The Hermeneutics of Charity

In two years, my wife and I plan to move to St. Louis, MO so that we can attend Covenant Theological Seminary. Covenant is the official seminary of our denomination- The Presbyterian Church of America (PCA).

What stuck out to us most when we visited the campus last month was the faculty's overwhelming sense of charity and graciousness toward individuals and systems of thought that differed from their own. Don't get me wrong, the faculty at Covenant are intellectually honest about their theological distinctives. They would never communicate that all Christians are the same and that any differences are ultimately minor (and thus unimportant). Differences between Methodists and Presbyterians (for example) are important and have to be explored.

What is truly beautiful about the faculty at Covenant is that they are not cavalier or arrogant with their theology. They are very gracious and deeply understand the necessity to be clear and fair when disagreeing with different theological perspectives.

There are many areas in my life where I would like to become more like the faculty at Covenant. But above everything else, I would like to embody their hermeneutics of charity- the way they winsomely and fairly represent those they disagree with.

As a Presbyterian, I want to write about the Methodists' view on sanctification and the Baptists' understanding of the sacraments in such a way that Methodists and Baptists (although disagreeing with my conclusions) are comfortable with my representation of them. Either it be discussing homosexuality and Christianity, sola gratia and the Roman Catholic view of progressive justification, I want those who I disagree with to read my statements about their beliefs and say, "I think you're wrong, but you really do understand what I'm trying to say."