A Short overview of spiritual formation from a Judean worldview

1. CHARLES GRAND JOHN
Spiritual Formation
Judean Worldview

2. BLIND MEN
AND
THE ELEPHANT
STORY

3. WHAT IS SPIRITUAL FORMATION?
 Spiritual Formation is a process, but it is
also a journey through which we open our
hearts to a deeper connection with God. We
are not bystanders in our spiritual lives, we
are active participants with God, who is
ever inviting us into relationship with him
 . https://renovare.org

4. WHAT IS SPIRITUAL FORMATION for a
CHRISTIAN?
 Spiritual Formation is a process of
becoming more Christ-like. To accomplish
in part through the learning and practice of
spiritual disciplines such as meditating on
scripture, practicing silence and solitude,
and listening to the promptings of the Holy
Spirit.
 https://www.tyndale.ca/seminary/spiritual-
formation

5. WHAT IS SPIRITUAL FORMATION for a JEW?

6. OVERVIEW
Judean Enlightenment 21st CE
world
Monotheism Naturalism Scepticism
Multicularlism

7. Spiritual formation
It is virtually impossible to
approach a Christian
philosophy of education
without acknowledging our
debt to the Hebrew
educational system.

8. HEBRAIC
SYSTEM
OF
EDUCATION

9. Education in the family
 Family is the most important
agency in the Hebraic
worldview.
Hebrews never got away from
the centrality of the home in
educational experience.

10. Education in the family
Hebrew education technically
began with Abraham and the
covenant (berit/h).
The covenant was personal with
profound educational implications.
It was a contract between the
Hebrews and GOD.

11. Education in the family
Every person in the nation had an
individual
Obligation to God,
Obligation to family,
Obligation to nation.

12. Education in the family
How this obligation was
communicated?
How was in maintained among the
nomadic communities?
How it survived years?

13. Education in the family
Because of its aims, objectives was
never distorted, diminished from
the minds of Hebrew parents.
Their task of training next
generation was never taken lightly.
Failure to pass on is equal to failing
God

14. Education in the family
 Elmer Wilds and Kenneth Lottich says:
“The greatest lesson to be drawn from
the history of this people is that a strict
adherence to an educational system
based on a peculiarity”, high religious
and moral ideal has preserved their
unity in a way no political system could
approximate.”

15. Education at the Tabernacle
Children of Israel was never
delivered by a military leader but
by educator-turned- shepherd.
That is why Moses clearly specified
in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 which gives
us the educational task of a family.

16. Education at the Tabernacle
The Hebrew parents were
 Continually expected to sharpen the minds,
 Appetites of the children to be fed by the
law,
 Prompting question which would create
teachable moments
 So that the instruction of faith of Israel
might be given

17. Education & LAW

18. Education and Law
Torah was more than a constitution for Israel.
Torah itself means teaching, instruction
Like an instruction of father, mother, sage,
poet etc...
A divine instruction given by God’s chosen
servants.
Torah is set as an identity of Israel in their
educational system.

19. Education and Priests
The history of priesthood in Israel begins
during the time of exodus.
A transfer of educational responsibility from
Patriarchs to priest took place after the
founding of Aaronic order Exod 28:29.
The priest is the interpreter of the law
Ezekiel very clearly states, “THEY SHALL
TEACH MY PEOPLE THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN HOLY AND PROFANCE AND
CAUSE THEN TO DISCERN”

20. Education and Priests
Priest were responsible for teaching parents.
In the theocratic concept o of the tabernacle
era, the educational program consisted of far
more what we would call spiritual and moral
instruction.
 HUMAN ETHICS
 CIVIL LAW
 RITUAL CODE
 MORALITY
 RELATIONSHIP WITH FAMILY
 RELATIONSHIP WITH TRIBE
 RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER NATIONS

21. Education during JUDGES &
MONARCHY
 Education hit low during the period of judges.
NO consistent central authority, cultural
development starting to originate.
A phase where PROPHETS, PRIESTS,
PARENTS, WISEMEN starting to teach the
next generation.
During the period of David and Solomon the
educational system has come to its shape.
The book of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes
surpassed the level of educational content and
the value.

22. Spiritual formation Stages
The spiritual formation process in
the later tradition starts with the
bonding process between
The father and child- home,
The synagogue practices

23. FATHER AND THE CHILD
 First, the parent (translated “teacher” in
Hebrew) is the one who starts the spiritual
formation process in the child.
 It is often the father who becomes the one
solely responsible for the faith formation of
the child from the time of birth – the “gidual
banim u-vanot” which translates as “a value
related to the birth and development of
children.” (Spiro 1987; Edersheim 1994, 99-
114).

24. Spiritual formation Stages
 “Taharat hamishpachah” which is
the value of integrity, honesty
and loving relationships in a
family (taught to children).
Another value is “kibud av va-em”
which means honouring one’s father
and mother (taught to children).

25. The synagogue practices
 Second the synagogue- the preparation of
the child for the Bar Mitzah begins when
he or she is 13 years old.
 The education process that is started by the
father is now taken on by the synagogue; the
“cultural, intellectual, and emotional
conditioning” that involves learning about
Jewish history, culture, identity and reading
of the Torah leads to its culmination in the
Bar Mitzah (Spiro 1987).

26. The synagogue practices
The formative role of
synagogue worship.
The Torah is divided into 54
sections. A separately section is
read every Saturday morning in the
synagogue throughout the year
(Edersheim 1994, 245-255).

27. The synagogue practices
 Learning from the Torah and
Haftarah (prophetic section) are
encouraged and practiced.
Knowledge is not despised but
embrace by the synagogue.
Everyone is a student; young
and old.

28. The synagogue practices
 “The wise student is one who applies
his knowledge to serve and improve his
life and lives of other.”(Spiro 1987,
552). There is a corporate culture
of learning that continually
challenges yet integrating
learned principles in all stages of
Jewish life.

29. The synagogue practices
 Methodology was largely oral with
strong emphasis on Memorization and
recitation.
 Teachers like Hillel and Gamaliel
demonstrated their educational system
had involvement of contemporary
factors as interest, socialization and
concern for individual differences
(Opinions)

30. UNDERSTANDING
SPIRTUAL
FORMATION FROM
A JEWISH MIND

31. Spiritual formation Stages
One of the most important thing for a Jew who
will be engaged in as human beings, is
 Their life long pursuit of self-
improvement,
 Their Self-development,
 Their actualization of the potential as
human beings
 Their GROWING

32. Spiritual formation Stages
 Jew doesn’t want to be the same person
in his/her walk, rather grow in his walk
with Adonai.
 They want to grow every day, change
everyday, developing every day.
 So it requires a lot of work, we call a
spiritual practice. It is something
where the engagement is required
constantly.

33. Spiritual formation Stages
 So rabbi’s teach the spiritual formation
as a being a bird- once you stop
flapping your wings, you fall down.
 So spiritual growth requires constant
efforts, constant work.
 The moment you withdraw yourself
from system and God- you fall!

34. Spiritual formation Stages
One of the classic
examples they say

35. Spiritual formation Stages
 Rabi says- when they had the temple- first as
a portable sanctuary came to Israel. Then
came a permanent sanctuary where there
was an altar in the sanctuary! It was told that
the altar was ascended by a ramp not a steps
(draw the picture). The p riest who were
going up to the top not by steps but by the
ramp. The reasons attached to it was!

36. Spiritual formation Stages
 When you are going
on steps, you are
always able to stop at
some point along the
way.

37. Spiritual formation Stages
 If you are going on a ramp you cant
stop,
Its not easy to stop in the middle of
the ramp of an incline.
Cos of the gravity, force and your
focus, determination, your wrestle
with your strength!

38. Spiritual formation Stages
So you have to take the pursuit,
try hard in reaching the top of
the ramp.
Even, if you are in a good shape
you will trudge up those steps.

39. Lessons to be learned
In a spiritual journey going to the
top of the altar, ascending
spiritually,
a. It has to be via ramp,
b. We cant stop,
c. W e keep on going!

40. Lessons to be learned
You can’t take a vacation from a
spiritual growth, you visit your
neighbor, you go to friends wedding
etc… you cant take a break from
your spirituality, everywhere
you show, act, speak, think,
move in alignment with God!

41. Lessons for CHRSITIANS
•We can learn that we can’t be
indifferent in our spirituality based on
our environment that we are put up.
•We can’t ignore our spiritual growth in
certain places.
•We often think, we grow in church, cell
groups and accountability but it is like a
continuous process everywhere, every
time.

42. Summary
• Spiritual formation for a Jew
•Parent—Home
•Synagogue
•Formative Synagogue worship
How Spirituality is understood
•It is a practice
•Spiritual growth is constant
•Cant remain the same -ascending

43. Obstacles to be intimacy with GOD
 Not enough time
 Weariness
 Sin
 Complacency
 Self-sufficiency
 Fear of not being worth
 Distractions
 Tyranny of urgency
 Depression
 Lack of faith
 Spiritual warfare
 Care for children
 Impatience