Historically, there have been several ways of doing theology. When I say there have been several “ways,” the alternate term “method” ought to come to mind. Method describes the manner in which some goal is achieved. I clearly remember learning English by means of the “Shurley Method” in third grade. A clear understanding of English was the goal, and while there were several ways of achieving that goal, my third grade teacher chose the “Shurley way” or the “Shurley Method.” Why is this important? It is important because theology, like linguistics, is apprehended by way of some method. It is not excluded as the only science without proper method, though mainstream evangelicalism tends to conceive of it as such, at least in practice.

The Central Dogma Approach

The method of theology matters because it will ultimately determine whether or not a person has a true or a false theology. The wrong method will fall short of achieving the goal, i.e. knowing and living unto God. For years, there hasn’t been much unity on theological method. The cancer of subjectivism, as it has with many other things, affected the way in which Christians study God. Individuals come to the study of God in any way they see fit. I always like using Dr. John Frame’s triperspectival theology in contrast to something like John Piper’s Christian hedonism. Notably, both of these doctrines play a formative role in either of Frame/Piper’s conceptions of theology as a whole. Modern complementarians (a la. Bruce Ware and others), want to formulate seemingly everything in terms of the plurality and hierarchical taxis within the Godhead.

The question, then, becomes: Is this the way it ought to be done?

Should all our theology revolve around the Trinity, or should it all revolve and be understood in terms of the incarnation of the Son of God, as seemed to be the case in the earlier church (especially in the East)? If there is a “central dogma” around and in terms of which all theology must be understood, then which dogma should it be? Throughout the lifespan of the central dogma approach, this question has never been definitively answered, leaving a sort of subjectivism at the very helm of how Christians do theology in general.

The Biblicist Approach

There is another approach, the prospect of which may seem quite attractive in view of the arbitrariness and subjectivism noted above: Biblicism. Biblicism, consistently held, denies the validity of extra-biblical terminology, and it also destroys the possibility of good and necessary consequence or inference. An example of the former would be the term trinity, which appears nowhere in the Bible. And an example of the latter is the exegetical inferences leading Christians to conclude a doctrine of the trinity. It is a doctrine, after all, that is never explicitly nor dogmatically stated in Scripture, but must be deduced from several texts.

While Biblicism may eliminate one form of subjectivism, since our only theology book, commentary, and sermon manuscript would essentially be the Bible itself and nothing else, it ends in another form of subjectivism, that of private interpretation. Private interpretation may be understood in two ways, a positive and a negative. Positively understood, private interpretation just intends the liberty of the Christian to conclude the meaning of the text according to his or her conscience; free, that is, from any sort of hierarchical coercion. However, negatively, private interpretation refers to the arrogant and self-important interpretation of the text which tends away from historical commentary and makes the self or the ego the last arbiter of Scriptural meaning. This is “the Bible says it and I believe it” mindset which begs the question of meaning and assumes the individual Bible interpreter to be the final say.

An Alternative Consideration

There is, thankfully, an alternative to both the central dogma and Biblicist approaches. The classical method of theology begins with first principles in what is called the prolegomena. Everyone from the medieval scholastics, a la. Thomas Aquinas, to the Princeton theologians of the 19th century, a la. Geerhardus Vos (and his non-Princeton contemporary Herman Bavinck), understood the importance of beginning with prolegomena in systematic theology. This is a radically objective way to begin our study of God. In prolegomena, first principles, or the assumptions undergirding the rest of our theology, are disclosed, explained, and often defended.

Usually following prolegomena, yet sometimes at least partially included within it depending on the theologian or the nature of the document (e.g. systematic theologies differ from confessions of faith and catechisms), are what we might call the principii or the principles: the principle of knowledge (principium cognoscendi) and the principle of Being (principium essendi). The former answers the question: How do we know God rightly? And the latter: What causes and explains all that is? To the former, we answer: Scripture. Scripture is the way in which we must come to know God rightly and truly. And to the latter we answer: God. God is that which is to be known. Thus, in many confessions of faith, including the Second London Baptist Confession, the first two chapters include these principles. Chapter one is usually Scripture, and chapter two is often God. Many historical systematic theologies begin in much the same way, whether or not these principles are placed within prolegomena is irrelevant to the overall method.

Response to Biblicism In Light of Classical Theology

Contrary to Biblicism, the classical method allows for assumptions prior to coming to the text. A rudimentary knowledge or assumption of who God is, for example, is necessary prior to coming to Scripture. Genesis 1, for instance, begins with a rather unexplained God and thus assumes we, the readers, have some idea of what “God” means. This, of course, is in accordance with the natural revelation described in Romans 1:18-20. The laws of logic and the assumption that our senses are basically reliable are two other presuppositions that must be held prior to coming to studying theology or coming to Scripture. Biblicism is thus rendered obsolete to the classical method because it cannot account for the extra-biblical and pre-requisite tools we must have in our toolbox prior to reading Scripture or doing theology in general.

Response to the Central Dogma Approach In Light of Classical Theology

As noted above, the question, “Which ‘central dogma’ should we use?” has never been definitively answered. For this reason alone, “central dogma” ought to be the subject of suspicion. Another reason for leaving it behind would be the danger of allowing the tail to wag the dog. If we construe all our theology through the lens of a single favored doctrine, like the trinity, then what about the oneness and unity of the divine essence? If we neither grasp nor discuss the divine essence prior to the trinity, then it is possible we might end up in modalism or tritheism. Scripture, also, must figure in sometime prior to the trinity in terms of the logical flow of our theology. If the trinity is known through Scripture, then we need to have a doctrine of Scripture set and confirmed logically prior to presuming any knowledge of the trinity. What if our doctrine of Scripture is neo-orthodox, liberal, or even nil? Would that not effect our thinking of who the triune God is revealed or described therein?

The same could be said about any other suggested central dogma, from Scripture itself to baptism to the incarnation of Christ and eschatology. To make any one of these things central in theology using one or the other as the lens through which we understand everything else will at best end in methodological inconsistency and at worst in a total doctrinal train wreck.

Conclusion

If you take nothing away from this article, I urge you to understand the importance of theological method. Do not beg the question of method. Instead, question your own method. What is it? Do you have one? If you do, is it correct? Is it aimed at the truth? If the question of method goes unanswered, then the whole of theology is put in danger. When doing mathematics or biology, a certain method must be employed. Sometimes the formulation of method is less forgiving a process in some sciences (math or physics) than it is in others (linguistics or sociology). The natural sciences, for example, must always follow the monolith of the scientific method, and there can be no departure from it without catastrophic results. In such terms, theology is no different. There must be a method, and it must be correct in order for Christians to reach the truth in these various and sometimes more advanced areas of the Christian faith.