficially happy for making up fascinating imaginations about God for achieving their selfish goals, what matters is whether what we believe is the truth. What is the point in believing some lie and living (and eventually dying) in a fool’s paradise? If what we believe is the truth, then that happiness is much more. We are meant for such happiness and nothing less. We need to get our Theology right if we want to achieve such happiness, and if we really care about others and the future of this world.

Personally, I am convinced that Jesus Christ is the perfect theology because He claimed so. Please judge yourself accordingly by studying Him.

Personally, I am convinced that Jesus Christ is the perfect theology because He claimed so. Please study Him and decide yourself.

Nuren
	Nuren likes writing, teaching, people, nature and many kinds of creative work such as photography, design, studying articles related to astronomy and science. He is positive, dedicated, open-minded and always looking for a way to learn something new. One of Nuren's favorite quotes is "How monotonously alike all the great tyrants and conquerors have been: how gloriously different are the saints" (by C. S. Lewis). Read More >>

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