Indian Christian Approaches to Theologizing:Lessons from the Seashore

‘Inculturation of theology’ was the key phrase for a 
long time since Vat.II in theological discourse. It rightly pointed
to the reality of the alienation of Christianity and Christian theol­-
ogy in India. Later, theological discourse took up the theme of 
‘contextualised theology’. The key question here is not ‘how to
inculturate theology’, but rather ‘how and where do people expe­-
rience the divine, and articulate that experience and use it for
wholeness and wellbeing’. Authors indicate two main orientations
in contemporary theological discourse in India: the socio-cultural
orientation and the socio-political orientation. The present paper
is an attempt to cull out some methodological directions relying
on the positive cultural and religious resources that lie dormant
in Christian communities. Authentic and relevant theology has to
have a life context and a lived-experience as its point of refer­
ence. Doing theology in India is not simply a matter of express­
ing the Christian faith in culturally intelligible categories, but
rather a question of understanding and articulating the living the­
ology that sustains and supports diverse Christian communities,
and responding to their concerns and challenges within a faith
matrix in the direction of human liberation and wholeness. The
author believes that an interpretative presentation of the religious 
experience and practice of the Mukkuva community could con­
tribute in no small way to our theological enterprise in India.