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Formalism: What Is It, and Why Not? |
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Formalism refers to a tendency in religious thought and practice to shift focus away from the abstract, the spiritual, the personal, or the ethical principles in a religion and toward the outward forms that embody that religion. Outward forms can refer to:
Formalism is found the world over in all religions. It is also common in historical Christianity, but is roundly condemned in the Bible, both in Old and New Testaments. Formalism is an impersonal outlook which misses the point where the things of God are concerned. It diverts people's attention and affections from the important to the unimportant--from the wine to the wineskins.
At Xenos, we have developed a thorough critique of formalism, which we believe lies at the root of many of the problems in contemporary Christianity. You can see material on formalism in several places on this site:
The Objectification of Religion is a research paper on one aspect of formalism; sacred space.
Formalism in Prayer is adapted from Senior Pastor, Dennis McCallum's book, Walking in Victory.
The Relation of the Church to the Old Testament is a training guide for a class on ecclesiology.
Strange Details in Stephen's Defense is a study of
Acts 7 highlighting how Stephen attacked formalism.
Contact Dennis with a comment or question
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