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Living wisely in Christ’s light

This is theology at its most hospitable, an invitation to a praxis, says Nicholas Sagovsky

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Christian Wisdom: Desiring God and learning in love
David F. Ford

Cambridge University Press £15.99 (978-0-521-69838-2)
Church Times Bookshop £14.40

ONE OF the high points in the Orthodox liturgy is the Little Entrance, when the deacon enters the body of the church with the Gospels held high, and intones, “Wisdom, let us attend!”

This was the image that came powerfully to mind as I read this deeply original book. Christian Wisdom is a call to attend to scripture, prayerfully, in shared study, in search of God’s wisdom. With that goes a call to read hospitably, not just with Christians, but with all who wish to share in this wisdom.

The first half of the book is taken up with study of the Hebrew and Christian scriptures. At the centre is a prolonged meditation on Job, focusing on the motif that Job does indeed fear God “for naught” (that is, gratuitously, expecting nothing in return). Job is brought into dialogue first with the poetry of Micheal O’Siadhail, and then with Jewish post-Holocaust writing.

The focus then moves to an interpretation of Luke’s Gospel and 1 Corinthians in the light of wisdom writing. As he explores the task of “living wisely in the light of Jesus Christ”, Ford probes Christian tradition through an exposition of Trinitarian faith in dialogue with Paul Ricoeur, Rowan Williams, and Sarah Coakley. He writes of the Church as a school of desire for unity, holiness, catholicity, and apostolicity. For him, Christian theology is hard-won wisdom.

The last three chapters are those most likely to stick in the mind. The first is an authoritative and inviting account of the practice of scriptural reasoning, in which Jews, Christians, and Muslims meet and seek for wisdom by together studying their respective scriptures. Ford is an enthusiastic proponent of this rapidly growing form of interfaith exploration. No one interested in scriptural reasoning should miss this chapter.

He then turns to a heartfelt apologia for Cambridge University, with its collegiate system, as a model (like Berlin University in the early 19th century) for the kind of university where new wisdom may be found. He finishes with a sensitive discussion of the L’Arche Movement, and particularly of Jean Vanier’s reflection on the Fourth Gospel. In each instance, he reflects on his own practical involvement, and on wisdom gained through interaction with others.

This is theology at its most hospitable (something that will surprise none of David Ford’s many friends). It is clear from the acknowledgements that this book is the fruit of many rich conversations. The tone of generous, inclusive dialogue is maintained throughout. It is an invitation to a praxis.

In making wisdom his theme, Ford offers a theology of com-munion (my word, not his) that does not flinch from human conflict, but that does leave nagging questions. How does scriptural reasoning address the exclusivism that is to be found in the scriptures of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam? How can we wisely but effectively confront the élitism of Oxbridge without destroying its collegiate identity? How can the core values of communities like L’Arche be sustained in the face of the intrusive, regulatory state?

If we could answer those questions, we should have wisdom, indeed.

The Revd Dr Sagovsky is Canon Theologian of Westminster Abbey.

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