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Tom Wright was at our School of Theology this morning. He did his usual 'New Creation' thing, but then spoke about his new book, 'Virtue Reborn'. Its interesting that a focus on eschatology leads to thinking about virtue. Once you start thinking about our future and the future of the planet, you have to think about the kind of people we are and will be. Its a link that was very much in my mind when writing my Spiritual Fitness, which also looked at virtue. The language of virtue is a fairly universal one and connects to both religious and secular contexts today. You don't have to be a Christian to realise you need to learn patience, courage and generosity. It's also language the NT uses quite a bit too, with the lists of virtues that comes towards the end of virtually ever NT letter. Virtue is the language that speaks most powerfully about discipleship today, adn Tom's book will do a great job at highlighting it.

Comments

  1. Blair Wilner20 February 2010 at 23:38

    Stanley Hauerwas writes about the connection between eschatology and ethics in his Resident Aliens. Although, I might point out that maybe you DO "have to be a Christian to realise you need to learn patience, courage, and generosity." Christians believe that virtue is the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church to the glory of God. Non-Christians have no reason to seek virtue other than their own self-fulfillment.

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  2. Philip Ritchie21 February 2010 at 09:09

    Hi Graham, thanks for the info about Tom Wright's new book. I did a blog on your Spiritual Fitness seminar in Chelmsford a couple of weeks ago http://philipstreehouse.blogspot.com/2010/02/spiritual-fitness.html Hope it makes sense.

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  3. Derek Winterburn23 March 2010 at 18:10

    Nice that he mentions your book in the Afterword. But no reference to Dallas Willard? I wonder if someone word-searched Tom's many books how often 'virtue' or even ethics would have come up before this one... Did something happen?

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