Theology is faith seeking understanding. It is a faithful listening to and a systematic, methodical articulation of the message of the Word of God. This Word was first revealed to Israel and then it was revealed in the person of Jesus Christ, himself both the mediator and sum total of Revelation, the word of God. This dei verbum is transmitted in the living tradition of the Church. Admittedly, our Western civilization cannot be properly understood without some knowledge of Christianity, which is both a basis and an integral part of our cultural heritage. The study of theology, however, is much more than an essential discipline in the liberal arts education, it has a higher and more comprehensive aim. In relating humanity and the world to their absolute origin and end, theology imparts an ultimate unity to our understanding of reality and helps us, as no purely human discipline can, to see and fulfill the meaning of human existence.