Monday, July 12
Ch. 10-How the Disciplines Nourish Spirituality
Thanks for the many responses. They will result in an interactive book. Part II of the book deals with nourishing Christian spirituality through the church (ch. 5), worship (ch. 6), the Word (ch. 7), Eucharist (ch. 8), prayer (ch. 9), and the disciplines (ch. 10). Each chapter deals with (1) the current crises. (2) The ancient understanding and practice. (3) Nourishing baptismal identity (union with Christ), and (4) Nourishing the baptismal pattern of spirituality (dying and rising). Don't try to comment on the whole chapter. Concentrate on one or two aspects of the chapter, especially where you have an observation or example. Thanks!
Ch. 10-How the Disciplines Nourish Spirituality
A. Crisis of a disciplined spirituality In spite of the recovery of the spiritual disciplines, many Christians are still baffled by the meaning and practices of spirituality. The primary crisis is the attempt to generate the spiritual life by viewing the disciplines as ways of attaining to a condition of spirituality. We must recover the "gift" nature of spirituality and embrace the disciplines of the spiritual life as the means to grow in Christian character and depth.
B. What can we learn from the ancient church? The various disciplines of spirituality-the inward, the outward, and the corporate-were all planted as seeds in Scripture. They began to grow in the ancient period of history and continued to flower in the medieval era. Many of these disciplines were dropped by the Reformers and ignored during the modern era of Protestant history. However, the postmodern interest in things spiritual has resulted in the revival of the ancient disciplines to order the spiritual path.
C. How do the spiritual disciplines nourish our spiritual identity? The disciplines continually impress upon us who we are. Humanity has been united to God through the union of God with man in the Incarnation. In baptism we have affirmed our choice to be united with Jesus and through him united to God. So the disciplines are not "works" or "strivings" to "achieve" union. Instead, they are the means by which we become more aware of the union we already have with God and the means by which the Holy Spirit deepens our experience of union with God.
D. How do the spiritual disciplines nourish the pattern of dying to sin and rising to the new life in Christ? The disciplines call us to die to sin and rise to new life in Christ. Through the disciplines we are continually embracing practices that mortify the "old man" and call forth the "new man." The disciplines are not a system of works or a laborious set of rules that result in a morbid or unpleasant life. No, the disciplines set us free from the habits of sin that are destructive to life and result in a freedom to practice the new life of the Spirit.
Do you have an illustration or an observation that should be included in the book? Write me at: rwebber@northern.seminary.edu
Bob Webber
Myers Professor of Ministry
Director of M.A. in Worship and Spirituality
Northern Seminary—www.seminary.edu
(See Northern's M.A. in Worship and Spirituality and D.Min. in Worship by clicking on the website.)
