Theology of Vocation (Pt.1 Creation)

As I continue to do theology in congregational ministry and to bring congregational ministry into theology, my mind is focusing on the word 'vocation'. In this one simple word, the mission of the church and the theses of the academy meet. As I discern my own vocation, I've realized that vocation itself is the proper epistemological category for doing theology. In plain English, practicing our vocation gives us the way to think about and to understand stuff. Our definitions, our framework, our points of reference -- all are determined by our vocation.

Only in terms of vocation does what we do shape how we think and what we think shape how we do. (Remember, the point of my last two posts on "Salvation and Evangelism" was to say that the gospel is inherently vocational; the gospel of Jesus is our participation in what God is doing to be all in all.) So below are seven key theological concepts defined in terms of vocation.

+ Creation: God Calls Creation Into Being

God calls forth, and it is so. Holy Spirit broods over the waters of chaos and gives the breath of life. All creation is given the vocation to praise God by sharing in the divine life through Holy Spirit. Therefore, we are to understand creation in terms of vocation, God calling everthing that exists into being.

This is a significant move in theology, because it breaks us out of the confines of Greek ontology -- both of Plato and of Aristotle. Classical theology is trapped in defining things dualistically in terms of essences and forms, natures and accidents. Why must we split everything in two rather than understanding each thing as a simple whole? It is what it is. We don't have to get hung up arguing over nature versus grace -- whether the two are ontologically opposed or whether nature ascends to grace. Instead, when thinking in terms of the vocational creation, the lines between nature and grace are blurred such that this dialect is no longer helpful for us. Rather, nature and grace are perichoretic, i.e. they are mutually indwelling; they are interpenetrating. Simply put, once God calls creation into being, everything that is exists because of God's presence, and God chooses to be present in all that is.

This is a significant move for the mission of the church, because it breaks us out of our institutional walls -- both of our structural buildings and of our comfortable communities. When creation is understood vocationally, we see clearly that all of creation is holy. We become more and more aware of God's presence in the most mundane things. In my instant oatmeal, I encounter God each morning. In my baby's poopy diaper, I give reverence to the Holy One. In the face of my enemy, I see Jesus. In yawning and catching my breath, I am filled with Holy Spirit. Every moment in life is an opportunity to worship the living God. All ground is holy ground. For this reason, church leaders have to spend as little time as possible keeping matters within the church's building in order, and as little energy as possible drawing people into the gathered community. Instead, church leaders are to invest in the lives of the baptized lived beyond the walls and the gathered communities, so they can be the church in the world living its worship 24/7/365 by stewarding creation and losing themselves in love for people who may happen to look and think differently.

This point brings us to the second key theological concept. Check back every couple of days to read more in this series of the theology of vocation:

+ Humanity: The Creature With the Priestly Vocation
+ Covenant: God Calls Creation Into Right Relationship
+ Messiah: The Human With God's Vocation
+ Trinity: God Is the Fulfillment of Covenant, the Purpose of Vocation
+ Salvation: All Creation Participates in the Fulfillment of Covenant
+ Church: The People Called into God's Vocation