The Reflective Disciple

Roger Walton

Description

Helps readers to explore the concept of discipleship beginning with the New Testament, and through examining snapshots of various patterns of discipleship as well as reflecting on discipleship in our contemporary context and setting.

Informations

• Publié par: Hymns Ancient & Modern
• Date de parution: 24 juillet 2014
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780334048817
• Langue: English

Extrait

The Reflective Disciple





The Reflective Disciple
Learning to live as faithful followers of Jesus in the twenty-first century
Roger L. Walton






© Roger Walton 2009, 2012
Published in 2012 by SCM Press
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Previously published in 2009 by
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The Author has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the Author of this Work
British Library Cataloguing in Publication data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
978-0-334-04602-8
978-0-334-04603-5
Typeset by Regent Typesetting, London
Printed and bound in Great Britain by CPI Group ( UK ) Ltd, Croydon CR0 4YY




Contents
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. The Dialogue of Discipleship
2. The Context of Our Discipleship
3. A Fresh Picture of God
4. The Rhythm of Discipleship
5. The Reflective Disciple
6. Christian Communities in which Disciples Grow




Dedication
Dedicated to Bill Denning (1934–2007)
who taught me much about being a reflective disciple




Acknowledgements
Many people have helped this book to appear. It would be foolish to try to name all of them, for some have contributed by small conversations, others by gentle encouragement and kindly patience, some have inspired by the practice of their Christian discipleship and others have read drafts and debated ideas with me. Almost certainly in an attempt to name all I would miss a vital contributor. I want simply to make mention of a few. My colleagues at the Wesley Study Centre, Jocelyn Bryan and Andrew Lunn, helped me make time to work on this text by shouldering work that would have fallen to me, and students of Cranmer Hall and the Wesley Study Centre who read early drafts of chapters and offered their enthusiastic and honest comments. Jeff Astley and James Dunn set me off on the project, while Julie Lunn and Adrian Smith spent many hours reading the chapters of the book and helping me express my ideas more clearly. My wife, Marion and my adult children, Laura and Andrew, also believed in the enterprise and shared in the proofreading. I am grateful to all these and a host more people. Any persisting faults are however entirely my own doing.




Introduction
Splendid are those who take sides with the poor:
They are citizens of the Bright New World.
Splendid are those who grieve deeply over misfortunes:
The more deeply they grieve, the stronger they become.
Splendid are the gentle:
The world is safe in their hands.
Splendid are those who have a passion for justice:
They will get things done.
Splendid are those who make allowances for others:
Allowances will be made for them.
Splendid are those who seek the best for others and not themselves:
They will have God for company.
Splendid are those who help enemies to be friends:
They will be recognized as God’s true children.
Splendid are those who have a rough time of it because they stand up for what is right:
They too are citizens of the Bright New World.
Matthew 5.3–12, Good as New translation 1
On 16 October 2007 The Guardian G2 magazine carried a story about the England rugby team. This was not surprising, as it was the week before the final of the World Cup in which England were to play South Africa. There was a bit of rugby fever all that week, made more intense by the fact that England had performed dismally in the opening stages of the competition and then gone on, against all the odds, to beat both Australia, the favourites, and France, the hosts. In the lead up to the match, the article was exploring how well the teams represented the countries whose names they carried, in terms of the range of people in the squads. Attempting to show how inclusive and representative the England team was, there were short profiles of players, including one on Jason Robinson who, according to the journalist, was ‘proof that the squad can absorb a player from any background’. Robinson was presented as ‘different’ in two ways. First, he was a working-class lad from Chapeltown, Leeds, born of a white mother and black father he never knew and, second, he had become a ‘born-again Christian who now eschews nights out with his team mates in favour of a takeaway pizza and Bible study in his room’. 2
There are several things of interest in this journalistic snippet. First, there is an assumption that to be a Christian is somehow different and odd. A century earlier it would have been almost unthinkable to suggest that being a Christian and playing rugby for England were somehow strange or incompatible attributes. Now, it seems, people professing Christian faith are perceived as unusual and it is an exceptional case when such people can be included in a national team. Ironically, attitudes to faith may have moved in the opposite direction to the other ‘difference’ noted about Jason Robinson: his ethnic and working class origins. It is not difficult to believe that the racist attitudes prevalent in the structure of our society would have made it very difficult for someone who was born of a white mother and black father to reach the top of the sporting world in Britain even 40 years ago despite his or her outstanding talent. One hopes that this may have changed profoundly, though the article may bear witness to a continued prejudice. If, on the other hand, the journalist intended to say that now talent wins out, then it makes the view on faith even more striking. For, while attitudes that discriminated and excluded on the basis of ethnic or class background may be being broken, during the same period, being a Christian has increasingly been seen as odd and marginal. British Society has changed profoundly in its view of religion. The media now regularly portrays Christian faith as quaint – a curious hangover from the past; or quirky – the unusual interest of a few; or even dangerous – a view of life that only brings division or destruction or holds humanity up in its progress. 3 It should be clear that to choose to be a follower of Jesus today will not be done to court popularity and gain society’s approval. To be a disciple today in the UK is often to be at odds with the wider culture, and thus the path is a hard one to take.
Second, the article’s cameo of what it means to be a Christian is interesting. According to this brief picture of Jason Robinson, following Jesus is not about drinking or having a good night out with the lads but is about studying the Bible. Even if the report is inaccurate about Jason’s Christian lifestyle, these phrases in the article suggest that being Christian, in most people’s minds, takes a concrete and discernible form. There are things you do and things you do not do, which mark out that you are a follower of Christ. In other words, discipleship is to do with identifiable practices – regular activities, actions and attitudes – that characterize the life of a Christian.
Most Christians would want to add to this brief and perhaps misleading set of characteristics. Many would include the practice of forgiveness, loving one’s neighbour and witnessing to faith. Others would stress the struggle for justice for all people, especially the poor and vulnerable. Some might include the practices of fasting, or regular sharing in the Eucharist, or embracing non-violence as a way of life. There would be many that would point to the beatitudes (good attitudes and actions) quoted at the beginning of this introduction. Perhaps all would want to cite the practice of prayer and worship as a feature of Christian life. Jeff Astley 4 identifies a range of attributes that includes beliefs, actions, attitudes and emotions which together constitute what it means to be Christian. Thus, Christians, as well as those who observe them, accept that discipleship is, at least in part, located in a set of characteristics and practices.
There are some intriguing features missing from this miniature sketch of Christian discipleship. Notice that it speaks of Jason Robinson becoming a Christian but tells us nothing about the story of this change. How did it happen, who was involved, what experience did he go through and how did this change his relationship to God? All this is hidden from us, and while the author cannot be indicted for not telling us everything about Jason Robinson’s faith story – he was after all writing about rugby – the one-line summary of Christian commitment he offers us omits some vital ingredients.
One can find out a little more about Jason Robinson’s conversion. Apparently, another great rugby player had a considerable influence on him. Va’aiga Tuigamala, nicknamed Inga the Winger, was a team mate of Jason Robinson at Wigan and his quiet contentment with life made a big impression on Robinson. 5 It was not until later that Robinson became a Christian himself but the relationship and what he saw in his team mate was important. Through this he sensed and discovered a relationship with God for himself. I can