The art of conversation

Steve Midgley  |  Features  |  pastoral care
Date posted:  1 Jul 2018
Share Add       
The art of conversation

photo: iStock

Some think we have lost the art of conversation. But maybe we never had it.

The writer Ed Welch thinks many conversations are, in reality, nothing more than alternating monologues.

So, a friend mentions their recent holiday to Spain. That prompts us to reminisce about a visit to Barcelona when we couldn’t get into the cathedral. Which triggers the other person to tell us how expensive it was visiting Canterbury Cathedral recently. And since Canterbury was where we used to watch Kent play cricket, we set off on a tale about deckchairs and ice creams and collecting Alan Knott’s signature. And so it goes on – alternating monologues where neither party really engages with the other or says anything likely to encourage, inspire, edify or equip.

Share
< Previous article| Features| Next article >
Read more articles by Steve Midgley >>
Features
A vital question for churches

A vital question for churches

Jesus famously declared: ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to …

Features
Transparency: How see-through should we be?

Transparency: How see-through should we be?

In recent years transparency has become a value of increasing importance. In relation to safeguarding, transparency guards against abuse. Where …

About en

Our vision, values and history.

Read more

Subscribe

Enjoy our monthly paper and full online access

Find out more