Activity: Clay (For)mations

Objective(s): get to know one another, introduce formation

Time: 15 minutes of creation, 15 minutes of sharing, 15 minutes of lecture/discussion

Materials: colored modeling clay

Sometime during the first day of class I like to give the students a “get-to-know-each-other” exercise that doubles as a reflection on the basic concept of formation. I make packets of colored modeling clay available and tell the students to take some time (around 15 minutes) and create little representations of themselves or their lives with Christ. I like to use colored clay because students make use of both color and shape in their representations. Then we share our creations in groups or as a whole (depending on the size of the class). This way we learn a bit about each other. Then I lead them in a discussion about the act of creating their representations. I talk about what went on in their minds—the idea of the object, the selection of resources (colors and such), the kneading and forming, and the final communication of their creations. I use what comes up in this discussion as a way to introduce some of the basic features of Christian spiritual formation: aim, means, process, and so on.

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Assignment Set 1

Formation Autobiography

One of the goals of this class is to facilitate students’ ability to reflect on their past and current experiences of Christian spiritual formation. In this assignment I want you to provide a brief formation autobiography. Describe when your formation in Christ began. Identify the traditions, communities, and/or individuals that nourished (or harmed) your formation in relationship with God. What practices (either individual or corporate) have been especially valuable to you? Have there been distinct seasons or “ups and downs” in your formation history? Where do you see yourself today? See if you can identify all of the elements of Christian spiritual formation mentioned in chapter 1 of A Guide to Christian Spiritual Formation. If you cannot, or if one element seems to play a stronger role than another (for example, if you see your cultural background has influenced your formation much more than any other particular agent), spend some time reflecting on that fact. This formation autobiography will be very important to me as it will become the basis upon which I can discern how you are growing in your own formation throughout the term (for example, as you record your reports on your other practice assignments).

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Assignment Set 2

1. Academic—Exploring Definitions

This book is a guide to Christian spiritual formation. But just what is “Christian spiritual formation,” and how do we distinguish this phrase from “spirituality,” “spiritual direction,” “sanctification,” or just plain “Christian growth”? In your text I have only given a brief sketch of the history and meaning of Christian spiritual formation and have done little to distinguish it from other terms. (I provided a bit more detail in the Brazos Introduction to Christian Spirituality, 17–24.) It is often helpful at the start of an exploration to dig a little more deeply into the meaning of some of the foundational terms. Knowing something of the history of the terms that surround the idea of Christian spiritual formation will help you have a clearer sense of where we are going. It will also help you to understand why this text, as an introduction to Christian spiritual formation, covers some things more than others.

Your assignment is this: consult the bibliography below and explore the meaning of “Christian spiritual formation.” What has the phrase meant over time? Who has used it (or something like it) and why? What were people trying to communicate by using this phrase, as opposed to other words or phrases (and why were other terms or phrases not chosen)? How do we compare the meaning of this phrase with other words and phrases both through the centuries and today?

Compare, for example:

Byrne, Richard. “Journey (Growth and Development in Spiritual Life).” In The New Dictionary of Catholic Spirituality, edited by Michael Downey, 565–77. Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1993.

Chan, Simon. “Christian Spiritual Theology: Its Nature and Criteria.” Chap. 1 (pp. 15–39) in Spiritual Theology: A Systematic Study of the Christian Life. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1998.

Chandler, Diane J. “Introduction.” Chap. 1 (pp. 15–26) in Christian Spiritual Formation. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2014.

Dieter, Melvin, Anthony A. Hoekema, Stanley M. Horton, J. Robertson McQuilkin, and John F. Walvoord, eds. Five Views on Sanctification. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1987. (Just browse these essays.)

Downey, Michael. “Studying Spirituality.” Chap. 6 (pp. 115–44) in Understanding Christian Spirituality. New York: Paulist Press, 1997.

Howard, Evan B. The Brazos Introduction to Christian Spirituality. Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2008. See esp. pp. 17–24.

Principe, Walter. “Toward Defining Spirituality.” In Exploring Christian Spirituality, edited by Kenneth J. Collins, 43–60. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2000.

Simmonds, Gemma. “Formation, Spiritual.” In The New Westminster Dictionary of Christian Spirituality, edited by Philip Sheldrake, 309–10. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2005.

2. Personal—My Formation

In this assignment you are to simply take a close look at your own formation. The point is not to give a complete history of your own faith formation. Rather, you are to carefully examine one particular season or event in your life that you think of as significantly formational. Can you think of one time when you would say, “I was really formed then”?

Once you have thought of the season or event (or whatever), then describe it. What went on? What did you do or what happened to you? See if you can describe this formational moment the way one might describe an event for a newspaper.

Then, finally, evaluate your own formational moment through the lens of the categories in the first chapter of your text. See if you can identify context, agents, process, means, and so on. What elements stand out? Why? Which are missing and why? Then give a final evaluation of this event or season as a formational moment. See if you can summarize the nature of your experience as a time of formation.

3. Spiritual Practice—Noticing Spiritual Formation

We have been introduced in this chapter to the subtle distinctions of “spirit,” “spiritual,” and “Holy Spirit.” One way of venturing more deeply into the topic of Christian spiritual formation is to learn to pay attention to the Spirit, to your spirit, and to the spiritual part of your life. One simple exercise that can help train you to pay attention to this is to ask yourself each evening (or some other time each day), “Where did I notice Spirit or spirit today?” You need not be overly meticulous in your search. Just open yourself for a moment and see what you see. Try this little exercise for the next week. Write a brief note each day and summarize what you observe at the end of the week.

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