So what is a brokedown theologian? Great question—glad you asked. It’s quite a story and this name was a bit of inspiration in the midst of a time of immense frustration and confusion.
I currently live in a major city in Asia and have a car that is barely reliable. It is a gift from some very generous people so I can’t complain that much. It gets me around and gets me to the places I need to go and it blows cold air in the tropical heat so that’s basically all I need. It gives me a few problems here and there but I get by. A friend that rides in it with me from time to time calls it “the tank”. It shakes, rattles, and makes tons of noise that you wouldn’t think a car would make. Having loose change or keys sitting in the cup holders is not an option because you will go deaf from the noise of clanging metal. I often feel like I’m heading to the front lines of Flanders Field when I pull out of my apartment complex. Driving in any city in Asia is always an adventure—even more so when you have a car like this.
As I was on my home one day, the car began to overheat badly. It would shut off when I ever I let off the gas and made lots of horrible sounds. Just as I was coasting into the front of my apartment building, it died completely. I can thank the Lord for that much.
But as I lifted the hood and steam rolled out like a smokestack from an Al Gore documentary, I felt extremely helpless. I know absolutely nothing about engines and vehicles in general and here I was standing in the street in a foreign country trying to figure out what was wrong with my car. Luckily I was able to call my good friend who is a local and he helped me get things sorted out.
As a stood there helpless beside my car with passers-by staring at the white man with the broken down car, I realized how truly useless two degrees in theology are when you can’t even get your car started. But it was in the midst of all this vehicular chaos that I had a revelation. I had wanted to start a blog for a while and as I was staring at this smoking heap of steal, the name of my blog jumped into my mind:
The Brokedown Theologian.
I love studying theology and figuring out the different facets of historical and practical theology and basically just trying to figure out our God. But it was in this moment of helplessness that I realized that knowing lots of theology can only get you so far. Many great theologians are venerated and their books are published worldwide—but can they change a tire? Can they shoe a horse? Can the bait a hook? Can they fix an engine that’s overheating?
So this blog is for those people out there that love theology but know that being a theologian is something that is done with a humble heart. And honestly, a theologian is quite possibly one of the biggest losers around. Why? Because most of us can’t do practical things like fix cars and we’ll never be that great at our profession of studying theology because God can never be figured out. God truly is a mystery and this blog is my mind trying to wrestle with that mystery and the culture that surrounds us. Not everything will be spiritual and high-thinking because I’m truly not that smart.
Being a brokedown theologian is about humbly knowing God and relating humbly to our culture. I hope you enjoy.
