Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

Maybe you remember the catchy song that Mary Poppins (Julie Andrews) sang in the 1964 Disney movie of the same name? The song opened with these lines…

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious
Even though the sound of it is something quite atrocious,
If you say it loud enough, you'll always sound precocious,
Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious! 

As a 14 year old boy at the time of the movie’s release, I considered myself rather skillful at being able to master this 34 letter non-sense word. If you have never seen this word before, it appears to be a real mouthful, but the skill in learning to say it is to break it down into syllables… super-cali-fragi-listic-xpi-ali-docious…then just run them altogether and away you go, singing like Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke.  

Yes, I know that it’s just a made-up word, one that will do little good, nor is it likely to increase our ability to find gainful employment, but for me it illustrates the slow transformation of the once vibrant and powerful faith that Jesus Christ introduced to the world 2000 years ago, to what it has become today.

Throughout the Church age, a host of studious (mostly) men have spent a good deal of time formulating an elaborate register of religious words. By adding all these new words and terms to Christianity, the intellectual thinkers of the Church have slowly morphed what was once the simple gospel message into what is now a complex mix of theological ideas, philosophical arguments and didactic world-views.

How can any Christian expect to reach and interact with ordinary people with words like: exegesis, hagiography, examologesis, hydroparastatae, soteriology, or anthropomorphism?  

How about a dose Alexanderian theology with your morning cappuccino? What are your views on Calvin's support of Amyraldianism? Have you studied the Homologumena today? What about a sprinkling of Double Predestination with your pasta? Supralapsarianism your thing?

Now, don’t get me wrong, I have a deep respect for, and love of God’s Word, and if you have been reading my blogs for any length of time you will have noticed that I enjoy researching and presenting snippets of information pertaining to our faith and the Bible…but sometimes we loose touch with the simple gospel message that Jesus Christ spoke to His countrymen and women in Israel all those years ago. 

I understand and accept the need for a defined study of Scripture, and enjoy reading theological arguements, but.... Paul’s warning to the Colossian believers is just as relevant toady as it was in 45AD.

Beware lest anyone rob you through philosophy and vain deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the elements of the world, and not according to Christ. Colossians 2:8 MKJV

Sometimes, the use of $40.00 words is just to impress… I recently read the transcript of a tele-preacher who managed to use all of the following words in about 60 seconds…Instead of saying prophecy, he said eschatology; the word gospel became exegesis; and it wasn’t Jesus he was studying, it was Christology. He stated that he was a Pretribulationist, without explaining just what that was, and he finished by saying that sin was "missing the mark" as in firing an arrow at a target, and hitting the outer ring, rather than the "bulls-eye". He was, by-the-way, speaking at a secular college graduation ceremony.

The dictionary defines theology as the science of God, and divine things, moral theology teaches us divine laws relating to our actions, ethical duties and responsibilities. Scholastic theology is that which proceeds by reasoning, or which derives the knowledge of several divine things from certain established principles of faith.

Jesus defined theology as… “Jesus said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.”Matthew 22:37 

And… “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. As I have loved you, you should also love one another.  John 13:34