Scriptural Formation: The Power of the Biblical Story

Abstract

This chapter explores the recent academic interest in spirituality, reviews contemporary attempts to define spirituality and spiritual formation, and describes the perceived gaps in the spiritual formation literature on the role of Scripture. Building on this overview, the chapter then explores how Christian thinkers and writers have considered the biblical disciplines of receiving the Scriptures in history. Taking its cue from the insights of twentieth-century Ressourcement Theology, the contemporary convergence movement, neo-reformism, and paleo-orthodox proposals, the chapter reflects on how these historic proposals assist and help contemporary Christians to rediscover the role of the Spirit as central to exegetical practice in the common quest to be formed in the image of Christ.