By Fred Sanders
Catalyst Online
As far as theology is concerned, “www” might stand for “wild, wild west.” Whatever law may hold sway in the civilized territories of academic theology, it is unenforceable out on the range. I am tempted to divide the following survey into categories like “freebooters, homesteaders, border raiders, natives, and gunslingers,” but I will let the metaphor rest with the observation that internet theology, unlike other academic disciplines, has not been guided or normalized by the presence of any established institutional presence. With a few exceptions, the most useful internet theology websites are the work of fans and amateurs, students and private citizens who do what they do out of love for the subject. No major school has taken the step of putting its imprint on internet theology by committing capital to produce a definitive or unavoidable website. This situation is quite different from fields like philosophy or biblical studies, where prestigious schools and sought-after scholars have established a presence that provides a norm and standard against which all the non-professional material can be evaluated. (more)
