Theological Reflection: Methods
Thursday, July 13th, 2006
Elaine Graham, Heather Walton and Frances Ward in 2005 published the first of two books on theological reflection, examining seven models or types with reference to origins, application and future development. Theological Reflection: Methods, was published by SCM Press and is available from Amazon.co.uk
Elaine Graham is Samuel Ferguson Professor of Social and Pastoral Theology at University of Manchester. She has also published Transforming Practice: Pastoral Theology in an Age of Uncertainty (2002), and Representations of the Post/Human: Monsters, Aliens and Others in Popular Culture (2002).
Heather Walton is a lecturer in Practical Theology at University of Glasgow.
Frances (Frankie) Ward is the editor of Contact Journal of Practical Theology and Pastoral Care.
Graham, Walton and Ward identify the tasks of theological reflection as:
1. Induction and nurture of members - what does it mean to be a Christian?
2. Building and sustaining the community of faith - what does it mean to be the ‘body of Christ’ in this place and time?
3. Communicating the faith to a wider culture. How is God encountered and proclaimed in the public space?
The authors dedicate a chapter to each of seven theological methods or types of theological reflection:
1. Theology by Heart: The Living Human Document
Inner experience is expressed in living human documents through journal-writing, personal letters, verbatim accounts of pastoral encounters, spiritual autobiography. The authors draw on Gillie Bolton, Peter Hawkins and Robin Shohet, William James, and Frances Ward.
2. Speaking in Parables: Constructive Narrative Theology
Participants construct meaningful stories out of the varied circumstances of their lives, connecting with the stories told in Scriptures. Through diversity and particularity story tellers testify to a God who is known through the stories we tell. The authors draw on the work of Alicia Ostriker, Rebecca Chopp, Herbert Anderson and Edward Foley, and Paul Ricoeur.
3. Telling God’s Story: Canonical Narrative Theology
God’s self-narrated story told through the life and death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, is explored as the lense through which Christians explore their identity lived out in the world. The authors draw on Gerard Hughes, Stanley Hauerwas, John Howard Yoder, Gerard Loughlin, and a variety of other writers on narrative theology.
4. Writing the Body of Christ: Corporate Theological Reflection
The faith community constructs a sense of corporate identity through the use of central metaphor, symbolic practices or a narrative that tells the story of its ongoing life. The authors draw on Helen Cameron’s study of local UK churches, Nancy Ammerman’s work on USA congregations, Don Browning, Mary McClintock Fulkerson, and James Hopewell.
5. Speaking of God in Public: Correlation
Theology publicly engages with contemporary culture in its philosophical, aesthetic, political or scientific forms. This model incorporates a range of approaches, from those who see engagement with culture necessary for taking the gospel to the world, to those who would expect two-way dialogue in which Christian thought and practice may learn from contemporary perspectives. The authors draw on Friedrich Schleirmacher, Rosemary Radford Ruether, Paul Tillich, David Tracey, James and Evelyn Whitehead.
6. Theology-In-Action: Praxis
Practice is both the origin and end of theological reflection. Talk about God must be linked with a commitment to a struggle for human emancipation. The authors draw on Paulo Freire, Elaine Graham, Laurie Green, Gustavo Gutierrez, and a wide range of radical Christian writers through history.
7. Theology in the Vernacular: Local Theologies
The Christian gospel is expressed in local culture, time and space, embodied in a people who express faith iin their particular context. This model pays attention to theological motifs in popular culture, the everyday language and symbols of ordinary people. The authors draw on Gerard Arbuckle, Hyun Kyung Chung, Timothy Gorringe, Barbara Kingsolver and Robert Schreiter.
Pohly’s latest book, 
