On the Ecclesial Vocation of the Theologian - What?!

Back in 1990, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the arm of the Roman curia that oversees the doctrines of the faith, released On the Ecclesial Vocation of the Theologian.  The title may sound daunting, but the purposes of the document are quite simple - What is the role of a theologian?  What is the role of the Magisterium?  How does theology fit within the framework of the Church's Magisterium?

I intend to provide some commentary on this document, which I had to read for one of my grad courses.  But why would/should high schoolers (primary audience of this blog) care about this?  Because most of them have had religion courses, and not all religion courses are equal.

In my own Catholic school experience, I have had teachers who blatantly taught against the Church, teachers who started off tangents by saying, "The Church says x, but in my opinion, I think y should be okay," and teachers who had phenomenal intellects and were faithful to the Church.  I imagine that I am not alone in this.

I hope a brief commentary will help Catholic students (past, present and future) to better discern classroom situations and respond appropriately and in charity.

More to come over the next few weeks!