Father Peter's Forum

Val J. Peter

INTRODUCTION: Twenty-five years ago, Richard Foster wrote a marvelous book entitled Celebration of Discipline – The Path to Spiritual Growth. It has sold more than a million copies so it is very, very popular. He is a Quaker and writes in a marvelous ecumenical fashion. Hope you enjoy this. Most of what is written is paraphrased directly from Foster. So the good stuff belongs to him and the other stuff belongs to myself.

Pastor Foster says: “The purpose of the Spiritual Disciplines is the total transformation of the person. They aim at replacing old destructive habits of thought with new life giving habits. Nowhere is this purpose more clearly seen than in the Discipline of study.”

1. St. Paul tells us we are transformed through “the renewal of the mind.” (Romans 12,2)

 How is the mind renewed?
 By applying our mind to those things that will transform our minds.
 St. Paul writing to the Philippians: (Phil 4,8 “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely and gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise think about these things).
 The Discipline of study is the primary vehicle to bring us to “think about these things.”
 Many Christians remain in bondage to fear, anxieties and superstitions and foolishness simply because they do not learn the Discipline of study.
 They pray in the spirit, sing with gusto, live in obedience to the Lord and yet their lives remain unchanged. Why? Because they have never taken up one of the central ways God uses to change us: study.
 Jesus makes this clear. “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” (John 8,32) …good feelings will not set us free…ecstatic experiences will not free us…getting “high on Jesus” will not free us. Without a knowledge of the truth, we will not be free.
 This principal is true in every area of human endeavor. It is true in biology and math. It is true in marriage and other human relationships. It’s especially true in reference to our spiritual life. Many are hampered and confused in their spiritual walk by simple ignorance of the truth.
 Many have been brought into a cruel bondage by false teaching. Jesus said of the Pharisees: “You crossed the sea and the land to make a single convert. And when he becomes a convert, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves.” (Matthew 25,15)

2. What is study?

Study is a specific kind of experience, careful attention to the mind so we are able to move in a certain direction.

 The Old Testament instructs the Israelites to write the laws of God on gates and doorposts, put them on their wrist so that “they shall be always in front of your eyes.” (Deuteronomy 11,18)
 The purpose of the instruction of Moses is to direct our mind repeatedly and regularly toward certain ways of thought about God and human relationships.
 A prayer wheel has the same objective. So does a rosary.
 Of course, the New Testament replaces laws written on doorposts with laws written on our hearts. And the New Testament leads us to Jesus, our inward teacher.
 Our ingrain habits of thought, which we have formed, will conform to the order of the thing being studied.
 What we study determines the kind of habits that are formed.
 That’s why Paul urges us to focus on things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely and gracious.

How is the process that occurs in study distinguished from mediation?

 Mediation is devotional.
 Study is analytical.
 Mediation will relish a word.
 Study will explain it.
 They sometimes overlap, but they’re two different experiences.
 There are “two books” to be studied: verbal and nonverbal.
 One is the world of books and lectures.
 The other is the book of nature, the careful observation of events and actions that are nonverbal fields of study.
 When we study, for example, what happens in a tragic situation we can learn a great deal.

3. There are four steps in study.

a. The first step is repetition…you may laugh at the old teaching method of repetition, but you need to know that repetition, even without understanding what is being repeated, does affect the inner mind if repeated enough…changing behavior…that’s why so many forms of spirituality emphasize the regular rehearsal of the deeds of God…and some forms of spirituality correctly train the individual to repeat certain affirmations regularly. (For example, thank you Lord for loving me.)…this trains the inner mind and will eventually modify behavior…this principal has known for centuries, but only recently has received scientific confirmation.
b. The second step in study is concentration…we have to concentrate on what we are studying. And when we do, learning is vastly increased…concentration centers the mind…the human mind has an incredible ability to concentrate…
 We live in a culture that does not value concentration, but values distraction…some read a book, play a game and watch TV at the same time. You can’t learn much doing that. There’s no concentration.
c. Comprehension is the third step in the Discipline of study…Jesus reminds us it is not just truth that sets us free, but knowledge of the truth. (John 8,32) So we read something over and over again and all of a sudden we understand what it means.
d. The fourth step in study is reflection. Comprehension defines what we’re studying and reflection defines the significance of what we are studying. To reflect on the events of our time leads us to the inner reality of those events. Jesus spoke of ears that do hear and eyes that do not see. When we ponder the meaning of what we study, we come to see and hear in a new way.

4. The Discipline of study demands humility. Study cannot happen until we are willing to be subject to the subject matter, as a learner, not as a teacher. Arrogance excludes a teachable moment.

5. We must understand there’s a big difference between the study of scripture and the devotional reading of scripture.

 In the study of Scripture, a high priority is placed on what it means, namely, interpretation.
 In devotional reading of Scripture, high priority is placed on our applying it, namely, what does it mean to me.

The Apostle Peter found some things in the epistles of “our beloved brother Paul” that were “hard to understand.” (2 Peter 3:15) If Peter found it so, so will we. We will need to work at it. Daily devotional reading is certainly commendable, but it is not the same as study.

6. Where is the best place to study? Almost anywhere as long as it is away from the distractions of home. To leave our house or apartment sets us free from the phone and domestic responsibilities and sets our mind into a learning mode. Perhaps a library…perhaps a Barnes and Noble…perhaps a retreat center…study requires large blocks of time.

7. What shall we study? It depends on what you need. I know one of the greatest needs among Christians today is simply studying large portions of Scripture. Consider taking a major book of the Bible such as Genesis or Jeremiah or John and read it straight through. Jot down notes and impressions. Another way is to take a smaller book like Ephesians or Romans and read it through each day for a month.

Also, think about studying some of the great classics in Christian literature. Here are some examples:

 The Confessions of St. Augustine.
 The Imitation of Christ by Thomas á Kempis.
 The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence.
 For pleasure, read The Little Flowers of St. Francis by Brother Ugolino.
 A heavier, but worthwhile work is Blaise Pascal’s Pensées.
 How about Martin Luther’s Table Talks?
 A heavier one is Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion.
 The Journal of George Fox.
 The better-known Journal of John Wesley.
 William Law’s A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life.
 Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship.
 C. S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity.
 Francis de Sales’ Introduction to the Devout Life.
 Juliana of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love.

8. Then think about studying what Foster calls nonverbal books…The Study of Nature.

André Gide tells the story of a time he observed a moth being reborn from its chrysalis during a classroom lecture. He was so pleased with its beauty he showed it to his professor who replied with a note of disapproval: “What! Didn’t you know that a chrysalis is the envelope of a butterfly? It’s perfectly natural.” Gide says: “I knew my natural history, but he could not see it was marvelous. It was a thing of beauty and a joy.” Gide’s professor had only amassed information. He had not studied.

 The first step to the study of nature is reverent observation.
 The next step is to make friends with flowers and trees and little creatures that creep upon the earth. Perhaps the stories of St. Francis taming the wolf of Gubbio and preaching to the birds are not so far fetched.
 In The Brothers Karamazov, Dostoevski advises us: “Love all God’s creation, the whole and every grain of sand in it. Love every leave, every ray of God’s light. Love the animals, love the plants, love everything. If you love everything, you will perceive the divine mystery in things.”

Study is well worth our most serious effort.