- published: 28 Mar 2012
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Theology (from the Greek Θεός meaning "God" and λόγος meaning "study of") is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.
Augustine of Hippo defined the Latin equivalent, theologia, as "reasoning or discussion concerning the Deity";Richard Hooker defined "theology" in English as "the science of things divine". The term can, however, be used for a variety of different disciplines or forms of discourse. Theologians use various forms of analysis and argument (philosophical, ethnographic, historical, spiritual and others) to help understand, explain, test, critique, defend or promote any of myriad religious topics. Theology might be undertaken to help the theologian:
Theology translates into English from the Greek theologia (θεολογία) which derived from theos (θεός), meaning God, and logia (λόγια), meaning utterances, sayings, or oracles (a word related to logos [λόγος], meaning word, discourse, account, or reasoning) which had passed into Latin as theologia and into French as théologie. The English equivalent "theology" (Theologie, Teologye) had evolved by 1362. The sense the word has in English depends in large part on the sense the Latin and Greek equivalents had acquired in Patristic and medieval Christian usage, though the English term has now spread beyond Christian contexts.
Robert Charles Sproul, (born February 13, 1939, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) is a prominent[peacock term] American Calvinist theologian, author, and pastor of the Reformed tradition. He is the founder and chairman of Ligonier Ministries (named after the Ligonier Valley just outside of Pittsburgh, where the ministry started as a study center for college and seminary students) and can be heard daily on the Renewing Your Mind radio broadcast in the United States and internationally. "Renewing Your Mind with Dr. R.C. Sproul" is also broadcast on Sirius and XM satellite radio.
Ligonier Ministries hosts several theological conferences each year, including the main conference held each year in Orlando, Florida, at which Sproul is one of the primary speakers.
Sproul holds degrees from Westminster College, Pennsylvania (B.A., 1961), Pittsburgh-Xenia Theological Seminary (M.Div, 1964), the Free University of Amsterdam (Drs., 1969), and Whitefield Theological Seminary (Ph.D., 2001). He had to learn the Dutch language while studying in the Netherlands which he has described as a trying experience. He has taught at numerous colleges and seminaries, including Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando and Jackson, Mississippi, and Knox Theological Seminary in Ft. Lauderdale.
His hands
His heart are all I need
I hear the broken-hearted
I hear the friendless
I was there for every prayer, and I'm never stopping
I will never leave you all alone
Quit doubting me
Because you can't see
My hands working in your life
If you knew my heart