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to Vietnamese Missionaries in Taiwan Home PageThe failure of the Christian mission in Asia in general, and in China and Japan in particular, is widely recognized, but not yet thorough investigated. One of many reasons is the incomprehensibility of the Christian message. Christianity, like an extra-terrestrial, is unable to incorporate itself in the Asian body.
Conscious of this fact, Asian theologians have taken the course of inculturation as one of the best approaches to tackle this problem. However, in our view, an adoption of indigenous language, customs and rites has been not quite fruitful so far. Just as the case of an European who cannot become Chinese even if he is speaking their language, wearing their customs, an inculturation of Christianity would be still unsuccessful if it is limited in the work of adopting language, rite, custom, etc...
This work of ours goes a further step to insist that, inculturation could be possible if we are able to bridge the wide gap between the two ways of thinking and doing of the Western and the Eastern. In the context, searching for our own way of understanding of the Christian message is one of the most essential tasks of Asian theologians.
Similarly, in order to christianize Vietnamese, Christianity should become first Vietnamese, in the same way of how God became man. Here is the starting-point of the so-called Viet-Theology. Viet-Theology is understood as a system of Viet-thinking about God, as a particular way of Viet-bilieving in God, as a natural way of Viet-sensing God, and as a way of Viet-living with God.
As an initiative and a modest contribution to Viet-Theology, this work is restricted in the investigation of the difference between the Viet-way of thinking about God and Western theology. The difference of the two theological systems could be seen in following aspects:
- If systematic theology prefers the rational approach, then Viet-Theology optes for the sentimental and sensual approach.
- Systematic theology tends towards the Cartesian, solipsistic and analytic thinking, while Viet-Theology follows a relational and dialectical path.
- If systematic theology takes external categories to measure and verify belief, then Viet-Theology would give preference to the so-called internal categories.
- In a word, systematic theology is a system of abstract thinking about God, about the belief in God. It is theoria pura. In constrast, Viet-Theology is rather practical theology. It is theologia practica. (Note that practical theology is not identified with pastoral theology).
The difference of methodes (or ways) of thinking about, believing in, expressing and sensing God comes rather from the divergence of the objective of theology.
- In systematic theology, God is the very objective of study, while in Viet-Theology, theology is only a way of helping human beings to discover the relation between God and man, and man and nature. In this sense, the objective of Viet-Theology is a study of how man is searching for God, how man is sensing the presence and love of God, how man is realizing himself by means of his belief in God.
- Consequently, the objective of theology could not be understood without an investigation of the history of salvation. To Viet-Theology, belief is for the sake of being salvated (credo quia salvatus sum), and not for the sake of belief alone (credo ut intelligem). A belief without a practical purpose is as much empty as meaningless.
- As an praxis-oriented theology, Viet-Theology centers on the question of "what should do in order to be saved by God?", and not on the problem of the existence of God as seen is systematic theology.
The divergence between the two theological ways is much greater in their understanding of God.
- God is absolutized in Systematic Theology (ST), while God is humanized in Viet-Theology (VT). Consequentlty, God is understood in the act of relation between Him and Human beings (VT), and not by means of logical or rational proof (ST).
- Scientific proof of the existence of God is prequisited in systematic theology (since without God, any systematic theology is impossible), while practical proof of the presence of God is demanded in Viet-Theology.
- God is completely detached from His creatures, and there is no logical connection between God and man (ST), while God is strongly related to human beings. Without human participation, theology would be meaningless (VT).
The role and the position of man is also differently defined by these two theological ways:
- In systematic theology, man as a creature like any other creatures, is passive. Thus, he is to be saved by the mercy of God. As such, he plays an auxiliary role only. In contrast, in Viet-Theology, man is the center of history of redemption. He is the relational point between God and the earth.
- Man is created in systematic theology, while man as co-creator in Viet-Theology.
- The values of man is defined by the grace of God to let him participate into His Essence as absolute value (ST), while the human values are defined by human beings themselves in Viet-Theology.
- Rites are taken to be expressions of human love to God, human respect of God, and human gratitude to Him (VT), while rites and especially sacraments are considered as the means to save, or to redeem man or to reduce punishment (ST).
- Rites are variant depending on the relation between God and man (VT) while the sacraments are rather invariable and strictly formal.
- The relation between God, Man and Nature is mutual, reciprocal and flexible in Viet-Theology while one-way, fixed, inequal and authoritative (in form of command) in systematic theology.
- The God-Man relation is expressed in the form of human relation, especially sensual and sentimental relation, in Viet-Theology, while such a relation is regulated by rules, and purely rational in systematic theology.
John B. Tran Van Doan,
Professor of National Taiwan University, Taiwan
Last Updated May 26,1997 by Steven Proulx
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