Part 102. Practical Theology

Practical theology is about action, about doing things. It is driven by the commandment of Jesus to love our neighbour and by the demand placed on Christians to follow him. The application of these, for want of a better word, principles, will change as the world around us changes. The principles are unchanging. It is not, as conservative evangelical fundamentalists argue, a matter of watering down our faith to make it acceptable to the secular world. On the contrary it is applying our faith in the world to promote God's kingdom, to challenge those responsible for discrimination, marginalisation and poverty. It is not to make our faith more acceptable in the world, it is challenging the world to change.