Increasing our desire for God...
A post from Peter Mead... (If you are getting it again through yahoo, you can ignore it.)
Before I mention affective theology as a contrast, I just want to notice a couple of things I wrote in that last sentence. "We must choose to do the right thing and our feelings will follow." We must - obligation; choose - will is central; to do - spirituality rooted in our action (perhaps in our 'disciplines'?); the right thing - a very moralistic emphasis; and our feelings will follow - because they are secondary and subservient to the informed will. If I had time I suppose it would be worth challenging every one of those elements of the sentence.
A theology of the affections suggests that (a) the heart is central and determinative; (b) the affections may be fleeting, fickle, or untrustworthy at a superficial level, but there is a deeper level of affection that drives all that we do, even when we seem to go against our feelings (the issue of values); and (c) the heart is the engine that drives the train along.
Now the contrast can be simplified. Traditional anthropology suggests we must choose to do the right thing, knowing that our feelings will follow. Affective anthropology suggests the problem of lack of desire is a problem of the heart.
I think Galatians 2:20-3:3 is a key passage in this whole issue. The spiritual life is one of faith in Christ's life at work in me. The foolish Galatians had been duped into thinking that although they began their spiritual life by pure trust (that gaze on Christ, as Ron Frost would helpfully define faith from John 3:14-15), they could go on to spiritual maturity through the effort of their flesh. In light of this I don't live my life as if the will is the locomotive any more. I feel that if I simply force myself to do the right thing without a right heart then I will become a progressively more effective hypocrite. Galatians 5 even can be taken to suggest that if I try to live the spiritual life by fleshly self-effort, then the result will be greater sin (which I have seen in experience as well as in the Word). So the solution is not what I must "do," but where is my heart? If I don't desire God, if I am lacking the appropriate feelings toward Him, then "doing" will only hide the problem. Rather I must crawl back to the Cross and in faith get my gaze back where it should be. Perhaps it needs to involve brokenness over a hardening heart, perhaps a simple gaze at the cross, or at Christ through His Word, until I am drawn to Him. Either He is more attractive, or He is not. Ron Frost told me one time that he tells people to honestly tell God how they feel - "God, I don't think you wrote a very interesting book, I don't find you attractive, I have better things to long for right now, etc." The mere act of speaking in that way might help the heart break before God and respond again in awe at His amazing grace.
I don't know if that helps, and I do know it is not a complete answer. In simple terms, we should "do" nothing, but rather bring our hearts back to a place of responsive brokenness before our supremely attractive Lord. To put it in marriage terms, if I am lacking desire for my wife (which I am not, incidentally), I can fake it through buying lots of flowers and cards, hoping the feelings will come back, or I can simply allow myself to stop and be drawn to her again. Maybe that is simplistic, but it seems that there is a passive reality to our faith as we are drawn to our Lover. It's all about Him.
I also know there may be other factors. My affections may love God at a very deep level, but on the surface the issue may be clouded by factors such as fleshly immaturity, physical tiredness, emotional fatigue and distraction and so on. The issue is the heart, not the will. The solution is to be found in Him and not in ourselves.
Them be my thoughts. What do others think?
I have given some thought to the issue of what we can do when our desires are lacking. This is no complete answer, but perhaps this is a start. The anthropology that underlies affective theology suggests an answer that I think can be borne out by Scriptural teaching.
Traditional "orthodox" anthropology suggests that (a) the will is central and determinative; (b) the affections are not to be trusted in any way, perhaps even suppressed, and (c) the affections will follow the lead taken by the will (informed by the mind). Consequently we are told that the locomotive is the will, and the feelings are merely one of the railroad cars being pulled along behind. So if we lack the appropriate feelings toward God we must choose to do the right thing and our feelings will follow.
Before I mention affective theology as a contrast, I just want to notice a couple of things I wrote in that last sentence. "We must choose to do the right thing and our feelings will follow." We must - obligation; choose - will is central; to do - spirituality rooted in our action (perhaps in our 'disciplines'?); the right thing - a very moralistic emphasis; and our feelings will follow - because they are secondary and subservient to the informed will. If I had time I suppose it would be worth challenging every one of those elements of the sentence.
A theology of the affections suggests that (a) the heart is central and determinative; (b) the affections may be fleeting, fickle, or untrustworthy at a superficial level, but there is a deeper level of affection that drives all that we do, even when we seem to go against our feelings (the issue of values); and (c) the heart is the engine that drives the train along.
Now the contrast can be simplified. Traditional anthropology suggests we must choose to do the right thing, knowing that our feelings will follow. Affective anthropology suggests the problem of lack of desire is a problem of the heart.
I think Galatians 2:20-3:3 is a key passage in this whole issue. The spiritual life is one of faith in Christ's life at work in me. The foolish Galatians had been duped into thinking that although they began their spiritual life by pure trust (that gaze on Christ, as Ron Frost would helpfully define faith from John 3:14-15), they could go on to spiritual maturity through the effort of their flesh. In light of this I don't live my life as if the will is the locomotive any more. I feel that if I simply force myself to do the right thing without a right heart then I will become a progressively more effective hypocrite. Galatians 5 even can be taken to suggest that if I try to live the spiritual life by fleshly self-effort, then the result will be greater sin (which I have seen in experience as well as in the Word). So the solution is not what I must "do," but where is my heart? If I don't desire God, if I am lacking the appropriate feelings toward Him, then "doing" will only hide the problem. Rather I must crawl back to the Cross and in faith get my gaze back where it should be. Perhaps it needs to involve brokenness over a hardening heart, perhaps a simple gaze at the cross, or at Christ through His Word, until I am drawn to Him. Either He is more attractive, or He is not. Ron Frost told me one time that he tells people to honestly tell God how they feel - "God, I don't think you wrote a very interesting book, I don't find you attractive, I have better things to long for right now, etc." The mere act of speaking in that way might help the heart break before God and respond again in awe at His amazing grace.
I don't know if that helps, and I do know it is not a complete answer. In simple terms, we should "do" nothing, but rather bring our hearts back to a place of responsive brokenness before our supremely attractive Lord. To put it in marriage terms, if I am lacking desire for my wife (which I am not, incidentally), I can fake it through buying lots of flowers and cards, hoping the feelings will come back, or I can simply allow myself to stop and be drawn to her again. Maybe that is simplistic, but it seems that there is a passive reality to our faith as we are drawn to our Lover. It's all about Him.
I also know there may be other factors. My affections may love God at a very deep level, but on the surface the issue may be clouded by factors such as fleshly immaturity, physical tiredness, emotional fatigue and distraction and so on. The issue is the heart, not the will. The solution is to be found in Him and not in ourselves.
Them be my thoughts. What do others think?
posted by ordk90 at 4/08/2005
4 Comments:
Maybe you're feeling this is incomplete because it's organized into dichotomies. Will or heart. "Orthodox" vs affective anthropology. Fake it or do nothing to be drawn back to my wife. God or myself.
We are not limited to these choices.
Okay, I'll bite... What choices would you add to the mix? What perspective on anthropology would move beyond this dichotomy?
After reading the post again it dawned on me that the central question was: what to do when our desires are lacking. I forgot that was the central question when it turned to talking about affections and the will. Then I got distracted by the prevalence of dichotomies, as I mentioned. So, sorry if my post was off topic.
My interest isn't anthropological perspectives, really. Although I was curious to whom the post was referring by "traditional 'orthodox' anthropology."
The dichotomy that stood out to me the most is will vs heart. Contemporary research and discussions about human will take a lot of factors into account, including genetics, emotion, working memory, stressors, environment, habit -- and maturity, as the post mentions at the end.
I'm not suggesting that the affections follow the will. But does the theology of the affections claim that none of the above factors have any impact upon our affections, ever?
"Doing nothing" is insufficient. There are many things we can do when we find our desires are lacking. If we lack desire for our spouse (which I'm not either, incidentally) we can give up relationships and things that steal our time, attention, and affections. And we can invite our spouse into long needed conversations that address our fears that are blocking our affection. Also, we can invite other wise people to walk through that conversation together. It's not just the two of us.
With God, we can allow our affections get stolen, too. We do well to store up treasures in heaven rather than on earth. How hard it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven! When the community obeys the truth, our sincere love for each other, from the heart, will grow.
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