Speaking well is not a requirement only in the pulpit but also in daily life
Theology professor Herman Bavinck (1854-1921) was known world-wide for his excellent speaking ability, and was much sought after at scholarly conferences. He was also a renowned preacher, having served a pastorate for several years and preached regularly as part of his teaching role. Only one of his sermons is available in written form, since he did not write them out. Happily, there exists a lecture (found in Herman Bavinck on Preaching and Preachers, ed. James P. Eglinton, 2021; pp. 33-83) given to students that provides us with his thoughts on the vital role that eloquence (oratory) plays in powerful preaching.
Simply summarizing Bavinck’s lecture alone would not be as productive as viewing it side by side with the discussion of eloquence by Augustine (354-430), found in the fourth book of his 426 work On Christian Doctrine. We can appreciate much better the significance of oratory for crafting sermons by looking at their treatments together. As well, studying the viewpoints of these two giants of Christian theology in concert prepares us to assess current books on preaching and how preaching is taught in our seminaries.
Eloquence is secondary in importance to God’s wisdom . . . yet it is found throughout the Bible, indicating its great value in communicating God’s message.
There is a lot of overlap between the two teachers. Their works cover the why, the what and the how (and how not) of eloquence in preaching. Our overview will be divided into several categories.
1. Apology
Both Augustine and Bavinck begin with an apology; apology in this case meaning “legal defence,” as in Plato’s Apology of Socrates. D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones opened his well-known 1969 lectures on preaching in a similar way, defending the necessity of biblical preaching (Preaching and Preachers is available in print and e-book formats, and audio files of the original 16 lectures are found at www.mljtrust.org/topic/preaching-and-preachers).
The apologies are more than simple defences, however. They set the agenda for what is to follow as the expositions unfold. Augustine’s opening chapters argue that eloquence in preaching must be based solidly on the Divine revelation of the Bible in both content (wisdom) and form (eloquence). “Now a man speaks with more or less wisdom just as he has made more or less progress in the knowledge of Scripture; I do not mean by reading them much and committing them to memory, but by understanding them aright and carefully searching into their meaning” (book IV; chapter 5; section 7).
Sermons should be poetic in the sense that they brought together all aspects of God’s nature, fostering feelings of joyful delight
Eloquence is secondary in importance to God’s wisdom, he says, yet it is found throughout the Bible, indicating its great value in communicating God’s message. Augustine analyzes in detail the style of writings by the prophets and by Paul, demonstrating that they are as eloquent as any non-Christian speech, although it is an eloquence that does not call attention to itself and is fitting for its subject. In his view, the Bible is the model that should be employed by preachers for their speech.
Bavinck takes a more philosophical approach. He argues that human language is a gift from God, given to the first humans as part of their make-up as those made in the image of God. Language did not develop in humanity in an evolutionary manner because of external pressures, nor in any of the other natural ways that were proposed by thinkers. (As background, the editor includes in the book [pp. 122-128] an excerpt on language from one of Bavinck’s academic works, Foundations of Psychology, available in English on the Bavinck Institute website.) Moreover, God’s language was that of poetry, and extended to all Creation, not just to humanity. While not encouraging the liberal use of formal poetry in sermons, he nevertheless asserted that sermons should be poetic in the sense that they brought together all aspects of God’s nature, fostering feelings of joyful delight: “…if our conscience is touched and the waves of the life of the soul are set heaving, if our spirit is driven, and is set in motion and delight, then the real source of eloquence is unlocked within us. Deep, inner feeling is the principle of oratory; it is the soul’s sensitivity to be jarred and aghast” (“Eloquence,” page 40).
God’s revelation in “poetic” language in the Bible was the model for preaching with the spoken word: “…eloquence and poetry remain connected. They are of the same family. They are in each other’s blood” (p. 51).
If the message is from God, the messenger should be a man or woman of God.
Preaching in human language was the way that Christians transmitted their faith to non-believers and to fellow believers. In addition, citing pulpit master C.H. Spurgeon’s support for traditional church sermons, Bavinck asserts in his Foreword that sermons given in person within the worship service were undoubtedly the most beneficial way for Christians to grow in their walk with Christ. He wrote: “Whatever influence there may be from the word in print or spoken that reaches us from elsewhere, it cannot be compared with the blessing there is for heart and life, family and society, in the word spoken to us in the gatherings of the congregation” (p. 30).
2. Integrity
Bavinck and Augustine insist that sermons be biblical in their content. In their form, they stand opposed to preachers parading their rhetorical skill.
Without personal integrity, the sermon would be weak or even counterproductive.
The person of the preacher was all-important to successful preaching and eloquence. If the message is from God, the messenger should be a man or woman of God. Augustine writes: “But whatever may be the majesty of the style, the life of the speaker will count for more in securing the hearer’s compliance” (IV.27.59). The message alone, eloquent or not, was not sufficient in itself to reach the mind, heart and will of the audience. Without personal integrity, the sermon would be weak or even counterproductive, leading certain hearers to “condemn the word of God which is preached to them along with the preacher himself” (27.60).
True eloquence stemmed from the hearers’ sense that the preacher believed his or her own message. The enthusiasm and commitment that the preacher had for what they were saying was what would touch them and lead them to believe or to do what was commended in the sermon. This would be termed “authenticity” today.
The preacher herself or himself must be personally committed to godly living, which reinforces (rather than undermines) the message being given.
Needless to say, the Godly preacher must be in touch with God personally if they are delivering His word to the hearers. As Augustine notes: “For if Queen Esther prayed, when she was about to speak to the king touching the temporal welfare of her race, that God would put fit words into her mouth, how much more ought he to pray for the same blessing who labors in word and doctrine for the eternal welfare of men?” (30.63).
And for Bavinck, studying the Bible took priority over other reading when composing a message. Sermon preparation required “…in the first place, daily engagement with the Holy Scriptures, with the prophets and apostles, with the Lord Jesus himself, who is the most beautiful of the children of men” (p. 64).
3. Aim
Both theologians were aware that different occasions called for differing aims in terms of eloquence. Augustine devoted a number of chapters to three general types of public speaking: teaching, which is directed at the mind and mainly employs a subdued style of discourse; delighting, a term that describes speech in a moderate style that brings enjoyment and wonder to an audience through an appeal to feelings; and persuading, the goal of which is to move people to action through an appeal to the will presented largely in a grand style.
In general, these three styles have as their aim that of persuasion. As Augustine puts it: “For as the function of all eloquence, whichever of these three forms it may assume, is to speak persuasively, and its object is to persuade, an eloquent man will speak persuasively, whatever style he may adopt; but unless he succeeds in persuading, his eloquence has not secured its object” (25.55).
The goal of teaching is to persuade the audience about matters in God’s Word. Of delighting, it is to persuade the hearers to feel the wonder and joy of what is being proclaimed. With regard to persuading, Augustine and Bavinck pay careful attention to persuasion as it is directed at the will to action on the part of the audience. Bavinck writes: “True eloquence aims at more than stirring the conscience. It tries to go through the intellect and heart in order to move the will of the person. The orator may not be satisfied until his hearers think, feel, and act as he does. In eloquence the word first reaches its highest, reforming, recreating power; it approaches the original, absolute might of the word of our God most closely” (p. 57).
Bavinck, following Reformed theology, stresses that it is the Spirit of God who ultimately convinces a hearer to act.
Augustine holds a similar view: “For this reason also to persuade is a triumph, because it is possible that a man may be taught and delighted, and yet not give his consent. And what will be the use of gaining the first two ends if we fail in the third?” (12.28).
Teaching and delighting hearers are both necessary in order for them to be able to give informed consent. This can be accomplished with subdued and moderate styles of speaking. But persuading to act is the preacher’s most challenging task. It can require the “grand style,” which Augustine cites from the rhetorical practice of his day. Bavinck for his part describes the labour of the preacher in strong terms: “Eloquence is a plea, a drama, and an act; and finally, it is more than all of those things together: it is a fight and a struggle. The orator must wrestle with his hearers. He must persuade them. He may not give up on this fight until they have given themselves over” (p. 58).
It should be noted that Bavinck, following Reformed theology, stresses that it is the Spirit of God who ultimately convinces a hearer to act. Without this assurance, a preacher would soon become discouraged. But with the assurance of the activity of the Spirit, the preacher can bear the burden of persuasion: “…as dominion over the will remains with the Spirit of God, the persuasive demand of eloquence is something that can be taken on one’s shoulders: the preaching of the word is accompanied by the work of the Spirit, and the word of the minister is simply the means in His almighty hand” (p. 58).
4. Audience
Augustine and Bavinck agree that the needs of the audience shape the form of eloquence that is employed. In the first place, as Augustine emphasizes, preachers and teachers “…ought in all their deliverances to make it their first and chief aim to be understood” (8.22). And related to being clear in what they say, they must respect their audience and its characteristics. The preacher’s language and its ornamentation must not get in the way of the message being clearly understood by their hearers, and should be adapted to this aim.
J.I Packer has written a helpful article in an issue of the Renewal Fellowship’s magazine Channels that demonstrates concern for today’s audience. Adapting a list from the Puritan William Perkins, he lists six categories of people who normally attend a worship service, arguing that a preacher should always be ready to apply their message to them in concrete terms. These include serious seekers, complacent churchfolk, new Christians and Christians in trouble (“The Real Preacher,” Channels 1986, vol. 3.3; see also the Living In Truth article by Robin Ross on this collection of Channels.)
The voice, eyes, head and hands should all work to support the message of the soul.
Bavinck warns the preacher against despising their audience. “The minister of the word especially must block any such superior thought from his soul, because he does not stand before a vulgar people [vulgus], plebeians or a public, but rather, before the church of Christ, before the Lord’s inheritance” (p. 67). For him, respect for the hearer meant “…just as in Holy Scripture, the highest ideal in solid preaching is to speak out the deepest thoughts so simply and so naturally that even the casual laborer understands you” (p. 50).
Both writers call upon preachers to avoid fancy ornamentation in their speaking, for Bavinck especially avoidance of “the trivial flaunting of learnedness” (p. 50). They provide a number of examples of gratuitous gestures and mystical and arcane interpretations, many of which are hilarious! No doubt we could now find just as wild examples of oratorical excess on the internet or television.
Augustine commends the use of audience feedback for eloquence, in that he says that a speaker should always be aware of what level of comprehension the hearers display, since an audience “generally shows by its movements if it understands what is said” (8.25). He cautions that employing a prepared script from memory strictly can interfere with the preacher’s awareness of such feedback, particularly whether the hearers have grasped what has been said. If they have not, the point should be repeated in some other fashion.
With regard to preparation for the preacher to communicate effectively with an audience, Augustine and Bavinck offer similar strategies. Augustine recommends listening to and conversing with those who speak eloquently instead of learning rules from a book or a school for rhetoric. By listening often to those who are eloquent, one will develop eloquence oneself (3.4-5).
Bavinck strongly urges preachers to enter into conversations with the best in their culture: “And how can we acquire this [eloquence], other than by interaction with the most impressive people of our generation?” (p.65). In addition to engaging daily with godly voices in the Scriptures, which is a starting point, he advocates for interaction with classical authors, noble thinkers in society, and with those in the preacher’s own circle, especially women.
In our time, one of the better current books on the issue of preparation for eloquent sermons is Reading for Preaching: The Preacher in Conversation with Storytellers, Biographers, Poets, and Journalists (Eerdmans, 2013) by Cornelius Plantinga. He advocates for studying high-quality literature such as John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath and the biographies of great people to uncover insights into human nature. Often the vivid descriptions of the problems faced by characters in literature will resonate with those who gather to hear sermons.
Bavinck includes in his discussion on developing eloquence several pages on the importance of body language for communication. The voice, eyes, head and hands should all work to support the message of the soul. Regarding the eyes, he writes that “the hearers rightly demand that they see the speaker, and that he sees them, and that he speaks to them not only with sound, but also with eye contact” (p. 69).
Conclusion
Bavinck and Augustine are united in their commitment to employing eloquence in preaching. Citing models of oratory in Scripture, they contend that effective and powerful preaching demands that sermons be directed at the mind, the heart and the will of the hearers. In addition, the preacher herself or himself must be personally committed to godly living, which reinforces (rather than undermines) the message being given.
Biblical wisdom should comprise the content of the sermon, and takes priority over eloquence. However, oratorical skill can strengthen the message, appealing as it does to mind, heart and will.
Although their writings are directed at preachers, it is not only they who should pay attention to eloquence. Bavinck cites Colossians 4:6 as grounds for every Christian to speak well. (“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person.”) He comments: “Speaking well is not a requirement only in the pulpit or before the courtroom, but also in daily life and in social conduct” (33).
His call is relevant especially for those who read Scripture in church. The power of the Word is too often lost when Bible passages are read too quickly, too softly and with no intonations of voice to match the subject matter. Several guide books outline training for lay readers, such as Unleashing the Word: Rediscovering the Public Reading of Scripture, by Max McLean and Warren Bird (Zondervan, 2009). Powerful reading is a great match to powerful preaching.
And if a Christian truly has no talent for public speaking, Augustine has this wise counsel: “If, however, he cannot do even this, let his life be such as shall not only secure a reward for himself, but afford an example to others; and let his manner of living be an eloquent sermon in itself” (29.62).
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SIDEBAR:
Is Artificial Intelligence a substitute for human authors when composing theological articles? Google’s AI was asked to respond to this demand: “essay on eloquence in views of augustine and herman bavinck.” The result was delivered in about 10 seconds. The AI essay, which seems to change after a few days, can be seen by typing Duck.ai into a browser, and then entering those words into the query box. Different browsers provide responses that differ in form. Firefox gave me the best result.
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Main Graphic: Herman Bavinck preaching (AI image)
Filler pic: Book cover
