Narrative Theology

     A brief conversation with a friend provoke later reflection about what is called 'narrative theology' (NT).  Briefly,  NT is viewing the Christian understanding of God in terms of 'story', especially God's story and our story transecting it, becoming one with it.  As such it is a communicative framework.  It's about communicating the gospel - it's an applied theology, but still essentially communicative.
     I love this approach but I do have strong reservations.
The problems come not with narrative theology itself, but with people's handling of it.  The key point is that it is GOD'S story, not ours. So we need to handle it with all the care and respect such ownership demands of us.  What IS God's story exactly?  Do we really know it inside and out? When we tell God's story do we do so in a Biblically correct way?  Or do we know a part of the story and tell it as if we are telling the whole story?  This would be to tell partial truth, which can do so much harm.
    Telling only the part of God's story that we know, or the part we feel comfortable with, can play havoc with people's precious lives.  With good intentions and perhaps unwittingly, a part-story can mislead people. Have you ever met anyone with an unBiblical view of God because they were told God is love, without being told that God is also just?  or perhaps that God is a fearsome judge, without being told of God the servant-King?  Or perhaps that God is transcendent and holy but not that God is imminent and personal?  In church we find people damaged by a partial gospel quite often.  The damaged one's who never come to church again worry me most of all.

So yes, narrative theology is good, but in my view, only as a secondary theology.  The danger comes when NR is our primary theology.  Rather I would suggest a thoroughgoing Biblical theology of God, Christ, The Holy Spirit and Humankind is what is needed as a primary theology.  This may not be easy to acquire, or hip, but it grounds us deeply in the whole gospel.  Only then, with our feet firmly in the whole Bible revelation of God should we add secondary paradigms such as narrative theology, liberation theology, feminist theology, pastoral theology etc.

Telling God's story is a noble task.  First, ensure we know all there is to know of God, and allow God to 'know' all there is to know of us.