The framework of character development, hinted at in part 1 (which needs to be made clear before we move on) has three aspects: (1) an ultimate goal; (2) a pathway which leads to that goal; and (3) the steps which keep someone on the pathway. In Aristotle’s schema, the framework looks like this:
- The ultimate goal Aristotle called eudaimonia, which is usually translated ‘flourishing’, and describes the individual who’s reached their full potential. They are trained to such a degree that they act in the best possible way, in any given situation.
- The pathway represents the strengths (virtues) required to attain eudaimonia.
- The steps are the specific practices which develop these virtues, gradually making them an integral part of who a person is.
Of course, Aristotle had in mind the heroic Greek ideal. The primary strengths of such an individual included practical wisdom, justice, courage, and self-control. All admirable virtues which, when practiced day-to-day as the opportunity presents itself, will move someone – step by step – further along the pathway to eudaimonia.
In a theological schema, although the framework remains the same, the goal is different; and therefore so is the pathway (the required strengths, or virtues), and so also the practices which develop them. The tricky thing is that there’s a fair amount of overlap between Aristotle’s virtues and those of the Christian life, which can muddy the pathway, so to speak. I’ll return to this potential confusion in part 3.
What I want to explore first, though, is how setting the wrong end goal sets us on the wrong path, and inevitably results in wrong actions.
The Christian Goal(s)
What is the chief end of man? Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.
So begins the Westminster Shorter Catechism (1647). This is a highly condensed truth statement, which tries to sum up centuries of theology, itself based on a deep understanding of scripture and tradition, in order to provide a summary of why we’re here. The subsequent questions and answers then offer an explanation of how this ‘chief end’ is achieved. The idea was that young Christians would be led through the catechism by trained clergy, and thereby develop a thorough understanding of the Christian faith, which they could then live out accordingly. So far, so good? In theory, yes; in practice… not so much.
One of the major problems I see in Christianity today, generally speaking, is an acceptance of such truth statements, but without any real understanding of the foundations which support them. The above is just one example, and one that is pertinent to my own church sphere (Pentecostal/Charismatic), which stands within the Protestant/Reformed traditions. In the kinds of churches I’m connected with, there is often very little attempt at providing Christians with a basic theological framework, let alone any thorough-going discipleship. Instead, there’s a tendency to rely on what might be called ‘axiomatic statements’, without any clear explanation or guidance around how to apply them to everyday Christian life. The result is a church full of people who can say true things, but aren’t really sure what they mean, and are left with liberty to put their own interpretation on them.
Let’s take the goal of the Christian life as an example: I think it’s fair to say that the majority view goes something like, “Jesus died for us, so we can go to heaven if we believe and spend the rest of our lives following him.” Whilst this may be true (though in dire need of heavy qualification!) there’s obviously far more to it than that. But without a foundational understanding of what’s behind this statement, there’s no real guidance for the resulting Christian life. What does it mean to ‘believe’? What does ‘following’ Jesus involve? Without proper direction, people fill in the missing details with what seems to fit best. To return briefly to the Westminster Confession, ‘to glorify God and enjoy Him forever’, in many minds means that our role as Christians is simply to worship God – and usually through the very limited media of music and song.
On the Path
If the goal is unclear, it’s difficult to choose the right path. But even those who are hazy on the details still find themselves on a path, and have a vague idea that their life is a journey of some sort. In the above example, Christians who believe they’ve effectively fulfilled the goal of ‘going to heaven’ when they die (and just need to turn up to sing on a Sunday in the meantime), will nevertheless be imbued by broader Church culture with a sense that their lives need to reflect Christian values. Ironically, it’s precisely at this point where the Christian character crisis has its roots.
When we remember that a virtue is a particular strength of character that treads the narrow path between its associated weaknesses (the vices of excess and deficiency), it becomes clear that the end goal has crucial significance for legitimate virtue. If the goal is out of view, you won’t know when you’ve strayed off the path. What’s more, the ditch provided by either of the vices on the left or right makes for a convincing pathway itself, and is far easier to stay in than to get out of.
I’m convinced that in much of the Church today, Christians are being sold false virtue, which – in reality – turns out to be vice in disguise: poor character masquerading as strength of character. This is particularly pernicious, because Christian virtues (of love, humility, and grace, for example) are often ill-defined, and a shallow description of the virtue can be settled upon, to the exclusion of its deeper and fuller (true) meaning. When such shallow definitions are embraced and accepted as the example, the vice-posing-as-virtue will eventually have you in the ditch, merrily walking along a very well-bounded trail, which no longer has the end goal or the true path in view; yet has you convinced that you’re an exemplar of the Christian life.
Stay tuned for part 3 where I’ll discuss a specific example of what I’ve been talking about, and highlight where Aristotelian ethics and Christian character diverge; thereby pointing to a way out of the confusion.
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Paul S Baker 