Know your Words' Worth, by Veronica Zundel

Image: St Albans Review

When her husband Robert became Archbishop of Canterbury, the late Rosalind Runcie was quoted as saying, 'Too much religion makes me go off pop'. Leaving aside what Pop felt (groan!), at the time I thought rather disapprovingly, 'Oh dear, the Archbishop's wife isn't a Christian'. Nowadays I know exactly what she meant.

It's true, we disciples of The Word, especially those of us at the low (shallow?) end of the church pool, seem particularly enamoured of putting our faith into words... and more words...  As Ecclesiastes said, centuries before Christ, 'Of the making of books there is no end.' Were it not so, publishers couldn't  to make a living, let alone writers ,most of whom come nowhere near making one.

'I owe it all to God..'

I'm finding these days, as I recover from a crisis in my life, that I can't take very much God talk any more. I don't mean theology (which literally means 'God talk') - I'm always happy to discuss that. I mean pious chatter, the kind that people indulge in to show how much better a Christian they are than you. In particular I get a bit sick when I hear successful actors, sportspeople or others who win awards, stating that they give all the credit to God. This so-called humility strikes me as a disguised form of pride: 'See how modest I am, I don't take any responsibility for my achievements'. And it's not even  truthful: great success only comes with vision, dedication and a great deal of sweat - qualities which are given by God, but which  have to be exercised by the person themselves.

The thing is, I'm no longer sure (if I ever was) that talking about God equates to following God. The greatest mysteries are wrapped in silence: when God finally appeared to Job, Job was dumbstruck and too ashamed of his former ignorance to speak. The divine presence had much the same effect on Isaiah, on Hagar, and on Zechariah; if these visionaries spoke at all after encountering God, their words were few and to the point.

Which is of course a problem for us Christian writers, for whom words are our business if not actually our living. Is there a time for us just to shut up? Or is there another way: to write words that are so true, so clear, so piercing, that our readers or hearers are reduced to mute awe by them? Only the greatest can do this (and some of them wrote the Bible), but it is a worthy aspiration. In the meantime, let's weigh every word carefully,  scrutinize it for value,  ask ourselves whether it's really necessary. And the same applies in worship; in the High Anglican church I now attend, sometimes the silences between parts of the liturgy speak most powerfully.

Image: Londonist

As for Rosalind Runcie, she dedicated herself to transforming the Lambeth Palace gardens, an
activity which needed no words but which no doubt spoke more to her of God than many services did. And she left them for the wordless enjoyment of all.


Veronica Zundel is a freelance writer whose latest book is Everything I know about God, I've learned from being a parent (BRF 2013). She also writes a column for Woman Alive magazine, and Bible notes for BRF's New Daylight. Veronica used to belong to what was, before it closed, the only non-conservative, English speaking Mennonite church in the UK, and is currently playing at being a high Anglican. She also blogs (rather occasionally!) at reversedstandard.com