The Work of Theology – by Stanley Hauerwas
Summary:
In this book, Stanley Hauerwas seeks to “revisit…some of what [he has] thought in the past in an attempt to recover…a sense of the oddness of what we believe as Christians” (page 7). The book is a series of related essays, some of which build upon the others, and the rest which address more discreet topics. Each chapter/essay describes Hauerwas’ view of the “how” associated with the subject at hand. The topics range from those which are more theological/methodological in orientation at the beginning to those which often deal with more esoteric elements of Hauerwas’ approach to theology.
Analysis:
In the first chapter Hauerwas provides a description of how he learned to think theologically. He lays the groundwork for this topic by examining “practical reason.” His perspective on “reason” includes his thoughts on the priority of experience over knowledge and the importance of “practical wisdom” in theological work. Wisdom enables people to “act rationally and well” in the context of the stories that we narrate to make sense of our world (page 19). For Hauerwas, the importance of “seeing connections makes all the difference, and practical reason is all about seeing connections” (page 23). As a result, Hauerwas makes no distinction between theory and practice. Beliefs are not something that need to be applied.
Hauerwas then moves on to discuss the work of the Holy Spirit. He contends that the work of the Spirit “is a communal work…to help us find one another so that we will not suffer the fears and anxieties that fuel the violence derived from being alone” (page 39). As Hauerwas delves into his reflection on the Trinity, he asserts that to “rightly [understand] the relation between the persons of the Trinity” we must recognize that the “they do not need the gifts they give one another, but the gifts they give to one another constitute their unity” (page 43). When we pray “we are caught up in the triune activity itself…[when] we ask the Spirit ‘to pray for us’…[and] with that prayer we are transfigured by the Spirit” (page 45). Hauerwas then directs his attention to the church. He identifies the church as the agency enabled by the Spirit’s activity. He makes the connection between the problems we face associated with a failure to appreciate the full humanity of Jesus, and the ecclesial problems manifested in a lack of comfort we often have with the humanity of the church. He finishes the chapter with the observation that being “possessed by the Holy Spirit is surely a frightening prospect” (page 52).
The next chapter contains Hauerwas’ musings regarding what it means to do Protestant ethics. He contends that “as odd as it may seem, it is not at all clear we know yet what happened five hundred years ago, even though what did happen resulted in some of us now being known as ‘Protestants’” (page 57). Hauerwas asserts that though many focus their energies when considering the Reformation on doctrine, an equally significant question is “whether the habits of Constantinian Christianity should be continued” (page 59). He then calls attention to the importance of Anabaptists and their congregational practices that facilitate holiness within their community, particularly their practice of the Lord’s Supper (page 62). This analysis leads Hauerwas to the conclusion that his way of “doing ethics is neither Catholic nor Protestant, but somehow is both” (page 64). He then dives into a description of how his reading of both Karl Barth and Thomas Aquinas has contributed to this conclusion. He finishes this section with his assertion that “prayer is a crucial practice to sustain the moral life…to learn the language of prayer may make it possible for us to speak the truth to one another…” (pages 68-69).
In the next chapter Hauerwas explains his perspective on agency. He contends that “Our agency depends on our being people of character, and our character depends on the development of those habits we call the virtues…” (page 71). In essence, Hauerwas believes that “character is not the qualification of our agency, but our character constitutes our agency” (page 74). In order to better understand what is involved in the formation of people of character, Hauerwas thinks we need to give attention to the lives of people such as Dietrich Bonhoeffer. And, to do this well, we “need to be incorporated into a community of practices that can provide the formation of our agency through a truthful narrative” (page 88).
Next, Hauerwas moves to consider “time” in the context of Christian theology. He explains his perspective on the significance of the death and resurrection of Jesus as the event upon which “all history and nature turn” (page 91). Because of this, “the eternal ‘is not less like time, but more like time’…The God of the bible is not timeless” (page 92). He believes that this perspective helps to alleviate the propensity of much of contemporary theology’s tendency to veer toward Gnosticism (page 94). Hauerwas then describes Augustine’s perspective on providence as the means for the church to tell time within “the narrative arc of our lives” (page 99). This way of telling time provides the church with a different way than the normal cyclic pattern used by the world. Instead, the church tells time in a liturgical pattern centered on Eucharist, which requires that we remember the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. This pattern provides the example for us to follow that schools us in the ways of forgiveness. This liturgy is the means by which “the Lord can remind us that we have been given all the time that we need to be reconciled to one another and thus to God” (page 102).
After explaining some of his thinking on time, Hauerwas then directs his attention to ministry. He begins by indicating his discomfort with aspects of how others often view the subject because he cannot conceive of how ministry can be separate from its theological underpinnings. He then sets much of what he views as the problem into its context by asserting that after the Reformation we have gotten “the worst of all possible worlds, that is a laity who have little understanding of the Christian tradition but believe they get to make Christianity up because what it means to be a Christian is to have a personal relationship with God” (page 105). Within this context, theologians must “be agents of memory so we do not forget what God has done and continues to do to make us a people of time” (page 106). Sadly, much of theology in the West since the Reformation has taken the path of becoming a discipline within the university rather than the church. Along that vein, elements of what are referred to as “Practical Theology” such as ethics have been separated from theology proper into separate disciplines. In contrast, Hauerwas contends that the “Christian East’s understanding of the theologian as a person of prayer continues to be a challenge to the dominant forms of theology developed since the Reformation” (page 110). That is why he believes in the importance of theology to aid in teaching people “how to speak Christian” (page 111). In essence, he believes that “…‘we find our life fated in the language of our ancestors, in the language we inherit from them…Hence to understand what our words mean we must understand what those who use them mean’…” (page 115).
Continuing the theme of words, in the next two chapters Hauerwas describes some of his thinking regarding theological writing. However, instead of concentrating on essays or books, he directs our attention to sentences and the use of irony. He argues that “a theological sentence that does its proper work does so just to the extent it makes the familiar strange” (page 123). Hauerwas then plunges into a discussion of the works of Stanley Fish, particularly his book “How to Write a Sentence” (pages 127-146). After examining the work of Fish, Hauerwas directs our attention to the use of irony. He asserts that “irony is a necessary stance in life that must find theological expression if theology is one of the gifts we have been given as Christians to enable us to live lives of truth” (page 148). And yet, Hauerwas is careful to maintain how irony is to be used appropriately. He says that “Irony isolated from truthfulness and humility threatens to be vicious in a manner that corrupts how it might be a means to sustain our ability to be truthful and humble…internal to the gospel is an ironic grammar that is necessary in order to grasp what it means to be a disciple of Christ…” (pages 164 and 167).
In the following chapter, Hauerwas explains his perspective on political theology. Basically, he “[refuses] any reduction of politics to statecraft in order to emphasize the political character of the church as a political space in its own right” (page 182). He thinks that “the church is God’s politics for the world…[they are] to serve the world well by developing an ‘ecclesial squint’…to serve their neighbor by helping us to see ‘it did not have to be’…” (page 190). As part of delivering this opinion, Hauerwas traces the influence of John Howard Yoder on this thinking in contrast to H. Richard Niebuhr and Reinhold Niebuhr. In the process, he defends himself against the charge that he is “a sectarian, fideistic tribalist [who] allegedly [tempts] Christians to withdraw from political engagement” (page 181).
Next, Hauerwas steers his attention to the issue of thinking theologically about rights. He delivers “a broadside critique of what [he] can only regard as the overdependence on rights language in our culture” (page 195). For example, he says “When rights become a more basic moral description than murder, you have an indication that your language has gone on a holiday…Once rights are divorced from the practices that they depend upon for their intelligibility, they multiply faster than rabbits.” (page 196). In contrast, Hauerwas examines the work of Simone Weil and “her refusal to turn rights into abstractions” (page 201). He also draws attention to the work of Jean Vanier, who “…never use[s] the language of rights …[Hauerwas] suspect[s] [Vanier] does not use the language of rights because that language may prevent him from recognizing the full bodily reality of the human beings who share their lives with him” (page 203). Instead, Hauerwas thinks that “Rights…are best understood as reminder claims to help us remember the thick moral relationships our bodies make possible and necessary” (page 206).
Following his discussion on rights, Hauerwas sets his focus on the “how” of caring for the poor. He begins his treatment of this subject by examining the nature of the term/phrase “the poor,” and the complicated problems inherent in this subject. He tries to explore alternative ways of “building community…[that] can be a form of charity that is not toxic…” (page 214). While doing this Hauerwas plunges into the general world of capitalism, the writing of Adam Smith, and the effect of Reinhold Niebuhr’s “Moral Man and Immoral Society” on the trajectory of thinking about serving the poor in America. In contrast, Hauerwas maintains that “for the church, the care of the poor cannot be separated from worship of God. Worship makes possible the time Christians have to be with the poor…Put even more strongly, in and by worship Christians can imagine being poor” (page 225).
Next, Hauerwas delves into the subject of humor within the context of theology. He indicates that in his theological work he has tried to “defy the assumption” that “if you want what you have to say to be entertaining then what you have to say cannot be serious” (page 233). Instead, Hauerwas thinks that “by paying close attention to jokes we will be better able to understand that jokes are not a joking matter” (page 235). In fact, he says that “Jokes often have a subversive character that cannot be acknowledged exactly because subversion is betrayed by being acknowledged” (page 239). As a case study to make his point, Hauerwas examines the work of Karl Barth where it touches on the subject of humor. Hauerwas shows that Barth thought that “we must first laugh at ourselves so that we can laugh at others, making possible the final test of being laughed at by them…[and]…Of humor, too, one may say that it is genuine when it is the child of suffering” (pages 245 and 246).
In the final chapter, Hauerwas addresses his retirement. He says that he may have retired from his formal teaching position; however, a theologian cannot really retire. As prologue to the discussion of the particulars associated with his vocation, Hauerwas sketches the differences between the ancient world’s perspective on retirement and our modern notions. He says that in our modern world “the resulting isolation of the elderly is an indication that we now live in a culture that believes we have no stake in developing people of wisdom and memory necessary for the sustaining of good social order” (page 254). In relation to theology, Hauerwas concludes by saying “The work of theology is never done…” (page 265).
Appreciation and Strengths:
Having read (and enjoyed) most of the books written by Stanley Hauerwas, I found this one particularly interesting because of the approach he took in reflecting on a wide range of topics that he had addressed previously. And better yet, he often addressed these topics with fresh insights or from different angles. While reading, I sensed a settled, reflective tone in what he wrote that made working through this book very enjoyable. I recommend reading it after reading his theological memoir “Hannah’s Child.” The two really do go hand in hand.
In terms of strengths, I list only two of what I believe are many. The first has to do with a topic he mentions at the outset of the book: making connections. Throughout the book he continually demonstrates through his own writing the importance of making connections between various ideas. In my opinion, he does this particularly well in how he connects ideas regarding the importance of words, the power of sentences, the necessity of narrative, the place of irony in the theological task, and how humor can help that task. In his treatment of each of these subjects, Hauerwas continually weaves connections back and forth between all of them.
Secondly, I found the insights Hauerwas shared from a variety of perspectives on the importance of truth-telling to be very helpful. I appreciated his emphasis on the significance of the practice of prayer to enable us to speak the truth to one another. I also thought his linking the importance of developing the virtues necessary to support truth-telling in the service of being agents of memory to be good food for thought. All of these aspects of truth-telling serve well to help followers of Jesus tell time as Christians within the narrative of our lives which are made possible by of the work of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.
Todd Rivetti 