A life of study can be very tempting. Especially so, if study becomes an end in itself. To guard against the lure of such a life, it is vital to follow the way that others have walked -- through study into practice for the purpose of transferring what we have learned to others. This is the path of study*practice*teach. One of the foremost students, practitioners and teachers in this way was Dietrich Bonhoeffer. In his short work on the Bonhoeffer's life and teaching, Mark Devine noted with particular insight the attitude Bonhoeffer took toward his studies:
"In 1929, having plunged himself exclusively into academic work, Bonhoeffer's love for ministry and fellowship with ordinary Christians reasserted itself along with his commitment to rigorous scholarly endeavor: "Soon I shall be going to Barcelona for a fortnight's visit to my [former] congregation, of which I am very fond, and I feel in general that academic work will not hold me for long. On the other hand, I think it very important to have as thorough an academic grounding as possible." This statement fairly exposes the function of the two inner passions of Bonhoeffer's life, namely that, for him at least, academic work must serve hands-on ministry." (Bonhoeffer Speaks Today, p.119).
No endeavor of study is of value unless it leads first to a transformed life and then to the transference of truth to others.
Speaking of Bonhoeffer, I recently listened to an interview with Eric Metaxas about his recently published biography on Bonhoeffer: "Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy". Have you read it?
ReplyDeleteYes! It is excellent! I highly recommend it!
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