As we are moving through a series on teenage development, I thought I’d share a link and summary of a new book on an integrative approach to Christian formation. In Becoming Whole and Holy: An Integrative Conversation about Christian Formation, authors, Jeannine Brown, a biblical scholar, Carla Dahl, a social scientist, and Wyndy Corbin Reuschling, a Christian social ethicist present a fresh perspective on Christian formation. Here are the three elements of Christian formation (discipleship) they describe as they integrate wholeness and holiness.
Community – “Christian formation requires a relational context.” The authors emphasize the Trinity as the ontological bases of this relationality and participation in the church as our expression.
Story – “Christian formation has a distinctive “cruciformity,” since “Messiah Jesus imaged and images God through his perfectly faithful and loving life and death. Christians are to take the shape of this Jesus as they participate in and benefit from his faithfulness and love” (75).”
Practice – Christian formation “is guided by a vision of God’s purposes for the creation God loves.” In other words, our eschatological vision inform and form our morality or practice of living a whole and holy life before God.
Read the article here.
