What is Theology and who does it?

This spring I graduated from Providence University College with a Bachelor of Arts in Biblical and Theological studies. I know without a shadow of a doubt that I will be pursuing further education and theological training throughout my life but unfortunately for me, that means alienation from most members of my home faith community. Theology as a discipline is misunderstood, doubted, and ultimately dismissed - and the practitioners of such a discipline are looked at askance as being at risk of losing their faith. Roger Olson has recently written a series of posts exploring this which I have included links to below. I found that, while I have not reached the PhD level in this field, I am already beset by the attitudes and prejudices he describes. Theology is the lifeblood of healthy churches, the worst thing Christians can do (so of course it is the very thing we do), is remove it from our church life. If I could make a tentative gesture towards what I believe my vocational calling is in life, it would be to work towards rectifying this theologically and therefore spiritually bankrupt position the church has landed itself in. I hope these posts of Olson's challenge and encourage you.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3
(*To the list of theologians at the end of Part 3, I think a must add would be Stanley Hauerwas.)