David Augsburger, Dissident Discipleship: A Spirituality of Self-Surrender, Love of God and Love of Neighbor. Brazos Press, 2006.
Referenced in: Missional Lifestyle, Discipleship, Spirituality
LifeandLeadership.com Summary
Much of the material on spiritual formation is very inwardly focused, and in that respect is unhealthy both spiritually and psychologically. Several authors address this problem, but this volume by Christian psychologist David Augsburger does so with balance and clarity. He presents what one could call a “missional” spirituality, an apprenticeship in imitating Jesus in a tripolar direction of discovering self, seeking God, and valuing people. He clarifies the kind of spirituality discussed in his book:
- It is about discovering a clear sense of self, a firm link to God, a sensitivity to others
- It is about choosing, not inheriting. It is a personal choice, voluntary, individual.
- It is about doing, not high intentions. It is a set of practices for living out faith.
- It is about loving, not civility. People matter. ALL people matter.
- It is about linking, not individualism. It is a quest for real community.
- It is about serving, not self-care. It is something you offer, concretely, caringly.
- It is about being, not having. It is discovering authenticity and simplicity.
- It is about risking, not withdrawal. It is constructive, courageous, bold.
- It is about reconciling, not coexisting. It is open to healing and growth.
- It is about suffering, not injuring. It is resolutely nonviolent and constructive. (7-8)
In keeping with his Anabaptist tradition, Augsburger traces this path of spirituality through “a long thin line of spiritual dissidents that insistently reaches back to Jesus as mentor-originator-file leader for their a-bit-over-the-edge discipleship. This includes people like Diettrich Bonhoeffer, Mother Theresa, St. Francis of Assissi, Thomas a Kempis, Gandhi, Tolstoy, Hans Denck, Michael Slatter, Menno Simmons, Martin Luther King, Jr., Desmond Tutu.” (8)
He argues this is an alternative to alternative Catholic and Protestant spiritualities “that broke out in the sixteenth century as a revolutionary movement to recover a bare-bones discipleship to Jesus.” (8) It is based primarily on radical obedience to the Sermon on the Mount, not so much as a set of disciplines, but a cluster of practices that reflect one’s attachment to Jesus.
This also is over against the current malaise concerning spirituality.
Spirituality has essentially replaced religion (which is deemed too public), displaced faith (too transcendent), nudged out personal religion (too narrow), and become preferable to invisible religion (too elusive). In popular usage it now refers to a privatized, individualized, nonrelational reverence for one’s “unique humanness,” “universal core,” or “essential humanity.” …The word spirituality…has become comfortably vague and is usefully vacant, allowing people to insert and then extract meanings virtually at will. (9)
In contrast to this tendency, Ausburger proposes something refreshingly different.
I write of a lived spirituality, along with practiced, communal, relational, subversive, dissident, revolutionary, concrete, and thick spirituality; but the most frequently used desginations are monopolar, bipolar, and tripolar spirituality. Monopolar refers to the discovery of an unfolding self, bipolar to the dual discoveries of self and the height of the transcendent God, and tripolar to the inward, upward, and outward movements of the soul – or in other terms, the journey into the human soul, the quest for communion with the Divine, and the commitment to love and serve the neighbor. (9)
He does not disparage any of these dimensions. He affirms each, but insists that they must exist in a vital interconnectedness. The monopolar is the most popular expression in the twenty-first century. The bipolar is the standard understanding among Protestants, and is the norm in seminaries. Tripolar seeks an integration that “is inwardly directed, upwardly compliant, and outwardly committed.” This is because “the spirituality of personal transformation (the inner journey), the experience of the divine encounter (the God-ward journey) and the relation and integrity and solidarity with the neighbor (the co-human journey with friend and enemy, with neighbor and persecutor) cannot bedivided.” (13)
Augsburger integrates his background as a pastoral psychologist and his love for the spiritual life into a very balanced, holistic approach to spiritual transformation.
This is a spirituality of action on behalf of the neighbor, not just reflection on the desirability of being neighborly, of involvement in a committed life of relationships, not withdrawal and solitude. It is a spirituality of the feet, the knees, the hands, and the spine as well as the heart and the head, in contrast to spiritualities that are centered in contemplation, imagination, intuition, reflection, and meditation. …[It centers on practices that are] worked out in everyday life “with a proper sense of awe and responsibility” (Phil. 2:12, Phillips).
The eight practices he suggests are radical attachment to Christ, stubborn loyalty to a faith community, tenacious serenity by obedience to God, habitual humility of unpretentious personhood, resolute nonviolence and love of one’s enemies, concrete service in unheralded efforts, authentic witness through life and proclamation, and subversive spirituality of fundamental allegiance to the kingdom of God.
Augsburger illustrates every practice with real-life stories, and also tucks in a few surprises. For example, the appendices illustrate practices that replace the word “meditation”with “peditation,” i.e. meditating while walking. There is also a section on “humor that enhances spirituality.”
I highly recommend this as a foundational text in missional spiritual formation.
From the Publisher
We all want to improve our spiritual lives, but the task often can seem overwhelming. And while there is no shortage of self-help gurus hawking their wares, not enough Christians are making meaningful progress toward a deeper relationship with God. Now best-selling author David Augsburger reveals the life-giving nature of surrender and service in Dissident Discipleship. Moving beyond self-centered therapies and “Lone Ranger” spirituality, Augsburger reveals that our spiritual lives will grow when we look outside of ourselves and lay down our lives in service to God and neighbor. Anyone interested in the topic of spiritual growth, from pastors to counselors, will be sure to welcome Augsburger’s balanced approach.
About the Author
David Augsburger (Ph.D., Claremont School of Theology) is professor of pastoral care and counseling at Fuller Theological Seminary. He is the author of Caring Enough to Confront and Hate-work: Working through the Pain and Pleasure of Hate.
***For additional information on this resource, including reviews, click the bookstore links. Check the reference at page top or the links below for resource guides on related topics.***
See Resources on Over 100 Areas of Ministry Leadership