Just What Is Christian Spirituality?

by Neal Windham

In 1993, while returning from a Society of Biblical Literature meeting in San Francisco, I had a deep encounter with the living God. Having picked up Henri Nouwen”s In the Name of Jesus, I was confronted very directly with a question of terrifying significance: Had my life and work counted for anything, anything at all, or was I just playing games?

That night, somewhere around 35,000 feet, God used one of the truly great Christian spirituality writers of the 20th century to begin stripping away layer upon layer of my selfishness and conceit. Since then I have devoured many books and articles on the subject, but one central question continues to vex me: Just what is Christian spirituality?

Among those who teach and write in the area, there is still no clear consensus.

Just Another Fad?

One glib response I sometimes hear from skeptics is that since no one seems to know precisely what Christian spirituality is, we can dismiss the subject altogether. It”s just another fad, soon to disappear, like the myriad books on angels back in the 1990s or centuries-old Gregorian plainchant, also popular in the 1990s. But what I wish to argue here is that our relatively recent fascination with angels and chant point to something much, much deeper; I believe these are, in fact, two of many symptoms of an ever deepening spiritual chasm in the Western soul (think WWJD, The Purpose-Driven Life, endless end-time speculation, etc.).

To dismiss Christian spirituality as faddish or trendy is something akin to dismissing the importance of the economy or the war in Iraq to the November 2008 elections. People really are searching for change in the ever-present wake of 9/11, homes lost to foreclosure, and retirement savings gone forever. However, what they are too often missing is that Jesus Christ can and already has delivered what Washington cannot (and never will)!

This then is the abiding quest of Christian spirituality: an ever-conscious walk, not with John McCain or Barack Obama (or CNN or Fox News), but with God, who in Christ and through the Spirit has given humanity a highly satisfying and deeply spiritual existence. Such is the heart and soul of what we are here calling Christian spirituality.

Think back to the emerging phenomenon of Christian pastoral counseling in the 1960s and “70s. At that time theologians often looked askance at any connection between psychology and Christian faith in the seminaries. But today there are relatively few seminaries anywhere that do not offer programming in Christian counseling. In fact, what once were viewed with deep suspicion at church-affiliated schools are now among the more prominent programs in many seminaries.

Just as people have discovered the vital importance of Christian counseling in order to maintain biblically informed mental health for the purpose of faithful discipleship, they are now beginning to see the growing importance of the centuries-old art of spiritual direction, for example, for discovering and maintaining spiritual vitality through constant awareness of God”s abiding presence.1 In fact, I believe in the very near future we can expect to see at least some Stone-Campbell seminaries offering MA”s in spiritual formation (or “Christian formation”) just as they do counseling degrees today. Many evangelical schools already do, including Wheaton and Biola.

High Hurdles

But this will not happen overnight. There are significant hurdles along the way. First, there is historical confusion about Christian spirituality. Where does the terminology come from, and what does it mean? Much has been written about the complicated history of moral, ascetical, spiritual, and mystical theology as possible precursors to what we are now calling Christian spirituality.2 The terms should not be confused. In my view, Christian spirituality is the conscious practice of and consequent life integration resulting from an authentic relationship with God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and with his creation.3 Hang on to this definition. We”ll return to it in a moment.

Second, there is a lack of coherence regarding methods and aims within the study of Christian spirituality. Some, for example, study Christian spirituality as an academic discipline that seeks to integrate resources such as sociology, psychology, philosophy, and theology with the biblical way of life. As such, Christian spirituality is clearly an interdisciplinary enterprise with almost unending theoretical applications.

Others are concerned largely with implementing the actual practice of Christian spirituality along the lines of spiritual disciplines such as Scripture reading, fasting, meditation, silence, solitude, and prayer. These practitioners speak often of “spiritual formation” as the process of enacting a truly Christian spirituality, particularly at the level of personal Christian growth.

Still others call attention to the corporate dimensions and dynamics of spiritual reality. In other words, how do corporate worship and small groups ministry, for example, serve as conduits for growth in faith and practice? Here, Christian spirituality finds itself at home with worship ministry and Christian education programs in church schools preparing people for ministry.

All of these approaches have some merit, but what holds them together? Is there a common aim among them? In order for Christian spirituality to be taken seriously and understood, we cannot ignore these questions.

Third, Christian spirituality is often viewed in a negative light by evangelicals due to its association with Greek dualism. Words like contemplative and mystical have repeatedly drawn criticism, some of it deserved, as applied to the practice of spiritual formation today.

In general, while the Jewish (and biblical) roots of our spirituality have sought to integrate all dimensions of human reality (heart, soul, mind, and strength), Greek dualism has had the adverse effect of separating body from soul, resulting in distorted theology and even self-mutilation!

Ultimately, the foundation of Christian spirituality must be built upon Scripture”s own teaching on the matter; Christian spirituality is first and foremost a biblical enterprise.

Toward a Working Definition

Earlier in this essay I spoke of Christian spirituality as the conscious practice of and consequent life integration resulting from an authentic relationship with God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and with his creation. Let”s examine this definition by identifying its key features.

“¢ First, Christian spirituality is a deliberately conscious practice of God”s presence. Brother Lawrence, a lay Carmelite, and Frank Laubach, missionary to the Philippines, are sterling examples of people who chose to think God and live in the light of his presence all day, every day.4 I am convinced if we are to walk with God in any meaningful way, we must begin to train ourselves to practice the divine presence at all times and in all places.

This is not merely a “What would Jesus do?” approach to life. Rather, it is deep commitment to live as people who are in constant, obedient conversation with God about everything. And it begins with equally constant attentiveness to his words (Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1:2; 119:97). Only in this way will all our actions begin to take on a deliberately godly look so that all of our thoughts, words, and deeds can be brought under the penetrating light of his truth (2 Corinthians 10:5).

“¢ Second, Christian spirituality is conceived and practiced as an authentic relationship with the triune Christian God. I once asked an Oxford PhD who teaches Christian theology, “What is Christian spirituality?” Expecting a long, drawn-out, deeply theological answer, I was surprised to hear only two words: “Experiencing God.” That”s it.

I am reminded here of the Wesleyan Quadrilateral (based on the teachings of John Wesley), which consists of getting to know and understand God based upon Scripture, tradition, reason, and experience. Our relationship with God is clearly tied to the deep truths of Christian Scripture, as well as church tradition and human reason. But it is also deeply experiential.

Disciplines like intense intercessory prayer (Acts 12:5) and appropriate fasting (Acts 13:2) are highly relational and very existential means of connecting with the heavenly Father. Extensive meditation on the Passion of Christ (Matthew 26, 27), alongside work among the suffering (victims of AIDS, disasters, and homelessness, for example), help cement our relationship to the Son in tactile ways. Singing, giving thanks, and submitting, Paul tells us, are fruit of the Spirit-filled life, in this case, signifying a strong relationship with God, the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18-21).

Herein lies genuine Christian authenticity, that we continually work at our relationship with God (our primary relationship in all of life), much as we work at our relationships within marriages and families, and, for that matter, with all creation!5

“¢ Third, these sustained efforts at living with and for God, people, and all creation in self-transcending, conscious ways are aimed at holistic life integration. God has wired us to serve in joy-filled, peaceable, and loving ways. When any part of our existence is threatened by enemies, self-doubt, suffering, or fear, we are diminished and so are those around us. The disciplined practice of Christian spirituality thus resources both personal and corporate needs for meaningful, well-integrated life, and it also bears faithful witness among all people that the resurrected Lord Jesus is today at work in his second incarnation, the church.

Holistic life integration in not a synonym for self-help; genuine Christian spirituality impacts everyone in the name of Jesus. It is, in other words, evangelistic.

________

1Spiritual direction is a prayer process, whereby a spiritual director and his or her directee establish an ongoing conversation about life in the Spirit, particularly as this life relates to what has been called “Practicing the Presence” of God, that is, walking with God in a conscious way throughout our days on earth.

2See, for example, Evan B. Howard, The Brazos Introduction to Christian Spirituality (Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2008), 20, 21.

3Sandra Schneiders, “Christian Spirituality: Definition, Methods and Types,” in The New Westminster Dictionary of Christian Spirituality, ed. Philip Sheldrake (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 2005), 1. This essay introduced me to the helpful notion of “life integration.” She also speaks of “conscious involvement” and “self transcendence” as key ingredients in her definition of spirituality.

4Brother Lawrence, Practicing the Presence (Cosimo Classics, 2006), and Frank Laubach, Letters from a Modern Mystic (Purposeful Designs Publications, 2007).

5Steven Bouma-Prediger, For the Beauty of the Earth: A Christian Vision for Creation Care (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2001), provides a wonderful analysis of what I mean by our relationship with all creation.

 

 


Neal Windham, is chair of the New Testament and Greek department at Lincoln (Illinois) Christian College.