I Can Has Theologeez? Part 2

So what is Theology?

Simply defined, it is the study of God and of God's relationship with the world. It can also mean the collected teachings of a particular Faith in God. Not surprisingly, there is good theology and bad theology, though depending on where you stand your opinion on what constitutes either may be different. I normally have three criteria that I use when assessing a work of theology;

1. It must be Truth. If it isn't truth, and therefore is wrong about the nature of God or any facts concerning Him, it's not really the study of God and as such cannot be called theology.
2. It must be challenging. If the unexamined life truly is not worth living then my study of God must inspire me to examine myself. Basically if it isn't telling me I could stand to change a thing or two about myself and could grow a little more from area to area, it's probably not worth reading.
3. I like a good, meaty theology. Something I can sink my teeth into. Something that'll fill me with ammo for those inevitable debates.

Following those three criteria, I can safely say that throughout my academic career I haven't ever studied Theology.

The chapel I attend was only recently affiliated with the SSPX. Before that, they were affiliated with the FSSP, and there are a lot of points of contempt between the two. Consequently I was a little confused as to why in the space of less than a year everyone I had met seemed to be really, fully on board with the SSPX's stances that differ with the FSSP, in some cases quite strongly. And then I got my handy-dandy "New to Tradition Kit" in the mail. Sure, I could see the obvious differences, and there was a way that I felt inside the nave of St. Michael's that I had never really felt before, but I still wasn't really, truly certain about why.

I'm trying to maintain some measure of seriousness here, but I really can't describe this any other way.

This, to a Catholic that has grown up in the Novus Ordo and is only just now learning about the differences between it and Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, is like being hit in the brain with a fully-loaded freight train full of Theology. My only issue with it, my only issue, is that it is printed on shiny paper which is not conducive to highlighters.

Every book and booklet I pull out of this box is the same way. I am hit, head-on, with doctrine beyond decay and above reproach. And in that I am confronted with my own errors, my own false ideas. And at once I'm filled with comfort and courage, aware that I may not have all the answers yet, but I know I'm not far from finding them.

I had a conversation with a young lady from Kansas City this afternoon about the way God works in our lives, and I began to realize the utterly providential events that led me to where I am now. I am at last where I was always meant to be. And it gives me hope. When I was a little girl, watching my Dad leave with an armful of clothes on hangers, still not fully understanding the implications of what was going on, I never, ever would've dreamed that it would somehow, someway, lead me to where I am now.

But I can't possibly deny that if that day had never happened, I wouldn't be here. Now, I have no clue where I am to go next...He laughs at every plan I make and steers me gently where I ought to be heading...but I do know that He knows exactly what he's doing. After all, look where I am now!

For the first time in two decades, I'm finally studying Theology!