A life in letters: Sound

‘Is he sound?’  It was a question sometimes raised when I was a child about brethren or Baptist preachers. I suppose it refers back to the Apostle Paul’s emphasis on the need for ‘sound doctrine’ – the word ‘sound’ being used in the sense of being complete, whole, reliable, without defect.  To refer to someone as ‘sound’ would reference not so much their character as their embrace of beliefs which were deemed to be biblical and accurate. ‘Sound’ preaching would in turn reflect these values. Anxiety would blossom if it were heard on the grapevine that a particular preacher was deviating from the acceptable norm.  Should he (in those days it was always a he, in our circles at least) be asked back?

The question which I never heard asked was how a particular church knew that its definition of ‘sound’ was accurate, given that so much Christian belief is based on interpretation. Nor did I hear the deeper question - how are hearers to grow if their thinking is not challenged, if they are not encouraged to wrestle with different understandings of scripture.

I doubt if I was ever entirely sound in a 1960s evangelical sense, and at this point in my life I certainly am not!  But the other day when we allowed our daughter to have a party in the house, and the timbers were cheerily rocking while I sat in the study listening  on the headphones to Mumford and Sons (for research but also for pleasure) Bethany stuck her head round the door and told me one of her mates said I was ‘sound.’  These days, this is apparently teen-speak for ‘cool.’  I accepted this compliment with humble gratitude.