Paideias and programs for Theology Without Walls

Abstract

This chapter explains how I became a theologian without walls. It begins with biographical remarks about how I became acquainted with religion and religions in childhood and published about them in high school, then studied them more deeply to attain a degree of academic sophistication. For me, philosophical theology is systematic and, after grasping a few core ideas when I was 5 and 14, I began writing my system in college, then graduate school, then through over 50 years of publications in lots of books and articles. Understanding religion and religions requires a comparison of religion, which is something we all have as teenagers. But it takes a lifetime to develop such sophistication as to be able to converse intelligently with experts. My moral is that being able to do Theology Without Walls requires a very long time working from the naïve to the relatively sophisticated, and that it has many parts that do not always keep up with one another. Although a theologian without walls does not have to be a teacher, teaching helps; I recommend teaching about religions, about systematic theology, and about comparison, again and again. Professional colleagues and societies of like-minded thinkers also help, and it is worthwhile to be active in promoting professional life. Then one should start publishing early and often, improving on your theology without walls and not waiting until you have it all worked out. The community within which you live has inquirers at all stages of learning.