Intelligence Needed for Theology?

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Is having a high intelligence necessary to study and practice the Theological Arts? For example, within 5 points of (or above) the average (100) if we are calling IQ ‘intelligence’. I know that having an intelligence is one of the things that makes us unique as humans and that that doesn’t make more intelligent people more human. But with most fields of study (from Math to general Philosophy), it would seem as though higher intelligence plays a role in acheiving success in those areas. So how much does that apply to Theology? I would like a real, in-depth explaination for why. Thanks!
 
“Is it necessary” would of course be ‘no’. St John Vianney wasn’t considered an intelligent guy by his contemporaries but he is the patron saint of priests and one of the or the most recognized Confessors in history.

A modern theology major (Catholic) is a hybrid of philosophy, spiritual reading (particularly in the study of revealed texts), and possibly some communication/leadership related courses.

“Intelligence” is a nebulous concept and when we refer to intelligence in the singular, we’re really referring to a complex and poorly understood vast combination of cognitive processes.

The idea of emotional intelligence is even less understood and some would argue that it isn’t ‘a thing’ at all, but taking emotions into account for a minute, one must realize that emotions can often either enhance or get in the way of the intellect. For example, a person might have an extremely high intelligence (whatever that is), but if they are constantly getting entangled in confirmation bias, a hypersensitive self-esteem, discouragement, etc., then the chances of having a prestigious career or even an exceptional life at all are remarkably low since encountering resistance from other people and from within is guaranteed. How well that emotional makeup mixes and cooperates with the intellectual faculties of the person is going to reflect their overall professional character.

Peace.
 
St John Vianney wasn’t considered an intelligent guy by his contemporaries but he is the patron saint of priests and one of the or the most recognized Confessors in history.
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St Thomas Aquinas nickname in school was “Dumb Ox” because he appeared to be a bit simple-minded. Of course, he was anything but.
 
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Instead of wondering if you have the ability to learn theology, why don’t you pick up a book and get started?
 
More like common sense. Most of the people who go around quoting Canon Law or rubrics can’t really grasp it.
There’s so much more to Theology than just learning the rules.
If you’re studying it, you will find out.
 
The most important piece of doing theology well is to have a living, authentic relationship with God. That’s why someone like St. Therese of Lisieux—who had little formal education and died at the age of 24—is nonetheless a “doctor of the Church” because of the great spiritual depth of her writing.

We use the gifts that God has given us. I think the type of intelligence measured by IQ tests can be an asset to studying theology. But I wouldn’t say it is the only thing that matters.
 
But that’s what I mean. Apparently intelligence includes the ability to understand and make connections between concepts. Although Theology is a very broad term, it would seem as though that ability is part of what makes it easier for me to understand.
 
That’s what the classes do though. It removes the scales from our eyes.
Go.
It’s wonderful.
 
“I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.”

Although knowledge and wisdom are both gifts of the Holy Spirit, they mean nothing without humility and childlike simplicity.
 
I had a 6th grade teacher once who did not like me. She told my mother I was the dumbest kid in the class and put back in third grade. She called me a dumb foreigner who just came over on the ship.

My IQ tests are in the 130-140 range, and I have taken more than one. I also took a test that put me in a post-doctorate category. That was a random test, as were the IQ tests random.

Go figure. Intelligence is in the eyes of the beholder, it seems, and if someone doesn’t like you they will call you stupid no matter what you do.
 
I don’t think people really necessarily think that deep down. There’s just something about the person that annoys them.

I’m convinced the reason minors are treated so atrociously by some of the adults here is because said adults are ego-wounded seeing a person so much further along than they were at that age. Either that or they come from a background where it’s considered normal and morally acceptable to browbeat youth.
 
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The answer is no, intelligence is not relative to theology. Intelligence does seem to be important to the protestant theologian and the atheist theologian, but it is not to the Catholic Theologian. The most important attribute to a Catholic Theologian is humility.
 
woolycaterpillar said:
I had a 6th grade teacher once who did not like me. She told my mother I was the dumbest kid in the class and put back in third grade. She called me a dumb foreigner who just came over on the ship.
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My friend, yes, life is unfair, and the people we put into teaching positions (and even leadership positions) are often quite honestly, hideous at what they do, and I spend a great deal of time perplexed by the difficult problem of how I can fix these atrocities without being a dictator, and or slapping people.
 
When we die, Jesus isn’t going to sit us down for a theology exam.

Learn everything you can about theology, philosophy, science, history and so forth. It honors God when we use the talents He gave us.
But beware of turning into a prideful know-it-all.
 
Definitely. Theology is just a field of study but it is not required for salvation. Theology is just the logic behind God but we don’t have to believe the logic to believe in God etc.
 
Just some time among those with theology degrees. Then you’ll have your answer. 😎
 
According to The reason why atheists are more intelligent than religious people, according to researchers , religious people are less intelligent on average than atheists because faith is an instinct and clever people are better at rising above their instincts, researchers have claimed.

The theory — called the ‘Intelligence-Mismatch Association Model’ — was proposed by a pair of authors who set out to explain why numerous studies over past decades have found religious people to have lower average intelligence than people who do not believe in a god.
 
A lot of philosophy and theology is complicated even for extremely intelligent people, think of studying it as practice even if you only take a small amount of info from a book it’s worth it.
 
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