Evangelicals Engaging in Practical Theology

Theology that Impacts Church and World

Helen Morris, Helen Cameron, Helen Morris, Helen Cameron

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781000546699
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Theology

This book aims to introduce a distinctively evangelical voice to the discipline of practical theology. Evangelicals have sometimes seen practical theology as primarily a 'liberal' project. This collection, however, actively engages with practical theology from an evangelical perspective, both through discussion of the substantive issues and by providing examples of practical theology done by evangelicals in the classroom, the church, and beyond. This volume brings together established and emerging voices to debate the growing role which practical theology is playing in evangelical and Pentecostal circles. Chapters begin by addressing methodological concerns, before moving into areas of practice. Additionally, there are four short papers from students who make use of practical theology to reflect upon their own practice. Issues of authority and normativity are tackled head on in a way that will inform the debate both within and beyond evangelicalism. This book will, therefore, be of keen interest to scholars of practical, evangelical, and Pentecostal theology.

Part I

Engaging with the discipline

DOI: 10.4324/9781003094975-2

1 Practical theology and evangelicalism

Methodological considerations¹

Andrew Thomas

DOI: 10.4324/9781003094975-3

Introduction

Ever since I came to faith in an independent church in Surrey in 1990, I have identified myself as an evangelical Christian. Over the past 30 years I have been exposed to varied forms of evangelical Christianity and theological questions have been posed by the practices of others, none more so than in my time as a doctoral student in the department of Practical Theology at the University of South Africa (UNISA). The issues raised at UNISA have continued to challenge me, initially as a someone involved in church leadership, and more recently as a theological educator with Moorlands College.

Many of the challenges I have faced as an evangelical practical theologian have focused around methodology. In this chapter, I will be using a definition provided by Swinton and Mowat who note that methodology, ‘has to do with an overall approach to a particular field. It implies a family of methods that have in common particular philosophical and epistemological assumptions.’² Different forms of theology can adopt divergent methodologies and it is the interaction between some of the methodologies of evangelical theology and those utilised within areas of practical theology that will be my focus here. Definitions for practical theology and evangelicalism will be offered before definitive aspects of evangelical theology are considered alongside methodological issues that can exist in theological practice. The chapter will conclude with proposals encouraging evangelicals to broader engagement with practical theology. Evangelicalism is a global phenomenon and I have been impacted by this diversity of thinking during my studies and ministry. I have therefore included sources and material that reflect this interaction.

What is practical theology?

Attempts to define practical theology have often led to two extremes: some have felt it to be undefinable, whilst others have offered overly simplified suggestions that have failed to capture the complexity of the discipline.³ A suitably broad definition is offered by Miller-McLemore who states:

practical theology refers to an activity of believers seeking to sustain a life of reflective faith in the everyday, a method or way of analyzing theology in practice used by religious leaders and by teachers and students across the theological curriculum, a curricular area in theological education focused on ministerial practice and subspecialties, and, finally, an academic discipline pursued by a smaller subset of scholars to support and sustain these first three enterprises.⁴

The breadth of this definition is significant for several reasons. First, in seeing the active faith of believers as practical theology it embraces the significance of the ‘ordinary theology’ of the global church.⁵ Second, the identification of method recognises the important role that methods play in any practical theological process. Third, the recognition of ministerial training allows for the integration of the applied aspect of practical theology. Finally, the inclusion of academia acknowledges the role of thinkers in this field of activity.

What does it mean to be evangelical?

Those attempting to identify the distinctive features of evangelicalism often gravitate towards the work of Bebbington⁶ who outlines four key evangelical distinctives:

1. Biblicism: through history, evangelicals have used a mix of tradition, experience, and reason. However, the Bible is always seen to have ultimate authority in all aspects of faith and practice.
2. Crucicentrism: the death of Christ on the cross, and his resurrection from the grave, are held as centrally important by evangelicals.
3. Conversionism: evangelicals believe that there needs to be a definite turning away from a sinful life to living in the way of Jesus Christ.
4. Activism: evangelical faith moves its adherents to spread the good news of Jesus Christ.

Bebbington’s work was published over 30 years ago, and scholars have since suggested additions to his original quadrilateral.⁷ I have considered many of the arguments but remain to be convinced that areas like the work of the Holy Spirit or fellowship, that can be found ‘folded in’ to Bebbington’s original distinctives,⁸ are evidenced ‘everywhere, always, and by all.’⁹ So, whilst aware that other distinctives have been offered, I will structure the considerations in this chapter around the four areas listed above.

Biblicism and initiation

I start my methodological considerations by looking at the role the Bible plays in practical theology. Specifically, I will focus on the interpretive paradigm and the issues that surround what I have termed here ‘initiation’: the point of departure in any practical theological study. As noted earlier, practical theology is a discipline with many approaches or ‘orientations’,¹⁰ and tensions exist between forms of practical theology and evangelicalism. Evangelicals would have no problems with what Pieterse would see as the ‘Scripture and context’ form of practical theology evident in some South African colleges as this approach sees the biblical message deduced for the context in a dogmatic way.¹¹ Conversely, evangelicals would reject what Cartledge sees as the ‘excluded approach’; practical theology that doesn’t engage with the Bible in any obvious way.¹² However, between these black and white extremes lie grey areas where practical theologians engage with Scripture but differ as to when it should be used in the process.

The problem regarding initiation lies in the pre-eminence that is given to ‘going first’ in the practical theological task. This is highlighted in the work of the liberal practical theologian Zoë Bennett who, whilst considering what she sees as three broad ways of approaching the theory to practice relationship, asks two questions: ‘Where do you start?’ and ‘What do you trust?’¹³ Continuing on with her work it is clear that she believes that you will always start with what you trust most. When she writes, ‘Behind starting with and giving precedence to,’¹⁴ it is evident that Bennett believes there to be a clear link between precedence and initiation. In her case precedence, and the point of initiation, goes to the idiographic method that starts with lived experience. Evangelicals who follow a ‘Scripture and Context’ course would disagree and would argue for a point of initiation in Scripture.

So, where can one go with this area that is given such significance by evangelicals and practical theologians? A way forward would be to stop giving precedence to the point of initiation. Reasoning for this view can be built through a progression of points. First, I believe Bennett is correct when she sees pre-understanding being used to interpret Scripture because this is evident in the biblical narrative itself. This is supported by the evangelical theologian John Stott who highlights the significance of lived experience in his consideration of the Cornelius episode in Acts 10. He writes:

Peter’s order of events is important because it helps us to live through his experience with him, and so to learn just how God has shown him that he should not call anybody impure or unclean (10:28). It took four successive hammer-blows of divine revelation before his racial and religious prejudice was overcome, as he explains to the Jerusalem church.¹⁵

By using this language Stott clarifies that divine revelation for Peter came through a lived experience of the Holy Spirit and that prejudices, undoubtably formed through an interpretation of Scripture, were removed.

This noted, just because an interpretive process can start with life experience does not mean it always starts with life experience. Cartledge recognises that the reality for many Christians is that the Bible permeates their daily activities and scriptures will ‘provide points of departure for theological thinking and practice.’¹⁶ One can also argue that it is impossible to completely filter out the influence that doctrine and experience have on our approaches to theological thinking and action. Ward notes that identifying clear starting points is methodologically problematic because whatever the angle proposed ‘the experience of the Christian community and the doctrine of the community are in us and have formed us.’¹⁷ Approaches that seem straightforward when explained in a classroom can become blurred in practice when influenced by this ‘affective gravitational pull of the church.’¹⁸

The discussion in this section so far does not appear to have been helpful in that is has led to what appears to be an impasse. This can, however, be an opportunity to explore other approaches that move towards a more complementary methodology for undertaking evangelical practical theology. One way that is worth exploring is a pneumatological appreciation of the language of inspiration and illumination in the process of interpretation. Evangelical scholar Stanley Grenz explores this area by focusing on the work of the Spirit in the community of God’s people in both the compilation, comprehension, and communication of Scripture. He notes that, when one looks at the biblical accounts of the life of the community of Israel and the early church, God was often present with his people in ways beyond their ability to comprehend.¹⁹ Grenz continues by saying, ‘Our bibliology, therefore, must develop a deepened appreciation for the role of the community in the process that led to the composition, compilation and canonization of the Bible.’²⁰

In focusing on the work of the Spirit in the community of God’s people Grenz is making a significant point. He is saying that evangelicals must extend beyond a view of the Spirit moving individuals to form Scripture (inspiration) to one that recognises an on-going process of illumination in the people of God. Specifically, Grenz says:

Critical to and lying behind the production of the biblical documents and the coming together of the Bible into a single canon was the illuminating work of the Spirit. The community found these books to be the vehicle through which God addr...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Series Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Acknowledgements
• List of contributors
• Introduction
• PART I: Engaging with the discipline
• PART II: Engaging with education
• PART III: Engaging with practice
• PART IV: Engagement by students
• PART V: Theology that impacts church and world
• Bibliography
• Subject Index
• Author Index
• Biblical Index