Trinitarian Formation

 I think that formation is one of the key issues going forward for the church in relation to climate and environment emergency. This is because some degree of change -no; damage and loss- is baked in and the only question is how bad it will get and where? And following on from that is how will we Christians respond? In response to those challenges, I think we need, NOW, to be discipling each other in ways that will equip us to be good neighbours in climate and environmental emergencies. So it is vital that we re/consider how to disciple well -or to put it otherly: how to do good Christian formation. So my interest in this book is to enable to make sure my own thinking about formation's current agenda is Trinitarian.

One of the things I found helpful in reading this is the interaction with JKA Smith, where the latter's questioning of the Reformed Christian 'cognitive first' approach is affirmed though the replacement with centring desire/love/worship is critiqued because a more plural and interactive approach is argued to be needed (drawing on Frame's insights) -all of head, hand and heart, so to speak. I think that this is right and found myself calling to mind times when I had noticed in myself and other learners times when different ones of the list are to the fore but noting also that it is interactive, complex, feedback sensitive.

This helped me to become clearer about what the basic model being offered is proposing. I found it helpful too that it was also secured within a Trinitarian theological framework. I hadn't previously come across James Frame's epistempological work and this, for me, was a good way to find out about it.

I think I take away into my further explorations about Christian formation in climate emergency the need to attend to all three dimensions of human learning/formation as well as to consider the ways that they may typically interact and support or reinforce one another. It reinforces my having begun to think about CSF in this sort of multi-pronged fashion and gives me an overview map of the dimensions to consider and how in broad terms they work together. This, I think, should help give me a degree of clarity in assembling and laying out proposals.

Link-Love for this Review

Trinitarian Formation on Amazon
J. Chase Davis’ Website

Tag #TrinitarianFormation

I should mention I received this book for review on the basis that I would review it but I was under no obligation to make the review favourable -or otherwise.