December 23, 2008
How to practise Total Depravity as well as preach it
At the Cambridge College that I came tantalisingly close to getting into (Gonville and Caius) students go through three gates as part of their course. At the start they enter through the gate of humility. At the start of second year, they all ceremonially proceed through the gate of virtue. On graduation day, graduates pass through the gate of honour. If you try to get through the gate of honour (which is usually padlocked shut) before you’ve finished your degree, tradition says you’ll never graduate.
What I suppose this tradition is trying to teach Caius (that’s pronounced “keys”) students is that when you arrive you know nothing and only after hours, years, of hard work (and it is hard work, I have friends there) can you leave in honour.
Well, this is my gate of humility: first post on my blog and it’s going to be to recommend something someone else has written. David Starling has given us a really helpful piece on some of the practical implications of the doctrine of total depravity. I was particularly struck by his comments about total depravity and compassion. The idea that everyone is deeply, radically alienated from God and unable to reform himself has a lot of potential to be used for finger pointing. Starling helped me remember the chinese proverb that says if you point the finger at someone you point three back at you. Ironic (paradoxical, perhaps) that being brutally honest in your attitude towards our sin could actually make you more compassionate.
Can anyone else think of any practical implications of this doctrine?
(Image: Gonville and Caius College Gate of Honour by Jim Linwood, Licensed under the Creative Commons License)
