We are living in a decidedly postmodern age. This does not mean the fundamentals of our faith must change to please culture, but it does mean that unless Christians change the way we communicate the unchanging Gospel, our mission to reach the lost will fail. D. Rodriguez makes this same point in his recent critique of Brian McLaren’s book, "A New Kind of Christian" To … [Read more...]
"A New Kind of Christian" Critique – Final
Part 1 - Part 2 Although the Bible is not a philosophy book, it does presuppose some ideas about truth which fit foundationalism better than postmodern epistemology. Passage after passage are clear that truth is what corresponds to reality, rather than making truth relative to a linguistic community. Here is a minor sampling: … [Read more...]
Postmodernism, Relativism, and Truth
[This post is a work in progress as part of the CAA Catechism.] [Add the title only in the title field, not in the body of the post.] Summary in 400 words or less: With the collapse of the Iron Curtain, the former Soviet Republics fragmenting from the former Soviet Union, and to some degree, science not being able to answer every question in life, in the late 1980’s and early … [Read more...]
Does Truth Exist And Is It Knowable? – PT. 2
Part 1 (pt.2 of 4) Does Truth exist? Even if it does, can we know it? Are we in the dark like Kant said that we are? Should we be absolutely skeptical as Hume told us we should be? This is Lesson #3 of our “Reason To Believe” Video Apologetics Class. Here we will begin to discuss the all important question of truth, and whether it can be known at all. We will be examining the … [Read more...]
"A New Kind of Christian" Critique – Part 2
Part 1 McLaren continues with his criticism. The modern view of Christianity is not the absolute, ultimate truth; it is rather a “view from a point”. As modern Christians, what we thought of as objective certainty is really reliant on our subjective preference for our personal viewpoint.[i] Instead of our faith being compared to a building (an allusion to foundationalist … [Read more...]
Does Truth Exist and Is It Knowable? – Pt. 1
(pt.1 of 4) Does Truth exist? Even if it does, can we know it? Are we in the dark like Kant said that we are? Should we be absolutely skeptical as Hume told us we should be? This is Lesson #3 of our "Reason To Believe" Video Apologetics Class. Here we will begin to discuss the all important question of truth, and whether it can be known at all. We will be examining the claims … [Read more...]
Emergent Christianity in Memphis, Part 2
Emergents are Tolerant, Uncertain, and Relativistic, Except When They are Not In Part 1, I introduced a gathering of Emergent Christians in Memphis to honor Phyllis Tickle, Memphis' resident Emergent, and the forerunner in Emergent thinking. While the first post focused on Tickle's opening talk, and the claims she made in it, this post will focus on her controversial closing … [Read more...]
The Hunger Games: Revisited
Last monthI posted a critique of the movie The Hunger Games. It came to my attention that Fred Edwords posted a short piece at the American Humanist Association's website addressing the general evangelical response to the movie. He linked to my original article and broadly addressed my comparison of the society of The Capital to where today's societies are leading. Mr. Edwords … [Read more...]
"A New Kind of Christian" Critique – Part 1
(A three-part series critiquing Brian McLaren's book, A New Kind of Christian) Brian McLaren relays a story of two individuals on a spiritual journey in an attempt to parallel his own experience as a pastor who has become disenchanted with Christianity. His own crisis of faith led him to two alternatives: either practice a version of Christianity that he had reservations … [Read more...]
The Pride of Claiming Christianity Is True for All People
How could I, as a white American living in 2013 be so pompous as claim to know that Christianity is true for all cultures, ethnicities, languages, places, and times? Recently I found myself struggling with this question. I feel guilty even thinking that I could be so prideful as to make that claim. At first glance, it's a valid concern. However, inspecting the underlying … [Read more...]