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Friends, I’m not sure what to make of D. A. Carson‘s recent piece on spiritual disciplines in the pages of Themelios. Let’s say I’m processing. I see in his reflections both unfortunate Protestant bias (I think he misses entirely the intense Christocentrism of medieval mystics such as Julian of Norwich, which his colleague Carl Trueman in an earlier piece in the same organ did NOT miss), and acute gospel wisdom (“disciplines” must not mean gritting our teeth and doing things under our own steam–a point he makes later in the piece). I’d be interested in comments from y’all. Below is a sample. The whole article may be found here.
How shall we evaluate this popular approach to the spiritual disciplines? How should we think of spiritual disciplines and their connection with spirituality as defined by Scripture? Some introductory reflections:
(1) The pursuit of unmediated, mystical knowledge of God is unsanctioned by Scripture, and is dangerous in more than one way. It does not matter whether this pursuit is undertaken within the confines of, say, Buddhism (though informed Buddhists are unlikely to speak of “unmediated mystical knowledge of God“—the last two words are likely to be dropped) or, in the Catholic tradition, by Julian of Norwich. Neither instance recognizes that our access to the knowledge of the living God is mediated exclusively through Christ, whose death and resurrection reconcile us to the living God. To pursue unmediated, mystical knowledge of God is to announce that the person of Christ and his sacrificial work on our behalf are not necessary for the knowledge of God. Sadly, it is easy to delight in mystical experiences, enjoyable and challenging in themselves, without knowing anything of the regenerating power of God, grounded in Christ’s cross work.
(2) We ought to ask what warrants including any particular item on a list of spiritual disciplines. For Christians with any sense of the regulative function of Scripture, nothing, surely, can be deemed a spiritual discipline if it is not so much as mentioned in the NT. That rather eliminates not only self-flagellation but creation care. Doubtless the latter, at least, is a good thing to do: it is part of our responsibility as stewards of God’s creation. But it is difficult to think of scriptural warrant to view such activity as a spiritual discipline—that is, as a discipline that increases our spirituality. The Bible says quite a lot about prayer and hiding God’s Word in our hearts, but precious little about creation care and chanting mantras.
Related articles
- Carson and Keller on Confessionalism, Boundaries, and the Gospel (westernthm.wordpress.com)
- Giving As Spiritual Discipline (christianlifehacker.wordpress.com)
- Dark Nights of the Soul – the Leadership Journal article (gratefultothedead.wordpress.com)
- Why Solitude? (christianlifehacker.wordpress.com)
- Flotsam and jetsam (11/14) (westernthm.wordpress.com)
- D.A. Carson: “We Will Not Drift Toward Holiness!” (samuelatgilgal.wordpress.com)
Medieval Wisdom for Modern Christians
Grateful to the dead 
Hi Chris,
I am too processing Carson’s article and trying to understand his perspective. As a biblical scholar it is interesting to note that he writes “pursuit of unmediated, mystical knowledge of God is unsanctioned by Scripture”. Of course, much depends on his understanding of ‘mystical knowledge’ and what he meant by ‘unmediated.’ The experiences of the prophet Ezekiel comes immediately to mind. Also of of John’s Revelation. Are these experiences mediated or unmediated? Are they mystical experiences?
The other point which you have noted is his definitive list of spiritual disciplines. His exclusive approach (if it is not in the Bible, it cannot be) reminds me of Christian Smith’s book “The Bible made Impossible.” I wonder how Carson will respond to Smith. While I can see his concern with creation care as a ‘spiritual discipline’ because it may be neo-paganism in disguise, I felt he was too dismissive of the spiritual disciplines and wished that he had spent more time on them.
I am thankful for the many people in the Kingdom who have led the way on the path of holiness. I am affirmed by the voices of those who have gone before and now cheer us on here on earth. I think Dr. Carson has it wrong. His argument is so “word” centered, I think he may have forgotten the relationship that is possible with the living “Word.” I would agree for some the practices of the spiritual life can become a replacement for “the” spiritual life but for most people the practices become a doorway to a deeper relationship with the living God. There only but a means. God is the end.
A remedy I would suggest : lectio and twenty minutes of quiet prayer each day. : )
Thank you for that word, Jan, and may the Lord continue to bless your church.
“The pursuit of unmediated, mystical knowledge of God is unsanctioned by Scripture”
Would it not be more correct to say that the pursuit of unmediated, mystical knowledge of God saturates the Scripture? Am I reading the same book?
Did not Adam walk with God in Paradise and speak with Him face to face? Doesn’t Moses ask to be shown God’s glory though he is told no man can behold Him and live? Do not the psalms speak of thirsting for God as a deer pants for brooks of water? Does David not beg for God to show him His face? Don’t the prophets speak of visions of the divine throne? Doesn’t Job cry out in his anguish for God to answer his distress face to face? Doesn’t the Song of Songs chronicle the lover’s yearning for her beloved and her pursuit of Him, then growing weary of not finding, only then to be inspired to take up the pursuit again? Doesn’t Jesus himself speak of always beholding the face of his Father? Does he not promise his disciples that they will behold his glory and partake in it? Doesn’t Paul speak of those caught up to the third heaven and hearing unspeakable mysteries? Doesn’t John chronicle a vision of the throne room of Heaven itself and the consummation of all things leading into eternal glory?
It would seem to me that the Bible is the story of God’s desire for man and man’s desire for God, from cover to cover suffuse with our yearning to peek behind the veil. That veil has traditionally been understood to be the flesh, and the spiritual disciplines (yes, even something has seemingly ridiculous as ‘creation care’) were meant to be a means of seeing past the veil. Such disciplines come, not from a direct Biblical command, but from a “renewing of the mind” that now understands the true nature of the world around us by what is revealed to us in Christ. Other disciplines such as the Jesus prayer do come from Biblical commands, in this case the command to ‘pray without ceasing’. And that discipline has led some who practice it to visions of the light of Mt. Tabor, the mystical vision of the Mount of Transfiguration. And viewing the light of Transfiguration transfigures how we see the whole world, hence creation care, etc.
I understand that this account does not fit into certain theological systems and that likely accounts for the differing views. But I would still find it very hard to say that there is no warrant in Scripture for some sort of mystical pursuit of the knowledge of God.
Grey: Amen!
Grey, in reading the post and subsequent comments, I have to say that I like best what you have said here. Very well expressed and it makes a ton of sense. Thank you.
“Did not Adam walk with God in Paradise and speak with Him face to face? Doesn’t Moses ask to be shown God’s glory though he is told no man can behold Him and live?”
Actually, it’s more correct to say that God walked with Adam in Paradise. Moses asked to see God’s face, and was shown his glory. Similarly Paul doesn’t explain what those unspeakable mysteries actually were (obviously)
While mediation is a little bit of a reduction, there is an extent to which God sets the terms on which we can have knowledge of him, to that extent it’s equally incorrect to speak of unmediated access to God.
Yes our minds are renewed, but equally we live this side of the eschaton and so not every impulse is completely holy, so we have to be careful between drawing straight lines between current practices and verses which can be interpreted in a number of ways. Judging the value of a practice by the vision it gives rise to seems to owe more to some kind of methodological pragmatism than a wish to be scriptural.
Mm, hmm. Many “low-church” Protestants are wary of mysticism for some reason. As Julian (and others) approached the mystical experience, it most certainly was mediated through Christ. To toss the Christian experience of the mystic in with Budhhism’s universal oneness is a disfavour to both. Of course, I’m no Protestant, and hold firmly to the comfort of my three-legged stool.
To me the association of Christian spirituality with Buddhism is a sort of far-right evangelical scare-tactic. It feeds conservative tendencies to jump in a knee-jerk fashion to conclusions of “guilt by association” without caring to look closely at the real commitments of those involved in either traditional Christian contemplation or, I suppose, Buddhism.
Believe me, there is plenty I disagree with in Carson’s essay. However, I do not disagree with his desire to keep spiritual practices in line with scripture and with the gospel. I certainly find wisdom in that.
It is true. The only way we can know God and the love of God is through Jesus Christ and His act of love through the sacrifice of Himself for our sins.
The Gospel is so simple, but we expound, debate, and add our scholarly knowledge to it. Our own wisdom gets in the way of the truth, which, even a child can understand.
Connie
http://7thandvine.wordpress.com/
Sorry, I disagree that “any child can understand.” Certainly this may be true of some basics of the spiritual life and of our relationship to God. God has not set up an elite army of “those who know” (that was the heresy of the gnostics). But Paul does refer to both milk and meat, and urges believers to move on from one to the other. (1And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ. 2I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. 3For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men.) Note that the graduation to meat is a matter of improved “spirituality.” In that graduation, it is necessary to ask, “What have those faithful people who have gone before us found useful in the spiritual life?” Does wisdom about the spiritual life stop with Paul? No, despite his canonical priority. And such traditional wisdom is not exactly a mediation between us an God. Let us call it a “hand up,” and a very powerful one indeed. We are foolish not to accept it.