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Spiritual Accountability and Bible Study
Posted on Friday, February 09, 2007 at 11:25 AM by Jason Barker
I read an article in Inside Higher Ed about ways in which Christian colleges assess and measure spiritual growth (Ted Olsen of Christianity Today correctly states, "Inside Higher Ed is a little late on the story, but it's encouraging to see them doing it at all"). I have no real opinion about the practices described, or insight into their efficacy (Orthodox psychologists like Fr. George Morelli and Fr. Gregory Jensen would be far ask about these things), but the article did make me think again about the importance of Orthodox Bible study as a communal activity.
Spiritual accountability is a central part of the Orthodox life: Orthodox Christians regularly engage in intense reflection upon our lives (in the Bible study on the Epistle to the Romans I included an article providing a spiritual checklist), which assists us in being aware of our spiritual development, and our practice of confession and direction provides some of the accountability we greatly need. While these things are at the heart of spiritual accountability, they are not the entirety of such accountability: the way in which Orthodox Christians study the Bible is also an exercise in spiritual accountability.
In an earlier post on developing credibility I wrote:
Because Orthodox Bible study is never an exclusively individual and private activity, but instead is always conducted within the Orthodox community, our Bible study applications are designed to be used in conjunction with group Bible studies in local parishes (for example, the applications contain PDF handouts designed primarily for use in these group studies). By supporting and encouraging the use of these Bible studies to the youth with whom they have a personal relationship, youth workers can go a long ways toward establishing the credibility of these studies with Orthodox youth.
Orthodox Bible study is not an isolated activity, but instead is one that intricately relates the individual to all other Christians - past, present and future - who have engaged or will engage in the study of Holy Scripture. A individual Christian teen's spiritual development must be understood and promoted within a community of peers and leaders who know and love this person, and can support and guide this person in his or her life. It is for this reason that I regularly encourage teens to not rely solely on my Bible study applications as personal tools, but also to take this material and discuss it in an Orthodox youth group. I further encourage adults to participate in these groups, both for the good of the teens and for their own growth.
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