Respectful personal relationships, stating the opponent’s position fairly and a responsible use of the internet are some of the ways for Christians to deal with disagreements within their ranks, three Christian scholars said in a video-recorded dialogue released Tuesday.

Is it possible to talk about one’s theological convictions in a way that is faithful and also winsome as Christian? Is there a way to do that?

The question posed by Tim Keller to his fellow interlocutors, Mike Horton and Matt Chandler, kick started a discussion on what Christians must consider while they disagree among themselves and with other theological opponents.

“I think there’s definitely a way to do it,” said Chandler, pastor at the Village Church. “It’s been my experience that it works best in the context of a relationship.”

“I’ve never had an experience of just kind of lobbing grenades – that kind of thing working, caricaturizing theological position.”

Categorizing someone too quickly is not very helpful, he added.

“It’s lot easier to caricature somebody you’ve never met,” Horton cautioned, who agreed with Chandler on the importance of personal relationship.

It’s possible to get a person wrong, even unintentionally, so it is imperative to understand the other person better through a conversation to really know the position he or she holds, Horton, author of The Christian Faith: A Systematic Theology For Pilgrims on The Way, added.

“The Ninth Commandment (You shall not bear false witness) kind of represents even our theological opponents,” Horton said.

Besides personal relationship and respect, Horton emphasized the need to gain a clear
idea of the position of one’s opponent.

“I tell my students in class, if you write a paper where you are critical of a particular person – even if it’s a well-known philosopher or writer – you have to state the position in terms that that person would recognize before you earn the right to critique it,” a crucial point made early in the conversation by Horton, a professor of theology and apologetics at Westminster Seminary, Calif.

On a similar note, Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, stated that one of the rules is to “give the other person’s argument, position, in a way they not only recognize but in some cases might even say that’s as good as I could’ve done it. And then when you start to criticize it, they feel like you pay me the respect to really listen to me.”

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