Talking about God today

A consultation promoted by the Communion of Protestant Churches in Europe

We talk about the churches, we talk about Luther and Calvin, we celebrate anniversaries, but when do we talk about God? This was (more or less) the question Communion of Protestant churches in Europe it placed itself on the five hundredth anniversary of the Reformation, promoting the elaboration of a study document on the “Christian speaking of God”.

The draft document was the subject of discussion in a general consultation, held in Bad Vöslau (near Vienna) on December 1-3, which was attended by twenty-five representatives of the member churches, including the writer (on behalf of the Waldensian and Methodist churches in Italy). The document will then pass to the scrutiny of an editorial committee to arrive at the next Assembly in 2024.

The reader could find the reflections reported here theoretical and affected, certainly insufficient, and he would not be entirely wrong! In fact, as Christians we live in a dilemma: Pascal said: “Only God speaks well of God” and we are condemned to stammer inappropriate words; but such awareness is not sufficient justification for not talking about God.

God speaks to us and about us. God transforms us and reconciles us to himself and to our neighbor. In a relationship based on God’s love for us, it is appropriate to risk saying something, while only repeating (?) the words of the Bible.

So what is the document likely to say? It is divided into eight chapters, but for reasons of space I mention only the first and last. The first has the role of introduction and clarifies that by “speaking Christian” the title means the Protestant discourse, immediately declaring that speaking of God can only be a partial and therefore open discourse. Among other things, the significant presence in Europe of Christians from other continents, not always integrated into the decision-making processes of the European churches, makes the claim to express a closed and finished discourse impracticable.

An important passage of the introduction underlines that in the Protestant theological tradition one cannot speak of God in a theoretical and abstract way, but only starting from oneself or, better, from the revelation of God to the human being and the consequent relationship.

After a path of reflection that goes from the relationship between God’s power, love and freedom to the discourse on the Triune God and the revelation in Christ, passing through worship, spirituality and prayer, we arrive at chapter 8, which perhaps it is the real objective of the discussion, or rather an examination of the four contexts in which to speak of God, contexts that are indeed intertwined with each other.

In the first instance, the public and political sphere. The Church’s action develops through witness, liturgy, diakonia and koinonia. Therefore it cannot be relegated to a purely private sphere. In particular, the document urges not to put freedom of speech and religious freedom in conflict, as unfortunately often happens. Some attention is paid to the diaspora condition of many member churches and to the need to find ways to speak about God in a diverse and plural context. An important (not taken for granted) point is that the dialogue with the demands of society must be thought of as a moment of mutual learning, training and growth.

Then the private and professional sphere, therefore referring to the members of the churches. In particular, the document suggests avoiding a testimony based exclusively on the repetition of the word “God”, but preparing the discourse on God through an ethic of support from work colleagues.

Then again contemporary culture. A vast theme, which ranges from figurative art to cinema, from consumer literature to pop music: a culture that has been emancipated for centuries from the control of the churches. The attitude must be one of listening, knowledge and interaction with cultural instances, not forgetting the etymological link between “culture” and “cult”.

Finally, ecumenical and interreligious dialogue. This area reveals the complicated plot of speaking about God today, in an age in which we are not the only ones speaking about God. Christians are warmly invited not to withdraw from this dialogue, a privileged place to bear witness to love faith and hope in God.

From chiesavaldese.org

Talking about God today