Term/Theological Triage

Definition

: the discipline that requires believers to evaluate the urgency of a theological issue or question before moving forward with debate and discussion

Origin

Medical workers are trained to practice a discipline known as "triage". It allows them to make quick evaluations about the severity of each patient's condition and then determine priorities for treatment based on those evaluations. Triage helps medical personnel answer the important questions: "Which patients should be seen first? Which patient conditions are more urgent? Does anyone require immediate surgery?"

In an emergency room, it's not first come, first served basis. They evaluate each person's condition and treat them accordingly. Why? Because they have limited resources. They can't treat everybody at the same time, so they have to prioritize.

In his article, Albert Mohler suggests the "discipline of theological triage", which would require believers to evaluate the urgency of a theological issue or question before moving forward with debate and discussion.

He suggests three different levels of theological urgency:

First-Level Theological Issues

First-level theological issues would include "those doctrines most central and essential to the Christian faith". This would include the doctrines of the Trinity, the full deity and humanity of Jesus Christ, justification by faith, and the authority of Scripture. Any denial of these doctrines would be heresy. If you deny these truths, you are, by definition, not a Christian.

Second-Level Theological Issues

This level includes doctrines that believing Christians may disagree on, but this disagreement often creates significant boundaries. These differences usually define the boundaries between congregations and especially denominations. Second-order issues would include the meaning and mode of baptism, church polity and government, the nature of pastoral leadership,

Third-Level Theological Issues

Third-order issues are "doctrines over which Christians may disagree and remain in close fellowship, even within local congregations". This includes debates over eschatological timelines, interpretation of difficult texts, and ministry philosophy.

This structure of theological triage helps us explain the problems that arise in debates between Christians over theological issues. If both sides do not agree on the urgency of the issue at hand, the debate can quickly become unhelpful.

Mohler describes what this looks like in the two extremes:

"The error of theological liberalism is evident in a basic disrespect for biblical authority and the church's treasury of truth. The mark of true liberalism is the refusal to admit that first-order theological issues even exist. Liberals treat first-order doctrines as if they were merely third-order in importance, and doctrinal ambiguity is the inevitable result."

"Fundamentalism, on the other hand, tends toward the opposite error. The misjudgment of true fundamentalism is the belief that all disagreements concern first-order doctrines. Thus, third-order issues are raised to a first-order importance, and Christians are wrongly and harmfully divided."

Cross-References

Are some doctrines more foundational than others?

Can an error concerning a secondary doctrine may rest upon the denial of a primary doctrine?