Watch the video below.
In the video, Marty argues that the spiritual environment we grow up in gives us a "language and palate" for faith, but it has to be appropriated--it has to become our own. He goes on to argue that our faith is constantly reshaped by "billions of particulars" and "51/49s." Do you believe that is true for generations as well? Does each generation take the faith handed down to it and "appropriate it"? Shape it? Make it their own? Give an example from your reading in The Christian World that supports your claim.
As Marty says in the video, “appropriating” our faith is synonymous
with “making it our own.” Thus,
absolutely it holds true that our faith is constantly reshaped by “billions of
particulars,” i.e. our individual conglomeration of life experiences. And so it is also true generationally. Each generation takes faith which is not only
handed down, but expected, discussed or even dreamt based upon its own unique
worldview at the time.
I’m quite certain that my grandparents would have been
completely out of sorts if they walked into any number of contemporary church
settings today, with the casual attire, piercings, tattoos, and what!? Even bass guitars. For their generation was one of organs,
three-piece suits and cufflinks, and always the same routine and setting. While they worshipped the same God and gave
thanks to His same Son, the manner in which they participated was vastly
different – based upon their own appropriations of faith which stemmed from
their own unique spiritual environment.
I could not concur more with what Marty replied when asked how
he came into his faith: “gradually.” A
gradual realization of any concept is what has the most staying power, grabs
the strongest foothold, and cements our rock-solid belief system, even in the midst
of future storms which threaten to flood our minds with differing, new-age
opinions. I believe that is why Marty
used the example of “the highs and lows of adolescence” and “death and
remarriage” – against the backdrop of such character shaping life events is
when the most faith appropriation occurs.
As Marty says, “The Western European church was not devoid of
theology during the era of the Crusades and intra-European holy wars.”[1] I can’t even imagine any more “theological” a
time period in the scrim of war. Many
Catholics today would argue that this is still the greatest time of religion
and theology in the history of its church.
Every individual was enmeshed in the situation of the time and each
formed their own unique appropriation of faith from it. It could not be escaped. Yet, according to Marty, “while many
theologians were concerned with the teaching of original sin or the sacraments,
most important and revealing was the Western church’s revisiting of the themes
about Jesus Christ that had first been formulated in Asia in the fourth and
fifth centuries.”[2] He goes on to say that they had to deal with “left-over”
issues and they did.
So while the Crusaders had their own appropriations given the
world around them in which they lived, they also were dealing with prior belief
systems handed down to them from prior generations, most notably and unresolved
point amongst the councils at Nicaea and Chalcedon of how Jesus could be both
man and God.[3]
It is no different for us today.
We have each appropriated our faith based on our gradual accumulation of
“billions of particulars” while, at the same time, questioning certain key
points which arise from others sharing the same time and space in this
generation. To that end, I would say
that we are all purposeful, active, and timely participants partaking in the
big picture at the hand of our sovereign artist.
[1]
Marty, Martin. The Christian World, A Global History. Page 97. New York: Modern Library, 2009.
[2] Marty,
Martin. The Christian World, A Global History. Pages 97-98. New York: Modern Library, 2009.
[3] Marty,
Martin. The Christian World, A Global History. Page 98. New York: Modern Library, 2009.
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