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God's Wisdom: Toward a Theology of Education
This book explores and affirms the religious dimension of education. Peter Hodgson argues that the passage of knowledge from teacher to student is in many ways analogous to God's method of imparting divine wisdom by leading the human spirit into its widest range of possibilities.
- GenresTheology
Paperback
First published May 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
July 19, 2022
I really, *really* wanted to love this book. The idea of a "theology of education" is something I've been eager to learn more about over the past few years, and I've been shocked by the lack of articles and books about the topic. They're out there, to be sure, but I've had to do some digging. This book's subtitle, "Toward a Theology of Education," seemed to be exactly the kind of book I was looking for.
Unfortunately, I was disappointed. Part of this is my own fault: Most of the argument was, frankly, waaaay over my head (I'm thinking especially of the more academic portions where he reviews literature on a given topic. Of course, it doesn't help that some of these portions were about Hegel.).
However, my main complaint is that the book never really seemed to get to the heart of what I expected it to be about: how to develop a theology of education in light of God. When Hodgson does attempt at doing this throughout the first few chapters, it seemed like many of the observations were about education as it relates to understanding the nature of God or understanding theology rather than really delving into education more generally. I wanted the author to directly answer questions like, "How does our understanding of God impact how we understand the education process? How do we understand the transfer of knowledge, the formation of character, etc. in light of God's existence? These questions and concerns *are* addressed in Hodgson's work, but they always seem to be approached indirectly. (Sidenote: Perhaps I was hoping for a "philosophy of education" informed by a Christian worldview).
Chapter 4--the portion where Hodgson really works through his own argument--is by far the most compelling section of the book, and it's honestly the portion I would recommend for most casual readers. At the beginning of the following chapter, Hodgson provides a detailed summary of his own argument. It's worth quoting in full:
"Theologically, my claim is that God's Wisdom engenders both outwardly through its incarnate shapes and inwardly through the illumination of the Spirit, a distinctive sort of wisdom in human beings. To name this wisdom and describe its pedagogical characteristics, I have adopted the ancient term paideia [Paideia is a Greek term defined as "the nurture, upbringing, disciplining of a child," "the formative process of the human personality" (p. 7)] (the association of wisdom and paideia has the avantage of bringing together the Hebraic and Greek heritages of Christian theology). Education as paideia is, in the most fundamental sense, nurturing or formative of human life; without it, human beings can scarcely exist as human at all, and they certainly cannot flourish. Education as paideia also has a rhythmic quality that includes three basic elements related to one another cyclically. [1. Critical Thinking] One of these is critical, disciplined thinking, which constitutes objects of investigation through various methodological procedures, but which also finds itself drawn dialogically into the mystery of thinking and being as such. It knows itself as thinking to be constructive and connected. [2. Heightened Imagination] A second element surrounds critical thinking. Initially it is a precritical, immediate, romantic engagement with what presents itself in experience. Later it becomes a postcritical contemplation, appreciation, and appropriation of critically constructed reality and of the mystery that runs through it--an imaginative seeing of the whole in the parts and the parts in the whole. [3. Liberating Practice] The third element is that of fruition, synthesis, commitment, freedom--an envisagement of the good that incorporates both cognitive and aesthetic aspects and is oriented toward transformative, liberating practices. God's Wisdom appears as a transcendent dimension or radicalizing power within each of these elements, drawing criticism to its depths, imagination to its heights, and practice to its telos in freedom. The basic purpose of education is to awaken, discipline, focus, and expand the development of wisdom in human beings as they respond in however diverse ways to the beckoning call of being, truth, goodness. If awareness of the latter is repressed, it needs to be released, brought into the open, and connected with other elements in the educational experience. This is the religious dimension that is for the most part silently present in all forms of education. One of my convictions is that the practice of paideia is pretty much the same across the broad spectrum of higher education. That is, the elements of critical thinking, heightened imagination, and liberating practice, together with their religious implications, are or should be always present in the great diversity of levels, subject matters, methods, and professional orientations. How they concretely appear, in whatever distinctive combinations and emphases, will differ tremendously. But a common thread links the practice of education wherever and however it appears. This at least is my thesis." (pp. 126-127)
Another important point: Hodgson sets out to develop a theology of education from an explicitly Christian perspective, but he concedes that he hopes his ideas will resonate with non-Christians as well. At this point, he opens up his argument to serious criticism by the way he attempts to harmonize Christian theology with other worldviews. Two reviewers put this well in their own critiques:
Paul J. Griffins in Journal of Religion: "The book does attempt to link its impassioned pleas for a transformative pedagogy with explicitly Christian theological ideas, but it does so always in an embarrassed tone. Jesus is presented as one who can model a "redemptive or transformed pedagogy" (p. 123), but this claim is immediately followed by an emphatic disavowal (unjustified and unargued) of the idea that Jesus should be given any higher status than that of exemplar. Hodgson again and again apologizes for the "relativity and limits" (p. 124) of his own Christian perspective. Because he does not take his own Christianity seriously, his contribution to a theology of education also cannot be taken seriously. Christian themes and vocabulary are used, but they are always used illustratively, as supports for ideas whose provenance is to be found elsewhere, and so they do not enter deeply into the fabric of Hodgson's argument."
Stephen Webb in Christian Century: "Hodgson talks about education in moving and insightful ways that will appeal to all educators. Perhaps, however, that is the problem. In trying to reach the broadest audience, he trims Christianity to fit into his general theory of pedagogy. It is hard to find anything specifically religious in the book. Christianity makes no difference to education here because Christianity is no different from any other religion. This seems a heavy price to pay for a theological interpretation of pedagogy. The alternative would be to think of education as a confrontation with new ideas. Christianity could then be presented in all of its depth and uniqueness as a challenge that demands to be considered on its own terms. Rather than baptizing education with religious sentiment, theologians should seek to carve out a space in the classroom for Christian voices in all of their particularity and singularity. By contrast, developing a theological account of education in general seems like a more ambitious but less challenging option."
Unfortunately, I was disappointed. Part of this is my own fault: Most of the argument was, frankly, waaaay over my head (I'm thinking especially of the more academic portions where he reviews literature on a given topic. Of course, it doesn't help that some of these portions were about Hegel.).
However, my main complaint is that the book never really seemed to get to the heart of what I expected it to be about: how to develop a theology of education in light of God. When Hodgson does attempt at doing this throughout the first few chapters, it seemed like many of the observations were about education as it relates to understanding the nature of God or understanding theology rather than really delving into education more generally. I wanted the author to directly answer questions like, "How does our understanding of God impact how we understand the education process? How do we understand the transfer of knowledge, the formation of character, etc. in light of God's existence? These questions and concerns *are* addressed in Hodgson's work, but they always seem to be approached indirectly. (Sidenote: Perhaps I was hoping for a "philosophy of education" informed by a Christian worldview).
Chapter 4--the portion where Hodgson really works through his own argument--is by far the most compelling section of the book, and it's honestly the portion I would recommend for most casual readers. At the beginning of the following chapter, Hodgson provides a detailed summary of his own argument. It's worth quoting in full:
"Theologically, my claim is that God's Wisdom engenders both outwardly through its incarnate shapes and inwardly through the illumination of the Spirit, a distinctive sort of wisdom in human beings. To name this wisdom and describe its pedagogical characteristics, I have adopted the ancient term paideia [Paideia is a Greek term defined as "the nurture, upbringing, disciplining of a child," "the formative process of the human personality" (p. 7)] (the association of wisdom and paideia has the avantage of bringing together the Hebraic and Greek heritages of Christian theology). Education as paideia is, in the most fundamental sense, nurturing or formative of human life; without it, human beings can scarcely exist as human at all, and they certainly cannot flourish. Education as paideia also has a rhythmic quality that includes three basic elements related to one another cyclically. [1. Critical Thinking] One of these is critical, disciplined thinking, which constitutes objects of investigation through various methodological procedures, but which also finds itself drawn dialogically into the mystery of thinking and being as such. It knows itself as thinking to be constructive and connected. [2. Heightened Imagination] A second element surrounds critical thinking. Initially it is a precritical, immediate, romantic engagement with what presents itself in experience. Later it becomes a postcritical contemplation, appreciation, and appropriation of critically constructed reality and of the mystery that runs through it--an imaginative seeing of the whole in the parts and the parts in the whole. [3. Liberating Practice] The third element is that of fruition, synthesis, commitment, freedom--an envisagement of the good that incorporates both cognitive and aesthetic aspects and is oriented toward transformative, liberating practices. God's Wisdom appears as a transcendent dimension or radicalizing power within each of these elements, drawing criticism to its depths, imagination to its heights, and practice to its telos in freedom. The basic purpose of education is to awaken, discipline, focus, and expand the development of wisdom in human beings as they respond in however diverse ways to the beckoning call of being, truth, goodness. If awareness of the latter is repressed, it needs to be released, brought into the open, and connected with other elements in the educational experience. This is the religious dimension that is for the most part silently present in all forms of education. One of my convictions is that the practice of paideia is pretty much the same across the broad spectrum of higher education. That is, the elements of critical thinking, heightened imagination, and liberating practice, together with their religious implications, are or should be always present in the great diversity of levels, subject matters, methods, and professional orientations. How they concretely appear, in whatever distinctive combinations and emphases, will differ tremendously. But a common thread links the practice of education wherever and however it appears. This at least is my thesis." (pp. 126-127)
Another important point: Hodgson sets out to develop a theology of education from an explicitly Christian perspective, but he concedes that he hopes his ideas will resonate with non-Christians as well. At this point, he opens up his argument to serious criticism by the way he attempts to harmonize Christian theology with other worldviews. Two reviewers put this well in their own critiques:
Paul J. Griffins in Journal of Religion: "The book does attempt to link its impassioned pleas for a transformative pedagogy with explicitly Christian theological ideas, but it does so always in an embarrassed tone. Jesus is presented as one who can model a "redemptive or transformed pedagogy" (p. 123), but this claim is immediately followed by an emphatic disavowal (unjustified and unargued) of the idea that Jesus should be given any higher status than that of exemplar. Hodgson again and again apologizes for the "relativity and limits" (p. 124) of his own Christian perspective. Because he does not take his own Christianity seriously, his contribution to a theology of education also cannot be taken seriously. Christian themes and vocabulary are used, but they are always used illustratively, as supports for ideas whose provenance is to be found elsewhere, and so they do not enter deeply into the fabric of Hodgson's argument."
Stephen Webb in Christian Century: "Hodgson talks about education in moving and insightful ways that will appeal to all educators. Perhaps, however, that is the problem. In trying to reach the broadest audience, he trims Christianity to fit into his general theory of pedagogy. It is hard to find anything specifically religious in the book. Christianity makes no difference to education here because Christianity is no different from any other religion. This seems a heavy price to pay for a theological interpretation of pedagogy. The alternative would be to think of education as a confrontation with new ideas. Christianity could then be presented in all of its depth and uniqueness as a challenge that demands to be considered on its own terms. Rather than baptizing education with religious sentiment, theologians should seek to carve out a space in the classroom for Christian voices in all of their particularity and singularity. By contrast, developing a theological account of education in general seems like a more ambitious but less challenging option."
October 28, 2024
It’s okay for a historical background, but the Theology of Education itself being offered is rather weak. Between Hegel and Kierkegaard, Hodgson chooses Hegel, and thus Christ becomes simply a “symbol”.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews