Peer-Reviewed Christianity

While I’m reasonably content to wear the label “Liberal Christian” (even though adjectives like ‘Romantic’ and ‘Bultmannian’ are probably more accurate in indicating my views), I’m aware that many are uncomfortable with the term Liberal, as at once unhelpfully vague and as having negative connotations in certain circles.

Perhaps instead we could talk about peer-reviewed Christianity. By this I mean an approach to Christian beliefs and practice which recognizes the provisional character of all human understanding and “truth”, and that the most effective approach to understanding we’ve thus far developed is the scientific/scholarly one which subjects conclusions and claims for scrutiny by others, realizing that some of what we think will not stand up to such scrutiny.

If conservative forms of Christianity can be criticized for clinging to beliefs in spite of mounting evidence that they required revision if not outright rejection, liberal forms of Christianity have been criticized for jumping too quickly onto cultural bandwagons, only to find their reputation tarnished when cultural trends shift (as they inevitably do). Perhaps a better approach is to aim for a “scholarly” approach to Christianity, one that knows enough about how science and history work to understand when a conclusion is for all intents and purposes certain, and when it is not. Could such an approach allow for needed revisions, without simply swinging to the other extreme that revises and abandons things simply because they are traditional?

Any thoughts?