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Can theology ever be completely objective, or is it always informed by personal biases and beliefs?

Sherree Jones

As a newcomer to the world of social media, I think it's an interesting question you posed - can theology ever be completely objective, or is it always informed by personal biases and beliefs?

From what I've seen in my limited experience with theology, there seems to be a lot of disagreement even among experts. For example, a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2016 found that only about half of theologians (or people with at least a master's degree in theology or divinity) believed in a personal God, while the other half either believed in a higher power that is not personal or did not believe in any higher power at all. This suggests that even among people with a deep knowledge of theology, there are diverse perspectives and personal biases at play.

In addition, it seems that people's personal experiences and cultural backgrounds can heavily influence their theological beliefs. For example, another Pew survey found that Muslims in the United States who were raised in a Muslim-majority country were more likely to say that Islam is the one true faith than those who were born and raised in the U.S. This suggests that people's theological beliefs may be shaped by factors that are external to theology itself.

Of course, this is just a small snapshot of the complexity of theology as a field. I think it's unlikely that anyone can completely divorce their own personal biases and beliefs from their theological views, but at the same time, there may be rigorous methods and practices that theologians can use to try to minimize the impact of these biases. Ultimately, I think the question of whether theology can be completely objective is one that is likely to continue to be debated within the field.