Prophetic Preaching, reviewed by Jonathan Downie
From Pneuma Review Fall 2013.
Leonora Tubbs Tisdale, Prophetic Preaching: A Pastoral Approach (Westminster John Knox Press, 2010), 138 pages, ISBN 9780664233327.
There are some occasions where the reader finishes a book unsure whether they should praise the author for writing a challenging and necessary work or criticise them for missing vital emphases. Prophetic Preaching is one of those books.
To begin with, the author’s definition of prophetic preaching is surprising. For Tisdale, “prophetic preaching” is not tied to any prediction of the future nor to speaking out any directly Spirit-inspired words but instead to preaching “based on prophetic biblical texts that call people to live into God’s vision for justice, peace, and equality in our world” (p. 3). What is presented then is a “social justice gospel” in much the same way that the preaching of some within certain Pentecostal traditions has been labelled a “prosperity gospel”. The rest of the book will provide ample evidence of both the potential and the danger of adding the phrase “social justice” in front of the gospel.
The first chapter covers a few definitions of “prophetic preaching”, before using these definitions as a basis for outlining seven hallmarks of this kind of preaching. These hallmarks range from an expression of the Biblical grounding of prophetic preaching (p. 10, point 1) to the corporate focus of prophetic preaching (p. 10, point 3). Reflecting what will be one of the most welcome arguments of the book, point seven points out that prophetic preaching “requires of the preacher a heart that breaks with the things that break God’s heart … and a strong reliance on the presence and power of the Holy Spirit” (p. 10). The chapter then ends with seven reasons for resistance to prophetic preaching. In six of these seven reasons, Tisdale covers ground that will be recognisable to many church leaders, including the insecurities than can render preaching less effective. What is most striking is the first reason, where Tisdale takes issue with models of Biblical interpretation that focus on evangelism over social justice (pp. 11-12). Many in Pentecostal churches would almost certainly take issue not only with her view that social justice better reflects “the heart of the gospel” than evangelism but also that such a view of the gospel “relegate[s] prophetic texts to the periphery of the Scriptures” (p. 11). These are arguments that will be returned to later.
In the second chapter the book really comes into its own, with its focus on “reclaiming a spirituality for activism” (p. 22). Tisdale’s appeal for a reconnection of silence and prophetic speech (pp. 22-23), individual and corporate aspects of biblical interpretation (pp. 28-32) and “prayer and prophetic witness” (pp. 32-35) all tackle issues that are key for the modern church. The overall theme of this chapter is a call for preachers to join together what the Bible says to each of us as individuals and what it says to us as a church or nation. The only issue in this chapter is the lack of an explicit appeal for preachers to call their congregants to reconnect their private and public service to God, an appeal which would obviously have strong biblical grounding (e.g. the book of Haggai, Isaiah 58 etc).
The third and fourth chapters move from these general concerns to their application, here centred on sermon design strategies (chapter 3) and sermon structures (chapter 4). Some of these, she admits, are newer and more experimental and yet none of them are beyond the reach of any church. Examples such as “Inviting Someone Personally Involved in the Concern to Participate in Preaching on it” (p. 55) require depth in relationship between both the preacher and the congregation and the preacher and the invited guest. Not all preachers will be ready for this step. Preachers may usefully turn to the fourth chapter as a resource for building sermons on challenging subjects and for refining ones they are preparing. The only approach that is missing in both of these chapters is the traditional and respected expository sermon. Some homileticians will find this a considerable loss.
The fifth and last chapter deals with the need to align actions with prophetic witness. This chapter, like the second, makes a welcome contribution to modern homiletics. Here Tisdale argues that the power of our sermons can only be reinforced by accompanying them with actions that demonstrate our commitment to social justice. Some readers may find particular examples, such as joining anti-war protests (p. 91) or subverting a government system (p. 100) somewhat troubling but the overall argument is both scriptural and relevant.
It was mentioned that this book missed vital emphases and these form the major flaws of this book. Firstly, Tisdale’s claim that social justice is “the heart of the gospel” (p. 11) is debatable. Surely the “heart of the gospel” is Christ Himself as both the Prophet Jesus (a title used by Tisdale throughout the book) and the Lord and Saviour Jesus (titles never mentioned by Tisdale). Putting social justice as the heart and not the outflow of the gospel simply leaves unanswered questions such as why Jesus spent more time criticising the Jewish religious system rather than the Roman military and judicial system. It also begs the question as to why He spent time with both the oppressed and the oppressors alike, even to the point of welcoming tax collectors and praising a centurion, both of whom would, in Jewish minds of the time, have represented the oppression and injustice they were suffering. In the case of Matthew, it is vital to note that the call to follow Christ preceded any call to correct injustice, which itself occurred as a result of following Christ.
The timing of the correction of social injustice in the life of Matthew leads to the second missed emphasis in Tisdale’s book. Tisdale repeatedly urges preachers to publically name and correct systemic injustices (pp. 27, 28, 77, 87 etc.) yet never addresses the point that the vast majority of the words delivered by both the Old Testament prophets were addressed to those who were or should have been God’s people. Like Jesus’ criticism of the Jewish religious system, the call to social justice was normally delivered as part of a call back to God and not merely a political plea (see e.g. Isaiah 58).
It is beyond doubt that God is calling those who follow Him to act against poverty and injustice. In these terms, Prophetic Preaching is a welcome reminder to the church and to preachers that our private walk with God should be reflected in our love for people and passion for justice. However, the tendency of the book to replace a Christ-centred gospel of the Kingdom with a “social justice gospel” is troubling and represents an unfortunate flaw in what could have been a challenging work.
Reviewed by Jonathan Downie
Preview Prophetic Preaching: http://books.google.com/books?id=XDTRNJWMwIAC
