Ruth Harvey explains why courageous questions are needed.

“When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question.” (Mark 12: 34)

I WRITE as commissioners and guests meet as the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh and online – agathering for prayer, discernment, discussion and decision-making focussed on strengthening God’s kingdom through the life and witness of the church.

This General Assembly is an event mirrored across the globe in countless similar gatherings, synods, assemblies and councils of churches. The gracious way in which such gatherings are moderated can bring an ease to the throng, and courage to the trepidatious. We are blessed in the Church of Scotland by having an excellent Moderator in the Rt Rev Sally Foster-Fulton, and by the gifts of her predecessors who step in as needed in her absence.

Finding the right time to ask an awkward question is a talent. Finding the form of words that will then surround the question with both the clarity that it needs, and the compassion that it demands, is a gift. George MacLeod, Founder of the Iona Community used to say that for every second of prayer he penned, he needed one hour of preparation. We may not have that luxury when framing a question on the floor of an Assembly or Synod. And with AI now writing prayers and sermons, those days may be long gone. But the crafting of words to cut to the chase is a skill and a gift to be honoured.

The sixth Justice and Peace commitment of the Iona Community says ‘we believe that social and political action leading to justice for all people and encouraged by prayer and discussion is a vital work of the Church at all levels.’ In community, we know that the richness of the ‘discussion’ at the heart of this commitment rests in the quality of the questions we ask. It depends on the attitude we strike as we listen to the response. The depth of our discussion is found in our willingness to be changed.

“ In community, we know that the richness of the ‘discussion’ at the heart of this commitment rests in the quality of the questions we ask.

In Mark’s Gospel from chapter 11 we begin to read of a series of plots to trick and trap Jesus ultimately aimed at arresting him. Intimidation and testing, trick questions and crowd harrying are all tried. Slick-tongued scribes set out to trap Jesus with clever questions designed to lead and to frame. Jesus’ response is both to reach for a higher source of power (‘love the Lord your God’), and to turn our attention to the horizontal plane – the needs of the other (‘love your neighbour as yourself.’)

The scribe eventually sees the truth in Jesus’s responses (‘you are right’ v32) and the passage famously ends with the slightly chilling verse: ‘After that no one dared to ask him any question’.

As we lead the church of Christ, through turbulent times ahead, let us practise the art of framing good questions which are heartfelt, open and focussed, not designed to trick, trap or humiliate. This is a skill we need not only on the Assembly floor, but in tender conversations about life and death, in moments of doubt expressed by young and old, and in difficult discussions where the stakes are high and passions run deep. Let us dare to question, for in the right frame, finding a good question is more than crafting and ordering words: it is a spiritual discipline. ¤

Ruth Harvey is Leader of the Iona Community. Find out more about, and join the Iona Community at www.iona.org.uk