There are so many voices in the Church these days, and sometimes it is difficult to know who to listen to or where you find life in the varied voices that make up the Church.
Like many people, I have encountered many different voices during my time in the Church, and I have found the volume of voices to be overwhelming at times…and at other times I have found a profound sense of life through those same voices.
In the fall, Rev. Dr. Andrew Davison, the Starbridge Lecturer in Theology and Natural Sciences at the University of Cambridge, asked our theology class who we would adopt as our own theologian. At the heart of the question, Dr. Davison was asking us to identify what voice we would speak with and through if we were to adapt a theologian to follow. As I considered his question, I felt that I did not have enough background information about the different theologians in the Church to successfully answer the question. Since his question, I have discovered that I am quite Thomistic in my theology, but I was still hungry to experience other theological voices. With that in mind, I set out to create a project for myself for the holiday break. I decided to read a book a week with each book from a different theologian. My hope is to encounter Christ through the different voices and to see what it is like to encounter Christ through the voice of another.
Now that the holiday break is upon me, I must set about the task of reading and experiencing Christ (hopefully) in new ways. As I set out upon a holiday journey, I invite you to travel with me. If you would like to join me in reading some of the texts, I would love to hear what your thoughts are as you experience the voice of another. I am also going to post about my experience of reading these different voices, and I would love to hear your comments – if you read the books or not! The books that are on the list (so far):
- Jesus, Humanity, and the Trinity by Kathryn Tanner
- The Eucharist by Alexander Schmemann
- The Confessions by Saint Augustine
- The Showings by Saint Julian of Norwich
- Truly our Sister: A Theology of Mary in the Communion of Saints by Elizabeth A. Johnson
I have other authors that I want to read and as I move through the books, I may add to the list…if I am able to get through these! As always, thank you for your support as we journey into faith together and find Christ in many different ways.
A Journey In Faith 