Eloquence
In my last blog, I wrestled with the relationship between science and faith. In conjunction with these things, I have also been thinking about eloquence and the art of convincing people. What role does reason play, along with science, in discussing spiritual matters with others?
When Augustine met Faustus, the issue of eloquence was raised. I get the impression the Faustus was a very eloquent and convincing speaker, but his rhetoric really just covered up his own lack of understanding in certain matters. His speeches were not indicative of his spiritual understanding, but only showed that he had the gift of pleasant and convincing speech.
I think that fancy words and rhetorical techniques get in the way of clear messages sometimes. Some people just have a natural skill for convincing people, even if their position is not the popular one. But in order to clearly communicate with one another, we need to make sure that our words are not just "smoke and wind." I don't want to talk (or write) just for the sake of talking, but I want to have something meaningful to say, without covering my true message up and obscuring it with confusing words.
What does this have to do with religion, and with Christianity more specifically? Well, being a Christian defines so much of who I am and what I stand for, and my faith naturally comes up in conversations with other people. And of course, I try to explain to people why I believe what I believe. I want people to give me a chance, I want them to be open to the reasons I think that Christianity makes so much sense.
But I also believe that there is a spiritual, faith side of things to my beliefs. I can use my reason to explain it to people, and I can be eloquent as possible, but ultimately, my eloquence will convince no one. God draws people, and individuals will make their choices based on much more than just the words I say.
I guess what I'm trying to get at is that I believe knowing what we believe is important, and explaining clearly what we believe is important as well. But our words, while powerful at times, cannot convince anyone to do anything they don't want to do or believe in. The decision to reject or receive Christ is personal, and based on more than a convincing argument.
If faith was based on reason alone, then it seems like there would be no debates about anything, there would be no questioning and searching, because the "answers" would be obvious to people. But Christianity, while reasonable, is not something our words can convince people of.
Augustine didn't become a Christian based only on the words of others, but he constantly acknowledges the work that God was doing in HIm. Everything in his life was working toward his decision. It wasn't just one thing that convinced (or confused) him - it was many things, it was his experiences, it was his convictions, it was God drawing him.
And I want to tell people about what I believe, and I think the Bible calls Christians to proclaim the message of Christ. But the Bible also shows that God is the one who convinces people. I think we should just be honest with one another about our beliefs, rather than disguising things with rhetoric in order to sound more convincing.
When Augustine met Faustus, the issue of eloquence was raised. I get the impression the Faustus was a very eloquent and convincing speaker, but his rhetoric really just covered up his own lack of understanding in certain matters. His speeches were not indicative of his spiritual understanding, but only showed that he had the gift of pleasant and convincing speech.
I think that fancy words and rhetorical techniques get in the way of clear messages sometimes. Some people just have a natural skill for convincing people, even if their position is not the popular one. But in order to clearly communicate with one another, we need to make sure that our words are not just "smoke and wind." I don't want to talk (or write) just for the sake of talking, but I want to have something meaningful to say, without covering my true message up and obscuring it with confusing words.
What does this have to do with religion, and with Christianity more specifically? Well, being a Christian defines so much of who I am and what I stand for, and my faith naturally comes up in conversations with other people. And of course, I try to explain to people why I believe what I believe. I want people to give me a chance, I want them to be open to the reasons I think that Christianity makes so much sense.
But I also believe that there is a spiritual, faith side of things to my beliefs. I can use my reason to explain it to people, and I can be eloquent as possible, but ultimately, my eloquence will convince no one. God draws people, and individuals will make their choices based on much more than just the words I say.
I guess what I'm trying to get at is that I believe knowing what we believe is important, and explaining clearly what we believe is important as well. But our words, while powerful at times, cannot convince anyone to do anything they don't want to do or believe in. The decision to reject or receive Christ is personal, and based on more than a convincing argument.
If faith was based on reason alone, then it seems like there would be no debates about anything, there would be no questioning and searching, because the "answers" would be obvious to people. But Christianity, while reasonable, is not something our words can convince people of.
Augustine didn't become a Christian based only on the words of others, but he constantly acknowledges the work that God was doing in HIm. Everything in his life was working toward his decision. It wasn't just one thing that convinced (or confused) him - it was many things, it was his experiences, it was his convictions, it was God drawing him.
And I want to tell people about what I believe, and I think the Bible calls Christians to proclaim the message of Christ. But the Bible also shows that God is the one who convinces people. I think we should just be honest with one another about our beliefs, rather than disguising things with rhetoric in order to sound more convincing.
posted by Christine at 8:27 PM
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