From Statements of Faith to Theological Architecture…

If you are a Christian, tell me what kind of a Christian you are? In a divisive age where faith is expressed in varied and sometimes incompatible ways, this has become a relevant question. While most of us feel a little uncomfortable asking it, it is a little naive to assume we all love Jesus, so everything is OK.

Ever since the 1054 Great Schism between the church in the East and West we have lived with the idea of a divided church. This was accelerated by the 1517 Protestant Reformation which went on to birth a plethora of new denominations. 500 years later, there is no sign of this abating. When a new denomination or church group is formed it is common for it to adopt its own “Confession” or “Statement of Faith” – a credal statement outlining what the group considers to be non-negotiable about their expression of the Christian faith.

In earlier years these focused on what was believed about God, Jesus, the Spirit, the Cross, the Church, the Trinity and the Bible – with perhaps some additional clauses on baptism, communion, eschatology and the final judgment. There is also often a clue about the groups position in the freewill – predestination juggle, and sometimes there are more exotic inclusions, for example, on the basis of Mark 16:18 some see efficient snake handling as a test of genuine faith, while the same verse sees others stress the importance of drinking poison without serious mishap. While there is usually a great deal of overlap with what other churches say, tucked away in at least one of the clauses you will find a rationale for why this groups seperate identity is justified. Sometimes it isn’t so much a particular clause but the overall configuration of faith that is seen to be different.

A statement of faith is often intended to define who is in and who is out. Agree with it, and you are part of the inner circle. Disagree, and the H word is not far away... yes the dreaded heresy accusation which today sees you being excluded but in an earlier era sometimes saw you burnt at the stake or beheaded – if you were more fortunate it might have meant mere imprisonment or house arrest.

In a post-denominational era, statements of faith have been slipping in prominence and a decade ago many wondered if they would have any role in the future. However with recent challenges to traditional understandings of gender, marriage and sexuality a fresh round of work has been taking place, and many statements of faith have now been updated with new clauses on these questions, some to affirm what is held to be a traditional position, others to embrace a more progressive one. Some now even specify if a group holds a complementarian or egalitarian view of gender roles, so fairly specific detail is sometimes added. I guess the additions will inform historians of the future what the church in the 2020’s was worried about.

Although some of the clients I work with at Avenir Leadership Institute claim no Christian faith, many do, and noting how many theologians we have on our team and at our disposal, we land up doing a fair amount of theological consultation. If anyone had asked me if there is a living to be made in theological consultation I would have smiled and said “sadly no”, but I have proved myself wrong – for we have had no shortage of work in this sphere. The first paid work Avenir was contracted for (we pull our weight in pro bono land) was to help a group review and refresh their statement of faith. It soon became clear that there was a significant gap between what the statement of faith claimed and what I knew to be the belief of many of the staff. It claimed, for example, to believe in the perpetual torment of the damned, but I knew that many, perhaps most, of the staff believed in annihilationism. They were, however, happily signing their affirmation of this statement, knowing that their continued employment depended on it. When I pointed this out I was told not to worry about it – it had been there for a very long time and no one bothered about it anymore. When I asked if it might be better to delete it, I was told that it wasn’t worth the fuss it would cause. Personally I would have thought that the potential eternal torment of the majority of the world’s people is worth a bit of a fuss, but the client is always right.

What did become clear from this contract and other similar ones is that many Christian groups are struggling to articulate what being a Christian organisation means for them, what they hold to, and how it shapes their practice. While statements of faith attempt to summarise the key beliefs of a group, we were being asked to provide language to describe how faith was lived out on a daily basis, and how it looked in action. In this context we started to advise groups to construct their theological architecture. Put differently that they embarked on the journey from statements of faith to theological architecture.

What’s the difference, you ask?

While statements of faith summarise what is believed and helps decide who is in and out, theological architecture focuses on the key beliefs that drive us and how they work their way out in daily practice. It’s as much about how faith looks and what it does as it is about what faith says. There is a strongly aesthetic element to theological architecture – a few evocative words helping to clarify what holds the group together. For example, after being consulted by a large Christian group who work in the hospitality arena we suggested they build their theological architecture around three words: Community, Place and Pilgrimage… because they are essentially trying to live out their faith by giving people a rich experience of Christian community, doing this by creating “thin” places where it is easier for people to sense the presence of God, and being alert to those on a pilgrimage – a journey of seeking and finding. While I don’t doubt those employed in that world believe in the humanity and divinity of Jesus, and probably hold some convictions about baptism, the Bible and the like, on a day by day basis their Christian faith is expressed as they build community, shape thin places and look out for the pilgrims in their midst. This is what unites them and keeps them focused on their mission. It is their theological architecture, shaping the contours of their interaction with the world.

A major Christian media group asked us for similar guidance. In their case we suggested that they adopt the three commonly embraced transcendental virtues of truth, goodness and beauty, all understood in the light of the hope provided by the resurrection of Jesus. Imagine if media everywhere filtered what they reported in the light of truth, goodness and beauty – and imagine if this was informed by the resurrection of Jesus. Well many in Christian media now adopt this as their theological architecture, a lens which helps them to decide what to include in programming and what to exclude.

I could go on, but perhaps this gives a feel for theological architecture – and it is indeed a more intuitive form of theology. Don’t read me as knocking statements of faith, but I do think we need something more than a series of propositions woven together decades (sometimes centuries) back. While statements of faith erect fences to hold some in and keep others out, theological architecture is essentially invitational. It clarifies the big things we are on about, and invites others to join us on the journey.

So tell me, what kind of a Christian are you? Ouch… that’s a little too in your face. Tell me instead what images of the Christian faith move and inspire you. What nurtures you and keeps you moving in your faith journey? Dig into those, and you could come up with your theological architecture.

As always, nice chatting…

Photo by Akwice on Pexels.com

Reproduce with acknowledgement of source. Please forward to any who might find this helpful.