What are the academic limitations? Also, why should we take the path of contemplation?

The author has published a special article discussing the use of academics (please see " Is it Useless to Do Academics? ", today I want to discuss the limitations of academics and the need to contemplate life.

The importance of academics is self-evident, because scholars tell us the stories and thoughts of human history, and the laws of all things change. It can be said that our entire modern civilization is built here. However, academics still have their limitations.

Although scholarship is for the pursuit of truth (although not all scholars believe that scholarship is for the pursuit of truth), this so-called "truth" is also limited. why? Because this "truth" is not based on whole historical facts, but on natural fragments left over from history. In the humanities, for example, an uninformed scholar must have the ability to deal with primary material, especially raw material. The original materials are the relics left over from the history of human activities, such as Dunhuang caves, tomb documents unearthed in Tubo, etc. Scholars must learn to face and deal with them if they want to trace the origin.

However, the natural fragmentation tendency of the original material stifles scholars' attempts to tell more complete historical facts, or stories, or ideas. Just like a broken cup, scholars can only speculate based on some of the glass fragments left by history to demonstrate the shape, style, and purpose of this cup. Due to the lack of sufficient data, rigorous scholars can only make cautious guesses based on the original material, and they would rather not say what the original material does not mention. Therefore, the author admires those scholars who do not write without new things.

Our understanding of history is always limited and fragmented, and it can even be said to be one-sided in many cases, not only because the original materials tend to be fragmented, but also because some scholars (for whatever reason) do not trace the source , likes to talk nonsense. Therefore, we need to be careful with the academic materials we read to see if their arguments are sufficient, and then decide whether to accept their conclusions.

If academic research is only limited, one-sided, and fragmented, is there any other way to seek truth? How to seek truth? What is true? Thank God, God has opened up a way of seeking truth through our Lord Jesus Christ. This way can still be found by those without academic training, and it is open to all believers; Unfamiliar, because I gave it up at the beginning, I call it the way of contemplation.

Contemplation, Greek θεορία, in the Christian spiritual tradition means spiritual knowledge gained through communion with God (unfortunately, some translators have translated the word into meditation). Mindfulness comes from the Christian's exercise of the commandment to love God and love others. Keeping the commandments leads to fellowship with God, and the experience gained from fellowship with God is spiritual knowledge.

The road of contemplation is the true gospel road of obeying God's commandments, the road of making promises with the Lord in life and death, and the only way to fight against the secularization of the church.

The way of contemplation has been abandoned by modern scholars, because not many of today's famous scholars believe in the Lord, and not many insist on spiritual practice. For example, modern scholars have a negative attitude towards the miracles and miracles in the biographies of the ancient saints, and some simply claim that the saints suffered from mental illness. This attitude is of course due to liberal theology's view of the Gospels. The historical criticism method affirms that Jesus is a man, and the signs, wonders, visions, etc. are all false.

What is the difference, one might ask, between contemplating gaining spiritual knowledge and a study of church historical documents? I use the metaphor of a person who knows not to touch fire. A person who takes an academic path is like a person who has never touched a flame. He learned from a book how high the temperature of the flame is, and the temperature that the skin of the hand can withstand is much lower than that. Therefore, it is concluded that the hand cannot touch the flame. This process goes through reading, learning, and logical reasoning. However, a person who walks the path of contemplation is like a person who encounters fire. He knows that fire cannot be touched the moment he encounters fire. This is a direct experience, and this experience does not require rational reasoning or logical thinking. diffuse process.

This distinction, of course, also explains why the great scholar Arthur New in "The Words and Deeds of the Godfathers of the Desert" (section 6 of it) is asking an illiterate old monk for advice on the right and wrong of his own thinking.

One day, Abba Arsenio asked an old Egyptian monk about the right and wrong of his thinking. Someone came to him and asked him, "Abba Arsenio, a learned man like you, with a good education in Latin and Greek, why should you ask this farmer?" He replied, "I do I've learned Latin and Greek, but I don't even know the most basic knowledge of this farmer's context!"

Anthony et al., The Words and Deeds of the Godfather of the Desert, translated by Chen Tingzhong (Beijing: Sanlian Publishing House, 2012), p. 59

So, should we give up academic research and go directly to the path of contemplation? Of course not. There are two ways to go. For the Chinese church, academically, reading, translating, researching, and studying church historical documents has only just begun, and there are many obstacles, especially the Eastern church traditions that the author promotes. The path of contemplation corresponds to the right path and revival of the spirituality of the Chinese church. This path is more difficult and fundamental, and requires the efforts of several generations.