‘To see fearlessly, pitifully’: what does John Ruskin have to offer to Practical Theology?

Abstract

This essay seeks to make a case for a particular historical method of doing practical theology, and explores what such a method has to offer through the specific case of John Ruskin. It first develops the theme of Ruskin as a reader of texts – the aesthetic, the social and the scriptural – asking what different kinds of ‘reading’ may be involved, and probing the epistemological assumptions of the kind of ‘seeing’ he commends and believes he is engaged in. It then considers the implications both of the multidisciplinarity implied by his methods, and also of the role of the ‘amateur’ which is suggested. It then addresses the question of presentation; practical theologians need to consider how to present their theological reflection and interpretation in such a way that it effectively challenges public understanding and inspires public action, and here Ruskin can help us greatly. The essay concludes with some reflections on the hermeneutics of using a historical paradigm of this sort.