A thread on being a professional theologian in a Wikipedia & YouTube world:

For 12 years I’ve studied Greek, Hebrew, biblical & systematic theology, ancient near east, second temple Judaism, historical theology, hermeneutics, philosophy, and even some German & Ethiopic. (1/10)

I have 3 degrees and, Lord willing, I’ll have a PhD by Labor Day. I own somewhere around 1000 books related to my field (most of which I’ve actually read all or portions of). I teach Bible and theology for a living. I’ve published on the academic and “popular” level. (2/10)

I’ve also been a pastor or elder for most of these years, and a few years beforehand. So, I’ve applied this not only in preaching & teaching in the local church, but also in countless counseling sessions & late night calls seeking biblical comfort, wisdom, or correction. (3/10)

With all of this in mind, let me tell you a quick story.

A sweet, well-meaning colleague from the math dept at my university once asked to teach a Bible or theology class for us because, after all, he’d taught Sunday school for years. Many of us were offended by this ask. (4/10)

Why would we be offended? Were we just prideful, ivory tower jerks about it, as some would accuse? Well, certainly there is an ivory tower arrogance for some academics. But, for me, it reminded me that being a professional theologian is a precarious thing. (5/10)

You see, many folks assume they can do what we do. They think because we both have the Holy Spirit and access to a Bible + Wiki and YouTube, interpretation & theology is a level playing field. I want to say amen! to this assertion on the one hand. But, on the other hand... (6/10)

It’s not entirely true. The training needed to be a professional theologian is like any other career: it takes practice, study, even a unique gifting. It’s not just looking at bare pages of Scripture or downloading info; it’s sustained training in logic, ideas, and method. (7/10)

So, imagine for a second that I asked my math colleague: “Can I teach one of your math courses sometime? After all, I’ve been doing multiplication since elementary school!” That’s silly. And that’s the point. We both can do math, but we aren’t doing the same thing. (8/10)

Again, the Spirit illuminates Scripture for all believers. I always tell my students that they don’t need seminary to read their Bibles well! But this doesn’t negate the fact that professional theologians serve a unique role in the church by virtue of calling and training. (9/10)

What some perceive as ivory tower insecurity, many of us are just hoping that our vocation is viewed as, and actually *is*, a benefit to the church. It’s my prayer that professional theologians have an affect on the church either directly or downstream in a unique way. (10/10)

P.S. I’m getting trolled publicly and privately for the two-tweet resume at the beginning. I expected that and I realize it sounds arrogant. But I took the chance to prove the point. Come @ me.

P.S.S. I do find it interesting that no one calls a professor in the sciences an “elitist” for saying he or she knows more than you about science, but theologians aren’t allowed to say this. Why? See tweets 6-7/10.