Postmodernism and Christianity Make a Love Child

From time to time, this blog is meant to have ‘guest writers’. The most frequent of those will surely be my younger sister as she is a talented writer and will humor my requests to publish her work. Eventually I’m hoping she can automate her own posts (instead of me simply putting them up and fore-wording them).

In any case, here is a lengthy but accurate piece about “the Modern Christian”, those people who use their religious teaching as a declaration of knowledge and conduct with no consideration for the past or the future. Elaine, my sister, is a convicted Christian that I’d say offers inspiration people of any belief to be realistic and holistic about their views in the world. Please read on, and look forward to my comments in a future post!

“The terms “Christianity” and “post-modernism” are usually looked at as mutually exclusive. Of course, in my opinion, this mentality only widens the gap between the religion and progression.

In the strict grammatical manner, saying we are past the point of the modern is a lot like saying that we are past the point of the present. This is not what I am getting at. Modernism is a misnomer and it reveals the audacity of a people to name a historical period of time as if it was the last one we had to establish. The name implies we are past the point of progression. Therefore, you can see how “postmodernism” becomes more than a name of a philosophy; it’s simply noting that there is something beyond modernism or beyond what we have gained in this period of history.

This is precisely how Christianity is very much tied in with postmodernism. The modern Christian church (we’ll speak in generalities) is strongly focused on the absolute and very scared of relativity. A postmodern church might recognize the need for relativity or at the very least they would propose we have no place calling the things absolute that we do.

The idea is this: the way the church functions now is on a level higher than that of “the rest of the world.” There is a distinct line drawn between the saved and the unsaved. People are no longer people. They fall under three basic categories: followers of Jesus, unreachable sinners, or at best, targets for us to reveal the Truth to. Moreover, this line is not a line drawn in the sand. It is a line drawn in the sky. Christians are above others in truth and wisdom. We can see what they can not. We have become the authority on truth and almost picture ourselves hanging out next Jesus in puffy white cloud, sighing, shaking our heads saying, “Can you believe these poor imbeciles? When will they get with it like us?”

Now, any clever Christian would say that they by no means associated themselves on any level near that of Jesus. They just believe in absolutes and they must defend those truths when they are in the danger of being thrown out the window. I, personally, have no quibble with saying that there is an absolute truth and that God has revealed this truth in the world. However, I am not so bold to say that I am above anyone in wisdom (Christian or non-Christian) or that my truth is certain. I have faith that what I have come to know as true has weight, but it’d be a shame if I write it in stone and then hurl it at those who disagree.

So, where do I get off saying that the Christian truth is not certain? History. Those faithful people mixed up with the agenda of an institution that they trusted to know the absolute truth and whoops accidentally end up sending their children to their deaths on a crusade. Or the church that was so willing to burn heretics for saying the earth wasn’t the center of the universe. Christians have, throughout history, interpreted the Bible with the knowledge they have. Therefore, what was thought to be a foundational truth turned out to be a serious presumption. How is it that we are so willing to admit the mistakes of the church of the past, but not of the present?

You can see how this can be a scary thought for Christians today. It is possible that our world-view has blinded us to some horrible misconception. When we defend out truths, we are defending them within the context of our worldview. Just as, I am sure, a Christian slave owner would have been able to defend his stance and believe in what he said.

The church is full of mistakes and I am not one to say that that invalidates it. This is fully foreseen and acknowledged in the Bible, which comforts me. What does not comfort me is to see people operating under assumptions of what they have learned so far is the only truth.

Let me give you a tangible example. I have met many Christians who are vehemently offended when a homosexual is given church membership. However, if a fornicating couple is allowed church membership they may be uncomfortable, but they it doesn’t cross their minds to deny them membership. Both are “living in sin,” if you will. The distinction comes merely from our current culture and world-view.

The Bible is meant to be read in some ways and interpreted. We as humans (why some Christians forget to mention they make mistakes I’ll never know) can have a flawed interpretation. Postmodernism allows for this interpretation and also makes the disclaimer that we do make mistakes because we have no idea (something modern Christians need to do more often). If we choose to try to avoid this route and read it literally (which is more along the lines of the naturalistic mentality that encompasses modernism), word for word, then we loose the meaning of all Jesus’ parables. I suppose He becomes nothing more than a man with a bunch of strange random stories mixed in with some profound wisdom.

I am not advocating sin in the church or even saying that truth is relative or uncertain in a universal context. This is more a way to see that Christians should simplify their objectives in an increasingly philosophically complicated world. Jesus said “if you remember nothing else, remember to ferociously advocate against your neighbors’ infidelities and claim to know all truth in my name.” No, wait…damn—I’m all mixed up again. What’s the verse…what’s the verse…?” – Elaine

*photo courtesy The Onion

Cheers & L’Chaim