Cont.)
Well we could argue that in the west education as taken a prominent place, but do we see a better place to live, both physically and psychically? Has education and intellectualism made a safer place to live, I think not and if we were honest we would say that we are living in a more dangerous society then ever before, many things seem to be going backwards and not forwards. Somebody wrote a piece of graffiti making the announcement, “God is dead”, Nietzsche. Then underneath, someone else had added, “Nietzsche is dead”, God. It is a fact that God is still around and theology is still being taught, Nietzsche has come and gone but the Bible is still being taught and many people are still responding to the salvation message. I ask the question, “is theology dead.” Well in a society that is teaching human rights, children's rights, animal rights, and everybody has rights to live in peace with one and other, and then has theology still got a place in society? I was once told that a theology that works best for you as an individual and causes no harm to anybody else, then yes? This is called relativism, and this basically means what is true for one individual may not be true for somebody else. Truth then becomes internal and not external and thus the conclusion being that nobody or no one religious system as the truth. Society then is trying to fabricate its own multi-faith religion, and expects all religions to tow the line sooner or later. The multi-faith dialogues that are happening are meant to try and bring a working partnership with all religions, so that they can all say the same thing; basically all roads lead to the one true God. This kind of social theology is growing and growing and most people would embrace this kind of thinking and teaching, because it seems logical in this multi-faith, multicultural society that we are now living in. After all if a religion teaches good morals or ethics, and promotes charitable works then surely that cannot be a bad thing, or can it? Once theology has been watered down to be just a social theology, then we see that man has placed his sinful and grubby hands all over it, it then becomes the word of man and not the word of God. Or at best it becomes the word of God that is totally interpreted by man, and even today we have some liberal theologians who are trying to re-interpret the meaning of some of Jesus words. So that other religions would not be offended, and so that the scriptures from the Holy Bible would lose some of its authority. Well then mankind may as well follow the teachings of one of the great thinkers and philosophers, like Nietzsche, after all his teaching sounds rational? Then we have “Liberation Theology” now this is a term that most people would not know intellectually but would advocate its use in this present religious and social climate in which we live. A certain Gustavo Gutierrez, a Peruvian Roman Catholic priest, first used the term Liberation Theology in 1973. And basically this kind of theological teaching would primarily focus upon the church along with its members channelling all their efforts on liberating the people of the world from poverty and oppression (4) . So in essence this theology which is a nice ideal and there is nothing wrong with trying to free people from poverty and oppression, however this teaching misses one very important thing. The message of salvation, the preaching of the cross, justification by grace through faith, Jesus Christ said, “go into all the world and preach the gospel (5) . Make disciples of them, the church is to be One, and to have One Lord, is to be One faith, One baptism, One God and Father (6) .” Today people are wanting a nice religion, a religion that would not question there own morals or way of living, they want to be entertained and they want a religion that fits in socially with everyone else.

Liberation Theology. Phillip Beryman.

Mark 16.

Ephesians 4:5-6.