Over the course of his years of study at Portland Seminary, my friend, John Ray, would stay with us during his times of face to face learning. Each time, without fail, he\u2019d ask me two questions: 1) \u201cHave you read_____________?\u201d and he\u2019d fill in the blank with the latest and greatest text or author he was reading for school or pleasure, and 2) \u201cWhen are you going to apply to seminary?\u201d My answers to these questions were the same each time: \u201cNo, I haven\u2019t read________. I\u2019m not a reader,\u201d and \u201cNo, I have no intent in ever applying to seminary.\u201d<\/p>\n
Five and a half years later, my answers have changed. I am becoming a reader, and I am a seminary graduate. Two things I never would have elected to do on my own, but rather were Divinely chosen for me.<\/p>\n
I entered seminary after being out of school for 20+ years. In this classroom setting, I was surrounded by many students half my age, who understood research methods and how to navigate academic technological advances. The extent of my recent reading experiences had been primarily in the mother-daughter book club my daughter and I belonged to, where we read books like The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles<\/em>, Iqubal,<\/em>and The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane<\/em>. Furthermore, I had participated in Bible Study Fellowship for 13 years and had a deep appreciation for reading and studying scripture. But listening to and participating in my first few biblical studies courses caused me to wonder if the bible I\u2019d been studying in my \u201cintensive\u201d bible study, was even the same bible we were discussing in class?<\/p>\n It was clear I wasn\u2019t a reader and I wasn\u2019t an academic, so to remedy that, I read every word assigned in each class.<\/p>\n Every. word.<\/p>\n For the first three and a half years of school my reading log was always 100% complete. Each assigned text was underlined and highlighted, with questions and notes written in the margins. I looked up words along the way, trying to understand this new seminary language that filled the pages.<\/p>\n This compulsion to take in the whole of a text stemmed not only from a deep desire to learn, but also from a deep \u201cfear of missing out,\u201d or FOMO. I was afraid if I didn\u2019t read every word, I\u2019d miss a key concept or idea, that I wouldn\u2019t understand what others were discussing in the online forums, and that an opportunity to connect in that academic environment would pass by like a cloud moving swiftly is the summer sky. I was afraid that if I didn\u2019t have all the facts or knowledge, others would realize what I believed in my heart to be true, that I really didn\u2019t belong in those spaces of learning.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t until I was in a church history course that a glimpse of freedom from FOMO came. I remember sitting in class and listening to the discussion regarding our upcoming research papers when my Oxford educated professor shared he did not read one full book for his doctoral work. Not one. His explanation as to why echoed that of Adler and Van Doren\u2019s in How to Read a Book<\/em>, specifically regarding the fourth level of reading: syntopical reading.<\/p>\n While analytical reading is great for a single book, when looking at a larger question and quantity of content, translation of material is more important than direct interpretation of material. Skimming through books in a bibliography, pulling out only that which is necessary, and crafting it into content to fulfill a specific purpose happens in syntopical reading. Here, instead of the author being the master of the text, \u201cthe (reader) must be the master of the situation,\u201d meaning the reader \u201cestablishes the terms (of the text) and brings authors to them rather than the other way around.\u201d[1]<\/a>This happens through five primary steps:<\/p>\n 1) Skim pre-reviewed books for relevant passages<\/p>\n 2) Formulate a neutral terminology thread from various authors\u2019 material<\/p>\n 3) Establish clear questions and neutral propositions<\/p>\n 4) Define the issue, including affirmations and oppositions<\/p>\n 5) Carefully order questions and issues so as to maximize issue visibility and clarity.[2]<\/a><\/p>\n Though I still have much room to grow in this skill, great freedom from FOMO came in knowing that even academic greats haven\u2019t read all the words. Instead they have searched for and utilized specific words to answer specific questions in specific ways.<\/p>\n After earning my Master of Divinity, it is safe to say that I am slowly become a reader, not because I had a technique to implement, but simply because I was a learner first. In the becoming, I\u2019ve realized it is impossible to retain all the words I thought I needed to read. Indeed, I\u2019ve learned that \u201cmany books are hardly worth even skimming; some should be read quickly; and a few should be read at a rate, usually quite slow, that allows for complete comprehension.\u201d[3]<\/a><\/p>\n As I move forward in this lifelong learning adventure, knowing where to find<\/em> the information is more important than knowing<\/em> all the information. When I have questions like how to read a specific text, or what questions would be appropriate to ask of a text, I know to pull How to Read a Book\u00a0<\/em>off the shelf and utilize the tools within.<\/p>\n So, now when John Ray asks me his standard questions, I can answer, \u201cNo, but I\u2019d love to read_________\u201d and \u201cYes, I have applied, graduated, applied and am attending seminary again\u2026because I love all the learning and all. the. books!\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n **Photo by Eugenio Mazzone<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n [1]<\/a>Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren. How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading<\/em>(New York, NY: Touchstone, 1972) 310-327.<\/p>\n