The Only Way is Up?

by Paul Bridges.

Back in 1998 Yazz and the Plastic population sang to us that “the only way is up”. Other than fondly remembering the days of such delightfully named pop groups, I have been wondering if that is true. And more specifically if it is true in our theological thinking. Now I don’t mean that all our theological thinking is heavenward, because heaven may not be a place in that sense and it certainly does not appear to be hiding in the stars. Rather I am wondering if our theological thoughts and understanding has to progress in an linear fashion, where the more we do it the closer we get to “The Truth”.

In many aspects of life there is a hidden assumption that this is the case. The harder the athlete trains and the better they execute their skills, then the faster, higher or longer they will go. The maths or history we learn at infant school is superseded by that which we learn at junior school and this process is repeated once again at high school and even again at university if we reach this level.

Our economy, at least in the West, is predicated on the idea that we need to grow and this is the only definition of success – bigger is better. In so many aspects of our lives progress is seen as only having one direction.

During a recent house group conversation, we were asked to share a Bible passage that had significant meaning to us, and another passage that troubled us. As I reflected on my choices I realised that the meaningful passage (Isaiah 43:1-7), whilst still having real meaning for me, I now understand in a very different way than I first did 30+ years ago. Thinking more about this, I realised that the value and meaning that I have found in this passage has changed multiple times over those years. At the time, when I first felt this passage speaking to me it had a very personal meaning. I can see now that at times it has spoken to me not as an individual but as part of a community, and again at other times I have found meaning in the historical legacy and tradition that this passage is part of.

Each way the passage has spoken to me reflects something of how I understand God, but with the benefit of hindsight I can also see it reflects where I was in my life at that particular time. My theology has not developed incrementally but thematically as my life experienced, joy and grief, health and illness, youth and experience.

Many of us through our lives can see how our understanding of the Divine has changed and developed over the years and it is tempting to assume that our understanding has got better. The problem is that as a collection of God’s people our deepening understanding a s we go through life is not always in the same direction.

This assumption also affect how we understand the faith of others, now and of people of faith down the years. This quote from John Dominic Crossan illustrates, I think, the meaning and understanding that we can miss if we assume that theological development only happens in one direction.

“My point, once again, is not that those ancient people told literal stories and we are now smart enough to take them symbolically, but that they told them symbolically and we are now dumb enough to take them literally.”[1]

The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® (MBTI) is generally considered to be the most researched and validated psychological tool in existence. It is noteworthy for its use by many Christian communities and the way that it can help people to understand themselves, others and their relationship with God. (If you can find a copy, I recommend Pray Your Way: Your Personality and God, by Bruce Duncan)

MBTI is not a personality test – there is no right or wrong answer, nor does it tell you how you behave, rather it shows what your natural preferences are. But importantly, we can, all when necessary, act in other ways. As we grow older, many of us start to slowly become more confident to behave in new ways. We might discover delight in trying new things and whilst they may never become as fluent as our natural preferences, MBTI practitioners believe that we often find real value and meaning in these later life developments. In his book Bruce Duncan shows how this can be true for the development of spirituality especially in mid and later life. By using part of our personality that are not our go to approach we can open up new understanding of God. The development of mid and older life spirituality is just one example of how we can find God by going backwards or even sideways.

The “Only Way is Up” may not be true after all! 

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[1] John Dominic Crossan and Richard G Watts (1996), Who is Jesus?: answers to your questions about the historical Jesus, Louisville, Ky.: Westminster John Knox Press, p.79