True Devotion: In Search of Authentic Spirituality. Allan Chapple Latimer, 2014. ISBN 9781906327279
Allan Chapple has written an excellent study of what is commonly called ‘the Christian life’, or ‘spirituality’, or, ‘the devotional life’.
The title of Allan’s book is True Devotion: In Search of Authentic Spirituality, and it is one of a series of Latimer Briefings, published by the Latimer Trust in England.
While much writing and speaking on this topic drives an artificial and ungodly wedge between head, heart and hand, Allan follows the Bible in refusing to separate them. We can distinguish between them, but must not separate them. So Allan’s quest is for true devotion, as well as for authentic spirituality, and devotion which transforms our lives.
In Part 1 he describes gospel spirituality as responsive to God’s word and work, paradoxical in living out the tensions of time, focus, death and life, and the already and the not yet. Then too gospel spirituality is relational, expressed in faith, love and hope, and expressed from our hearts, that is, from the core of ourselves.
In Part 2 Allan tackles a common expression of spirituality, that of mysticism, whether in its Protestant, Quaker, Catholic or Charismatic expressions. Here he provides a clarifying perspective on a complex topic, and helpfully points to all the relevant issues.
In Part 3 Allan describes the Biblical view of meditation, that is, meditation on the words and works of God. As he points out, Bible reading and prayer are not enough: we must practise Biblical meditation, so that we are not only informed but also nourished and transformed by God.
Here Allan provides the most positive way forward for those whose spirituality is often separated from the Bible, and also for those whose reading of the Bible is only intellectual, clarificatory, and disconnected from their inner selves, their emotions, or their actions. He wants to encourage a form of Biblical meditation which revels in the meaning of Scripture, and which also reads and engages deeply with the drama, the emotion, the power, and the practicality of God’s words.
In his words: “Meditating on Scripture….enables me to appropriate and absorb what the Bible says in a manner that makes it more personal and me more prayerful…it leads me to a heartfelt response to what the Bible teaches me. It makes me more prayerful by giving me lots of reasons for turning to God with thanksgiving and requests” [pp. 219-20].
Through all this, Allan provides useful and memorable insights from the saints of former days, and these greatly enrich his writing, and help us to focus on key issues and practices.
In my opinion the valuable insights of this book also need to be applied to the corporate life [the body-life] of the church. This would reflect the Biblical pattern of corporate spirituality, found so clearly in Deuteronomy 6:4-9, in many of the Psalms, in Colossians, and in the letters to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3. Communal spirituality has a big impact on every believer: we are shaped by the churches we belong to. While the Bible does describe personal spirituality, its greater focus is on the spiritual welfare of God’s people, and Christ’s church. The insights that Allan gives us could be applied just as significantly to our churches, and to the shape and content of our meetings or services. We need to hear the Bible read in our services, and then our preachers should help us meditate together on the words of Scripture
we have heard, and then turn our meditation to prayer and practise in our corporate life.
This book is deeply enriched by Allan’s theological, pastoral, and personal experience, and this experience is useful for others because it is so deeply shaped by the Bible.
I recommend this book very highly: it would benefit a young Christian, as it would benefit a seasoned believer. It would be useful as a discussion book for a small group or church book club. And it will not only help us in our own life with God, but also help us to encourage others as well.
Peter Adam, Carlton Vic.