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A basic posture of the Christian scholar is to listen & read first to understand, rather than first to correct, rebuke, or dismiss.
Often what we read & listen to will require the latter, but it will not be done out of Christian charity or with intellectual rigor if we are not committed first and foremost to the former.
Some basic habits that foster reading and listening first for understanding:
1. Attentiveness - e.g. don’t skim, especially if it’s something you’re intending to critique; don’t let yourself be distracted while reading/listening
1. Attentiveness - e.g. don’t skim, especially if it’s something you’re intending to critique; don’t let yourself be distracted while reading/listening
2. Self-awareness - This includes asking myself questions like, ‘am I pre-disposed to read/listen to someone or about something ready to dismiss it out of hand? Am I competent (intellectually and morally) to assess the topic at hand?’
3. Community - do I have a community who is competent (again, intellectually & morally) to assess my judgment? Are both willing and capable of disagreeing with me? Or are they my echo chamber?
4. Basic Reading Skills - I know this sounds goofy, but most of us haven’t been taught well with respect to reading in context or following lines of argument.
This thread brought to you by reading Section 3, “Habits and Virtues,” of “Liberal Arts for the Christian Life,” ed. by Jeffrey Davis and Phil Ryken.
