What is Young and Curious Theology?

The power of youth is the common wealth for the entire world. The faces of young people are the faces of our past, our present and our future. No segment in the society can match with the power, idealism, enthusiasm and courage of the young people.

Kailash Satyarthi

My name is Zeru Fitsum, and I’m a Young and Curious Theologian. Some of my friends call me “Young Theo,” and one of my favorite nicknames related to my love for theology was given to me by my favorite rapper, Kevin Elijah Burgess (aka KB). He once called me “the Ethiopian Theologian.” Don’t that rhyme nice?

I stole the name Young Theologian from Lecrae’s song “Facts” in which he says he’s a “young theologian who educated but still be at that chicken shack.” That line encapsulates the depths of God’s story I intend to peruse and the ordinary joys I partake in.

The reason I call myself a “Curious Theologian” is because at some point I made a shift from holding tightly onto the doctrines and ways of Christianity that I assumed were inflexible to approaching the Bible and my God with free-flying questions while trusting God can handle my curiosity, that it won’t always kill the cat. Obviously, this doesn’t mean I’ve abandoned all my convictions; I am just more prone to sit and meditate before finding a home in a particular camp, which I used to believe was necessary.

I have been interested in theology since I was fifteen years old. Don’t get it twisted, though, my entrance into the world of theology was never to stroke an ambition for academic prowess. It has always been inspired by the likes of Martin Luther King Jr. and the beloved Mary who inspected the tomb of Jesus.

They were pursuers of Justice and Devotion. Participants in Faith and Confusion. Advocates of Resistance and Hope.

These qualities are what inform my motivation to start this newsletter. Exploring the person of Jesus through the lens of youth, faith, devotion, and curiosity.

Both Martin and Mary were relatively young when they started their missions in life. Martin was 26 when asked to lead the bus boycotts that were a response to the horrid treatment of Rosa Parks, and the mission of his life was marked by protest against oppressive powers that belittled the vulnerable. The direct action, nonviolent movement he led was inspired by the love and spirit of Jesus.

We don’t really know how old Mary was when she went on her mission to anoint the corpse of Jesus; however, considering the youth of the disciples we know as the Twelve, my imagination places her in that age range as well. I do not assert this, though. Anyway, when Mary arrived at the tomb, she cried because she ain’t know where Jesus was nor what happened to him. And when she pleaded with that Gardner to show her the way to the presumably removed body of her Beloved, she heard Jesus’ voice in the One whom she had told: “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”¹

Both stories compel me to realize that (1) my youth does not inhibit me from doing societal good in the name of Jesus and (2) my curiosity (and sometimes desperation) to find Jesus might end in delightful surprise, though it could perhaps start with confusion and despair.

my youth does not inhibit me from doing societal good in the name of Jesus and my curiosity to find Jesus might end in delightful surprise, though it could perhaps start with confusion and despair.

For so long, and you can ask anyone who knows me, I’ve feared that writing publicly (while so young) on things that are meaningful to me would reflect an attitude of pride and an eagerness to be noticed. But, I’m now comforted that the truth is: I just want to pour out what’s bubbling inside of me, and I want to connect with others via the art of writing.

And though I’m young (23) and got no expertise, my voice can serve as an encouragement to those who are also young yet contain so much power and goodness within them; my observations, while never meant to be authoritative, can still be enlightening and refreshing; my perspective can challenge while it accepts (hopefully humbly) that I am still quite impressionable.

And because I’m curious, my encounters with Jesus are more shaped by a desire to listen than it is to have an impenetrable dogma; my openness to find him not just in the Scriptures, but in the mistaken identity of something like a gardener, is more pronounced; my frustrations that I don’t always know where or how to find Jesus will be evident in my later articles; and my ability to change my mind on something as a result of hearing another’s perspective (specifically one from the margins) is more voluntary.

This is Young and Curious Theology: the embrace of the limits of a youthful perspective AND the excitement over the possibilities to step into courageous love due to curiosity.

It aims to point to love more than it tries to instruct on HOW to love, though I do take my cues on how to love from Jesus, as best as I can understand his instructions.

Moving forward, I’d like to look at the passages of those such as the young girl Jesus calls Talitha (little girl or maiden) and raises from the dead; the young children Jesus welcomes; the rich young ruler and his poignant, curious question, etc.

My writing won’t be limited to these stories, of course. I hope to make theological connections to the world I inhabit, the movies I watch, and the books I read as well!

So, welcome to those of you who find this sort of pilgrimage worthy of tracking. I hope this intersection of the young and the curious is a blessing to all of you.

Feel free to subscribe my substack via email and to share this page and its upcoming reflections to anyone you feel would benefit :).

Let’s do this thang!

1. John 20:15, NIV