Reflections on ambiguity

So, I’m going to Divinity school in about a month, so it seems appropriate to briefly look at where I am on the spiritual side of things.

I find most of my theological views to be a vaguely conservative muddle, insofar as the philosophers/theologians I respect tend to hold rather contradictory views (Barth and Aquinas are my two favorites- the problems there alone are virtually endless), but I find the form of life and thought offered by my (admittedly sparse) knowledge of the liberal, post-liberal, radical, and whatever else traditions unappealing. 

Clearly- something has to give.  And I see about five plausible directions given who I am at this point.

1. Becoming an Evangelical skeptic, convinced of the power of Christ for Salvation, but rather skeptical of my own knowledge claims about Christ. So something like I must say something to guide people to him, but my efforts at guiding are mere ostentation, not real description or definition.  (So, pretty much a more restrained Barth with a lot of Kierkegaard, dropping out most of the Aquinas)

2.  Moving towards a somewhat more literal reading of scripture and more traditionally conservative politics, accompanied by a frankly neo-Platonic metaphysics. 

3.  Becoming way more Hegelian in my reading of the Holy Spirit and the body of Christ, and moving more towards liberal views on most issues. (Oddly, this would also be inspired by Aquinas in some ways, in addition to presumably Hegel when I get the discipline to read him together). 

4.  Becoming post-modern in a different way and becoming some sort of Paleo-Orthodox guy deeply skeptical of my own epistemic state, and thus inquiring thru the history of the Church.  (So, probably Eastern Orthodoxy). 

5.  Becoming a Roman Catholic, though I suspect my strong reasons for refusing to join Catholicism will continue to defeat my overwhelming aesthetic attraction to the Catholic Faith.

So, number 3 involves becoming liberal, 1 becoming a convicted moderate, 2 and 4 becoming somewhat conservative, and number 5 involves becoming arch-conservative.  Betting is now open about which future will emerge victorious.