We theology students spend considerable time reflecting on what we believe. In secular universities this is accompanied in (at least) equal measure with arguments for why we believe such things: the historicity and truth of the Bible, the integrity of Trinitarian doctrine, or classical Christian sexual ethics. Knee deep in the trenches of the ‘what’ and the ‘why’, it is easy to overlook what follows from our theology.
What are the consequences of what we believe about God, the Bible, creation, Jesus’ life and death, or the end times? How do these bear on the significant political issues of our day, or the rapid development of technology, or the philosophy and media that is shaping our peers (and ourselves)?
It is to this end that Chris Watkin gives us Biblical Critical Theory (BCT).
‘This, then, is a book about the “so what?” of Christian belief […] It is a book about how the whole Bible sheds light on the whole of life, how we can read and understand our society, our culture, and ourselves through the lens of the Bible’s storyline.’
What Biblical Critical Theory is
BCT offers a particular way of engaging in the “so what?” of the Bible and theology. In the introduction (by far my favourite chapter), Watkin lays out a way of speaking of that which makes up culture which allows each ‘figure’ to be extensive without any one of them becoming the lens through which all the others are understood (making profound strides beyond the concept of ‘worldview’). This is one of his best insights that runs (unfortunately only implicitly) throughout the book, allowing Watkin to address a huge range of aspects of culture.
Watkin does return to ‘diagonalization’ throughout the book, his method of bringing the Biblical story to bear on culture. Though a somewhat confusing name, this amounts to recognising particular polarities which shape the imagination of a culture (e.g. individual vs collective) and attending to the way the Bible cuts across both poles to offer a better way of seeing. Watkin insists this is not a flaccid compromise. Instead, the Bible tends to hold together both poles in all their strength in a way that both undermines and fulfils cultural hopes and expectations.
The body of the book then takes the shape of the Biblical story from the Trinity and creation, through the broad structure of the Old Testament, Jesus, and finally the end of all things. Each chapter brings elements of Biblical Theology into conversation with polarities in culture, showcasing examples of diagonalization at work.
While aiming at a spread, Watkin draws examples predominantly from the world of continental European philosophy and literature. Others (in the sciences perhaps) could find this frustrating at times, but the theology student will benefit hugely from his biblical analysis of developments which continue to impact trends in academic theology.
What Biblical Critical Theory is not
Perhaps frustratingly, in all its 600-plus pages, BCT does not go very deep into any single biblical or cultural figure. It has been hailed as Augustine’s City of God for our contemporary world, but with that comparison before them readers will be disappointed that Watkin neither engages with contemporary Western culture in the same depth as Augustine’s critique of the politics and religion of the late Roman Empire, nor does he delve into Biblical Theology with the same rigour as the second half of Augustine’s magnum opus. He also does not engage deeply with any given contemporary ‘critical theory’ in the way that some expect from the title.
However, for all that it is not, BCT succeeds at its actual aim. It is essentially a textbook teaching a method of engaging biblically in cultural critique. The many examples throughout the book are not themselves to be the final word on the issues they address but rather demonstrate how it is done so that you can go and do likewise. In that respect, BCT is an absolute gem. I, and many others who have read it, find ourselves re-reading and referencing it frequently for inspiration in our own attempts at answering the “so what?” of what we believe.
My recommendation
Read it.
Learn from Watkin all the skills and intellectual habits that he teaches and let that shape your theologising. Learn from him a biblically-shaped critical eye with which to look upon the philosophical trends that shape contemporary theology no less than culture more broadly.
If you’re anything like me and are liable to frustration at the lack of ‘actual’ theology, read it alongside a good Systematic or Biblical Theology. Perhaps John Frame’s Theology of Lordship series which gets referenced throughout (or his shorter Systematic Theology), or Graeme Goldsworthy’s classic Biblical Theology trilogy.
Read it with others and push each other to engaging with the real worlds that you live in. Perhaps start a reading group in your theology department, or with other students in your church or CU.
As theology students we will only see our learning bear fruit as we allow God’s Word to shape how we see the world around us and how we live in every area of our lives. Take the opportunity that BCT affords to take one more step in applying your theology well.