INTELLECT
Gosh, this is a hard one to get my head around!
Issue no. 1 is that, in dealing with the subject of dementia, there is a vast lack of knowledge. Yes, there is much research taking place, but this in the realms of medicine and psychology, rather than of the spiritual.
Issue no. 2 is that, in seeking some sense of truth in the Bible, one is thrust into different times and cultures and the whole question of whether we are any more sophisticated in our understanding than they?
The article linked to here rightly identifies two aspects of faith - intellectual and emotional - and it is helpful in recognising a need for both. In the context of dementia, I struggle with the conclusion that a degree of intellectual knowledge is a pre-requisite of 'saving-faith'.
It rather persuades me to explore further how an emotional awareness or 'intelligence', as it used to be termed, may be seen as sufficient.
Issue no. 1 is that, in dealing with the subject of dementia, there is a vast lack of knowledge. Yes, there is much research taking place, but this in the realms of medicine and psychology, rather than of the spiritual.
Issue no. 2 is that, in seeking some sense of truth in the Bible, one is thrust into different times and cultures and the whole question of whether we are any more sophisticated in our understanding than they?
The article linked to here rightly identifies two aspects of faith - intellectual and emotional - and it is helpful in recognising a need for both. In the context of dementia, I struggle with the conclusion that a degree of intellectual knowledge is a pre-requisite of 'saving-faith'.
It rather persuades me to explore further how an emotional awareness or 'intelligence', as it used to be termed, may be seen as sufficient.
| faith_-_knowledge_emotion.pdf |
In making an assumption that an emotional awareness or sense of God is enough to sustain a 'saving relationship', I am then challenged in this article that such an emotional faith can easily become self-centred and idolatrous, with 'what I feel' becoming paramount.
There is a natural need for some objective 'anchor', which is where the Bible comes in for a Christian. But how does this work for someone with dementia?
I think that, for me, the answer lies in the importance of relationship and the place of the Christian community, the Body of Christ. We are all dependent on others in the development of our faith and we are challenged and we grow on the basis of the knowledge of others (family, pastors, theologians etc.). This dependency is heightened for those with dementia, as their emotional awareness and faith needs to have its root in the wider community of faith which also holds an intellectual basis to that faith.
I would like to think that any emotional awareness of God experienced in the Moments Café, and the various relationships that are there, has a foundation in the shared Biblical faith of the Church.
The L'Arche Community serves as a good example of this. A community of folk with intellectual disabilities with those of greater ability is a place where faith will be found expressed in relationships of love and trust and hope. Some will find it hard to grasp the Biblical testimony behind this experience, but the community purposefully engages in theological reflection, prayer and worship which keep it rooted in the wider faith of the Church, which includes the intellectual.
There is a natural need for some objective 'anchor', which is where the Bible comes in for a Christian. But how does this work for someone with dementia?
I think that, for me, the answer lies in the importance of relationship and the place of the Christian community, the Body of Christ. We are all dependent on others in the development of our faith and we are challenged and we grow on the basis of the knowledge of others (family, pastors, theologians etc.). This dependency is heightened for those with dementia, as their emotional awareness and faith needs to have its root in the wider community of faith which also holds an intellectual basis to that faith.
I would like to think that any emotional awareness of God experienced in the Moments Café, and the various relationships that are there, has a foundation in the shared Biblical faith of the Church.
The L'Arche Community serves as a good example of this. A community of folk with intellectual disabilities with those of greater ability is a place where faith will be found expressed in relationships of love and trust and hope. Some will find it hard to grasp the Biblical testimony behind this experience, but the community purposefully engages in theological reflection, prayer and worship which keep it rooted in the wider faith of the Church, which includes the intellectual.