A Radically Personal Vision for Theology Without Walls

Theology Without Walls is not so much a theological project comparable to, say, process theology, as a subfield, more like comparative theology.  Rather than following a comparative template, TWW can be done in any number of ways.  There are top-down approaches that start with a metaphysical or other comprehensive frame.  There are bottom-up approaches that start with personal insights, experiences, situations, or commitments.  The basic argument for TWW is the imperative, for any truth-seeking project, of taking in all available data.  The religious traditions are not themselves data so much as rich lodes of spiritual data.  Ultimately, the discernment of the relevant data is an epistemic challenge, a task that falls to each of us.  Our theology seeks to provide a meaningful interpretation of the data.  It is, to quote Paul Knitter, “all spiritual experience seeking understanding.”