A Letter to My Orals Board

In order to graduate seminary I had to write a 35 page paper on my doctrinal beliefs. This was a very special and beautiful task for me where I could explore everything I had set out to learn and understand about myself, God and my relationship to Him, others and the world. For me this was something I was going to do no matter what but it helped to have it required of me so I would actually get these thoughts organized. Also, whether I or not my professors who sat on my orals board agreed with me or not, this was how God was working in me at that time in my life, culminating everything in the pages I was about to write. 

As an effort to express the beauty of this process I wrote this letter to my Orals Board explaining how God was working in me and basically summarizing in the last paragraph the essentials of my theology/doctrinal beliefs. What I believe about predestination, election, women in leadership, etc. all come out of these thoughts and beliefs. I feel it is crucial to understand that these other elements (predestination and so forth) are not always considered the essentials of faith and should be treated with charity and humbleness when discussing them. As John Wesley once said, "In the essentials, unity. In all else, charity." 

Here's the letter: 

A Letter to My Orals Board

“Everything is theology,” stated Dr. Buschart in my first TH 501 course. Everything we do, how we live, how we act, how we vote, how we eat, what we eat, how we dress, what we buy, why we buy what we buy and so on are all related to our theological understanding of the world around us and our place in that world. There are so many factors that shape our understanding of God, for example, family, friends, faith upbringing (or lack there of), teachers, economic situation, political situation, education, global experience, and so on. Our life experience defines when, where, how and why we come to realize our need of God and restoration to relationship within His Kingdom. I am living proof of this. 

I grew up in a deeply devote, compassionate, loving Christian home where I was always encouraged to question my faith so I can grow in understanding of why I believe what I believe. With deep love and Christ-likeness my parents lived out their love for God and people in all they did. I have fond childhood memories of long car trips to Colorado where theological discussion ensued at the urging of a ten-year-old me wondering about the world around her, or dinner table discussions with the whole family on how and why God loves the world. 

But it wasn’t just the family where these conversations took place. As I wrote this paper I could hear the echoes of Mrs. Bryant, my 3^rd grade Sunday School teacher, energetically teaching us the story of creation and the Kingdom’s captivating nature. I could see the saints of my home church teaching, by their example, the younger how to live as Kingdom people. I could hear the hymns of my youth resonating their choruses in sanctuary of my soul and realized how profoundly they taught me a foundational theology. This paper is not just the culmination of four years of seminary; it is the culmination of all the Spirit has done in my life, up to now, to reveal the fullness of God. 

With each word written, read, studied, discussed, I feel my soul realize what it could be and will be one day at the final resurrection. I feel I have come to realize more about the world around me, begun to see things from a new perspective because of a deeper understanding of God. When I engage today in the ancient words or practices of the Church I they have a new meaning, yet retain their old meaning, giving me a new depth of life. For me its like the moment you get your breath back after you have had the wind knocked out of you, you suddenly realize you have life again! 

It is this renewed life that has given me cause to write this “letter” at the beginning of my paper. I came to seminary destroyed after ten years of committed, full-time professional ministry (plus a lifetime of being a pastor’s kid) climaxing with a very ugly church fight that lead to two hate letters being sent to me (in the name of Christ). Angry, broken and confused I came to Denver to heal, to rediscover who God had made me to be, to engage in theological questions again and to find restoration to my call into ministry that I had received so many years ago. I was looking for life again. Now, nearing the close of this chapter, I can confidently say that I have found that life again and this paper is a reflection of that life.

Therefore, I have made some adjustments to the “traditional” order of this paper. I have come to realize through my experience that each theological belief I have has begot the next and therefore wanted to express that in the order of my paper. I believe revelation begets a belief in God, which is Triune. God the Father created all the world, creating Humans to reflect His image and engage in relationship with Him and one another. However, because of sin we have been separated from this relationship and therefore are in need of Christ the Reconciler to come to restore us to right relationship and give us the way to live as Kingdom people. To guide and transform us into Kingdom people, Christ has asked the Father to send us the Spirit. The Spirit moves us to repentance, salvation and sanctification and is the very life of the Church. As we live as Kingdom people we engage with the Angels in worship of God, yet there are Demons seeking to keep us separated from the Father but they will be banished forever in the last days. It is this order that I seek to reflect in my paper.