South Central Reporter

Some say Christian theologians remained too quiet for too long during the global pandemic. Then again, perhaps their silence is no wonder, given the issues that divide believers on the matter:

• Vaccinate or don’t vaccinate?
• Encourage masks or require masks?
• Follow this interpretation of the science or that one?

To better understand the great divide, professors Ben Wayman (Greenville University) and Kent Dunnington (Biola University) engaged theologian Stanley Hauerwas (at right) on the topic. Their interview titled “Friendship Through a Pandemic: Seeing More Clearly With Stanley Hauerwas” appears on Mereorthodoxy.com.

The conversation covers realities that the pandemic exposed about loneliness and neglected resources to help people deal with loneliness. It touches on other “exposed” realities related to power, money, greed, kindness, sacrifice, and more. 

On another level, the back-and-forth flows from the hearts of the three men, whose personal, sometimes painful experiences set the stage for seeking answers.

• Wayman shares a story where parishioners’ fellowship and friendship covered all manner of polarizing issues but fell short in bridging differences concerning COVID.
• Dunnington tells how the demands of sheltering with family members for extended periods of time taxed relationships and how he missed his usual routines that had kept his vulnerabilities hidden.
• Hauerwas recounts shedding tears of joy over finally reconvening for in-person worship, albeit social-distanced and in smaller groups. “Just to be back with people you love and to see one another and to have the common liturgy, I found myself recognizing how much life depends on that. I mean, if that’s not what makes life worth living, I don’t know what does.”

Named “America’s Best Theologian” by Time magazine, Stanley Hauerwas has authored more than 40 books. Ben Wayman is the James F. and Leona N. Andrews Chair in Christian Unity and associate professor of theology at Greenville University. Kent Dunnington is professor of philosophy at Biola University and formerly professor of philosophy at Greenville University.