Wilken here reminds us that Christianity needs the support of intellectuals and in so doing offers a marvelous example of such support. Remembering the Christian Past covers numerous theological disputes, including, for example, Origen's arguments against the first critique of Christianity advanced by Celsus. What these conflicts demonstrate is that it is possible to discuss religious concepts using clearly formulated intellectual arguments, and that it is legitimate to become involved in rational speculations on philosophical and theological issues while unreservedly accepting Christianity as the foundation of one's opinions. Such reasoning is regarded by supporters of the Enlightenment as the only acceptable method of intellectual research. As Christians we do not merely want to be morally correct, we want to desire the sole source of our highest delight - God.
Affections are a constitutive part of our religious life.
Religious practices give Christianity its power and are the strongest testimony to the reality of God. While Christian faith ought to be supported with a tradition of learning, religious scholarship cannot exist without a religious community, tradition, and practice. It is a dangerous trap to conceive words alone to be the sole subject of theology and philosophy. The most reliable way to faith is the way of imitation. Imitation is not merely a simplistic methodology of learning.