SYMPOSIUM: Response 1: Welcoming Differing Opinions to a Not-so-Bad Question
by Raphaël Anzenberger
Educators say that there are no “bad” questions, just questions. Asking
questions is how students grow in wisdom and understanding. If educators
are right, then the question Which has priority—proclamation or social
action? is not a bad one. It reveals a point of tension that needs to be
dealt with. Simply getting rid of the question will not remove the
point of tension. Worse, it will generate guilt in the heart of
theological students in future generations who will feel the need to
wrestle with the issue, feeding on reflections of the past while
nurturing hope for the future.
Furthermore, stating that “bad questions harm the Body of Christ” is
minimizing the true nature of love. I would argue that love welcomes
differing opinions and makes room for constructive dialogue amidst
differing particularities. For instance, French evangelicals have
achieved the impossible: gathering their different denominations under
one institution1 with a clear confession of faith and call to action. At
the core of this move toward greater unity is a deontological charter
which addresses the fact that there are differences in theology and
ecclesiology, yet these differences are not valid reasons not to pursue
unity in spirit and action.
So let us agree on the following: the question Which has
priority—proclamation or social action? is legitimate and requires much
humility and wisdom to be answered. Humility because there are different
positions held in the Body of Christ: holism, restrained holism,
prioritism, and expansive prioritism to name the most common among
evangelicals. Wisdom because scripture (not philosophical or political
frameworks) needs to remain the functional authority for missions.
As a proclamation evangelist, I love to preach good news to the lost.
What a joy it is to see people being born from above, forsaking their
former lives and walking in righteousness! I am quite comfortable with a
restrained holism position, as the one stated in the Lausanne Covenant.
Yet I have dear friends in ministry who think otherwise. So? So here is
my recommendation: know what you believe, live it, love the world, and
love the saints. And please, continue to ask questions, even bad ones!
Endnote
1. The National Council of French Evangelicals was created in June 2010
and gathers eighty percent of evangelicals. For more information, visit
www.lecnef.org.
….
Dr. Raphaël Anzenberger is an evangelist, apologist, church
planter, author, and speaker serving in France. He has a passion to
raise a new generation of evangelists.
EMQ, Vol. 48, No. 3, pp. 266-267. Copyright © 2012 Evangelism and Missions Information Service (EMIS). All rights reserved. Not to be reproduced or copied in any form without written permission from EMIS.
Bad Question of Proclamation vs Social Action, by Mark Long
Response 1: Welcoming Differing Opinions to a Not-so-Bad Question, by Raphel Anzenberger
Response 2: Elevating a Worn-out Conversation, by Christopher L. Heuertz
Response 3: It’s the Wrong Question, by Bryant L. Myers
Response 4: Saying, Doing, and Being: Complete Integration, by Rose Dowsett
