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Course 26 · Lesson 7.3

Writing the reflection

8 minute read

Lessons in this course

Course 26 outline

Module 1: Comprehensive Biblical Knowledge Examination

  1. Preparing: a review plan for the whole Bible
  2. The examination: books, story, genres and key passages
  3. Sample questions and what a good answer contains
  4. Evaluating your answers and planning review

Module 2: Historical Theology Examination

  1. Preparing: a timeline, key figures and key councils
  2. The examination: periods, controversies and primary texts
  3. Sample questions and what a good answer contains
  4. Evaluating your answers and planning review

Module 3: Systematic Theology Examination

  1. Preparing: an outline of the doctrines
  2. The examination: God, Christ, humanity, salvation, church and last things
  3. Sample questions and what a good answer contains
  4. Evaluating your answers, especially on fairness across traditions

Module 4: Philosophical Argument Evaluation and Historical Apologetics Assessment

  1. Evaluating a philosophical argument: premises, validity and objections
  2. Exercises: cosmological, moral, evil and hiddenness arguments
  3. Assessing historical evidence: sources, dating, witnesses and bias
  4. Exercises: the resurrection, the reliability of the New Testament and the canon

Module 5: Written Defense of Three Christian Propositions

  1. Choosing three propositions and defining the terms
  2. Building the case: arguments, evidence and sources
  3. Stating and answering the strongest objections
  4. Evaluating your defenses against the criteria

Module 6: Statement of Faith and Rule of Life

  1. Writing a personal statement of faith
  2. Relating the statement to the creeds and the traditions
  3. Writing a personal Christian rule of life
  4. Making the rule concrete and reviewable

Module 7: Reflection on Theological Development

  1. Mapping your development: beliefs held at the start and now
  2. Changes of mind: what changed and what caused the change
  3. Writing the reflection

Module 8: Strengths, Uncertainties and Continued Study

  1. Scoring the results of the components
  2. Naming your uncertainties without shame or evasion
  3. A plan for continued study, with dates for review

All courses

Program / Course 26: Comprehensive Assessment / Lesson 7.3

What you will learn

  • Combine the development map and the account of changes into a single reflective essay.
  • Write in a plain, honest first person voice without exaggeration.
  • Include what the study did not settle and what remains unfinished.
  • Rate the reflection against criteria and decide whether to revise.

The big idea

The reflection on theological development is a short essay, of perhaps 800 to 1,200 words, that draws on your development map and your account of changes of mind. It tells the story of your studies honestly: where you began, what you read, what changed, what did not, what remains unsettled and what you hope to study next. It is private and carries no grade, certificate or degree. A good reflection is specific, balanced and modest, and neither congratulates nor condemns the writer.

Key terms

Reflection
A piece of writing that looks back on an experience to understand it and learn from it.
Narrative
An account that moves through time, with a beginning, a middle and a present state.
Specificity
Using concrete details, such as particular books, arguments and moments, in place of general claims.
Candor
Frankness about both strengths and weaknesses, including what one would prefer not to say.
Open question
A matter the writer has not settled and says so.
Revision
Rewriting after reading the draft again, to make it clearer and truer.

Background

Spiritual autobiography has a long history in Christian writing, from Augustine’s Confessions to modern memoirs. These works vary greatly, but good ones share a feature: they tell the truth about the writer, including the less impressive parts. The reflection in this course is far shorter than any of these and is for the student alone, but the standard is the same.

A useful reflection avoids two common faults. One is the success story, in which every change is progress and every doubt is resolved. The other is the grievance story, in which the study is a series of disappointments and discoveries of error. Real experience is usually mixed. It also helps to name what you still do not know. A reflection that ends with open questions is no less complete than one that ends with a conclusion. It is likely to be more accurate.

The reflection draws on the earlier lessons of this module, but it is a single essay and not a list. It may begin with a scene or a question. It should mention particular things: a book that mattered, a passage that stayed with you, an argument that you could not answer. It should also say something about how your life, and not only your thinking, has been affected, though only as much as you wish to say. As with all work in this course, you decide what to write and what to keep to yourself.

Step-by-step explanation

Step 1: Plan the shape

Choose a simple order: where I began; what I studied; what changed and why; what did not change; what remains unsettled; what comes next. Write one sentence for each as a plan. Do not try to include everything.

Step 2: Draft in plain first person

Write the first draft quickly, in a natural voice. Use I and mean it. Name specific books, passages and arguments. Where a claim is about memory, say so. Aim for 800 to 1,200 words, though you may write more or less.

Step 3: Include what is unfinished

Add a section on open questions and doubts. Include at least two things you still do not understand or have not decided. Say why they matter to you and what you might do about them.

Step 4: Let it rest and reread

Put the draft aside for several days. Read it again as a stranger would. Mark sentences that sound inflated, defensive or untrue. Check each factual claim about a person, a text or a tradition for accuracy and fairness.

Step 5: Rate and revise

Rate the reflection strong, adequate or weak on specificity, candor, balance, accuracy and modesty. Write one sentence on how to improve each weak rating, then revise. Date the final version and keep it with your statement of faith.

  1. Does my account include real details, or only general claims?
  2. Have I described my earlier views fairly?
  3. Have I described views I rejected in terms their holders would accept?
  4. Is there a success story or a grievance story that I am tempted to tell?
  5. What do I say about what remains open?
  6. Would I be willing to read this again in a year?

Examples

A specific opening

I began the program with the confidence that every question in Scripture had a plain answer. The first course on reading the Bible taught me to ask what kind of writing I was reading. (A constructed example.)

A candid admission

I have not resolved how to think about suffering. The arguments in the course helped me see what can and cannot be said, but they did not remove the difficulty. (A constructed example.)

A fair description of a view rejected

I no longer hold the view I learned at the start of my studies on the end times, though I now see why its supporters read the texts as they do and why many thoughtful people hold it. (A constructed example.)

Different perspectives

Catholic

Catholic spiritual writing includes the autobiography of Teresa of Avila and Newman’s Apologia, in which personal change is examined before others. Catholic teaching also values the examination of conscience as a regular habit.

Orthodox

Orthodox tradition has accounts of spiritual journeys such as the Way of a Pilgrim, but it also warns against dwelling on one’s own progress. An Orthodox student might keep the reflection brief and focused on repentance and thanks.

Protestant

Protestant tradition has a long record of personal testimony and spiritual diaries, from Bunyan’s Grace Abounding to the journals of Wesley. Protestant writers often stress the grace that led them, and are wary of crediting themselves.

Literary and secular

Writing teachers advise that reflective essays work best when they are specific, honest and uncertain about what they conclude, and that they avoid tidy morals. These qualities also fit the aims of this assessment.

Why it matters

A reflection gathers the other parts of the assessment into one human account. It shows what the program has meant for a particular person, and it prepares the ground for the plan for continued study in the next module.

Common misunderstandings

Misunderstanding: A reflection has to show how much I have grown.

Correction: It has to be true. Growth may be part of the truth, but so may confusion, loss or very little change.

Misunderstanding: It should be written for an audience.

Correction: It is private. If a student chooses to share it, that is their decision, and the program does not receive it.

Misunderstanding: It needs to end with a conclusion.

Correction: It may end with open questions. An honest unfinished account is better than a forced conclusion.

Knowledge check

What should a reflection on theological development include?

Where the student began, what was studied, what changed and why, what did not change, what remains unsettled and what comes next. It should be specific, name particular books or arguments, describe earlier views fairly and be candid about doubts and limits. It need not be long.

What two faults should it avoid?

The success story, in which every change is progress and every doubt is resolved, and the grievance story, in which the study is only a list of errors and disappointments. Experience is usually mixed, and an honest reflection reflects this, including mixed motives and unfinished questions.

Why let the draft rest before revising?

Distance helps the writer read the draft as a stranger would. Inflated claims, defensive tones and unfair descriptions are easier to see after a few days. A rested draft is also easier to check for factual accuracy about people, texts and traditions.

Is the reflection graded or certified?

No. It is private. The student rates it as strong, adequate or weak for their own use, and nothing is submitted. No certificate, accreditation, credit, degree or ordination follows from it.

Think it through

  1. What is the one thing you most want your future self to remember from your studies?
  2. What are you tempted to leave out of the reflection?
  3. What would you say to a person starting the program now?
  4. How would you describe your relationship to doubt?

Independent assignment

The reflection

In your own notebook or documents, write a reflective essay of 800 to 1,200 words in plain first person, using your development map and your account of changes. Include at least two open questions. Let it rest, reread, rate it strong, adequate or weak on specificity, candor, balance, accuracy and modesty, and revise once. Do not send this to anyone or post it anywhere.

Further study