RSS
Paradigms & Metanarrative
- Christianity (8) : The Christian Paradigm
- Existentialism (10) : Make Life Mean Something
- Naturalism (63) : Materialistic Monism
- Postmodernism (25) : Relativism & Zeitgeist
Glenn S. Sunshine (Zondervan: Aug 1, 2009), 240 pages.
People often talk about worldview when describing the philosophy that guides their lives. But how have we come by our worldviews, and what impact did Christianity have on those that are common to Western civilization? This authoritative, accessible survey traces the development of the worldviews that underpin the Western world. It demonstrates the decisive impact that the growth of Christianity had in transforming the outlook of pagan Roman culture into one that, based on biblical concepts of humanity and its relationship with God, established virtually all the positive aspects of Western civilization. The two-pronged assault in our time on the biblically based worldview by postmodern philosophy and the writings of neo-atheists has made it even more crucial that we acknowledge and defend its historical roots. Unique among books on the topic, this work discusses Western worldviews as a continuous narrative rather than as simply a catalogue of ideas, and traces the effects changes in worldview had on society. It helps readers understand their own worldviews and those of other people and helps them recognize the consequences that worldviews hold. Professors, students, and armchair historians alike will profit from this book. ~ Back Cover
Brian Godawa (InterVarsity Press: Jul 2009), 261 pages.
An award-winning Christian Hollywood scriptwriter offers this rather uneven book on how to watch movies discerningly as a faithful Christian. Godawa's purpose is not to help readers decide which films are worth seeing (for that he refers them to Christian Web sites), but rather how to "read" a film for its messages as opposed to absorbing it only as entertainment. One of his main arguments is that Christians should engage the world of popular culture in order to reform it. Unfortunately, it is not always clear who he expects his audience to be. Sometimes he writes very simplistically; he ends his definition of "worldview" with the phrase "it is our view of the world" and details elements of stories and myths that many high school graduates would be familiar with. But other sections use very academic prose about complex philosophies like existentialism and postmodernism. He reveals a clearly defined, even narrow, view of Christianity by asserting the "correct" way one should live or interpret the Bible. "Rare is the movie that paints an accurate portrait of heaven and hell," he tells us. (Just what, exactly, would an "accurate" portrayal look like?) The fact that each chapter ends with assignments and discussion questions gives it a strong pedantic twist. Despite these flaws, in the hands of the right audience conservative Christians willing to approach it as a textbook and who don't mind having a few movie plots betrayed this guide will encourage more thoughtful film consumption without killing the fun of moviegoing. ~ Publishers Weekly
R. C. Sproul (Crossway Books: Jun 2009), 224 pages.
From public-policy decisions and world events to theology, the arts, education, and even conversations with friends, history's most influential ideas affect nearly everything we see, think, and do. Thus it is critical to understand and take seriously the ideas that are shaping us. The greater our familiarity with the streams of thought that have saturated Western culture through the ages, the greater our ability to influence this culture for Christ. R. C. Sproul expertly leads the way with The Consequences of Ideas. Tracing the contours of Western philosophy from the ancients to the molders of modern thought-including Plato, Aquinas, Descartes, Kant, and Freud-Sproul proves that ideas are not just passing fads. They endure for generations to come, with wide-ranging consequences for us all.~ Synopsis
"No Stone Will Be Left" in The Way to Love (Random House: 1995), pp. 61-6
Think of a flabby person covered with layers of fat. That is what your mind can become — flabby, covered with layers of fat till it becomes too dull and lazy to think, to observe, to explore, to discover. It loses its alertness, its aliveness, its flexibility and goes to sleep. Look around you and you will see almost everyone with minds like that: dull, asleep, protected by layers of fat, not wanting to be disturbed or questioned into wakefulness. ¶ What are these layers? Every belief that you hold, every conclusion you have reached about persons and things, every habit and every attachment. In your formative years you should have been helped to scrape off these layers and liberate your mind. Instead your society, your culture, which put these layers on your mind in the first place, has educated you to not even notice them, to go to sleep and let other people — the experts: your politicians, your cultural and religious leaders — do your thinking for you. So you are weighed down with the load of unexamined, unquestioned authority and tradition.
J.P. Moreland (SCM Press: Jul 31, 2009), 224 pages.
Materialistic naturalism has, for some years, been the received wisdom
in philosophy, as well as amongst much of the educated public. Many
serious philosophical arguments have been brought against this
ideology, but usually in a series of separate controversies. Professor
Morelands great service is to bring all these objections together,
whilst adding his own original contributions, in a very effective
anti-naturalist polemic. He shows us that the materialist world picture
cannot accommodate the most basic phenomena of human life: It has no
place for consciousness, free will, rationality, the human subject or
any kind of intrinsic value. Materialism does not disprove these human
realities, it is simply incapable of accounting for them in any
remotely plausible way. I would add to the list of its failures that
naturalism lacks even a coherent account of the physical world itself.
Professor Moreland makes a very good case for saying that, as a serious
world view, naturalism is a non-starter: more traditional, theistic
philosophies fare much better in the face both of the phenomena and of
argument. ~ Howard Robinson, Central European University
On a recent broadcast of the Infidel Guy (Sep. 16, 2008), a caller challenged Gary Habermas, the evening's guest, to reconcile the omniscience of God with human free will. Habermas did his best to argue that there is no necessary conflict, that God knows because we freely choose, we do not so choose because God knows. For my part, I think it's a legitimate and difficult objection. I'm not yet persuaded by either Molinist or Openness attempts to reconcile the two, much less compatabilism or the notion that it is solved by God's being outside of time. But what followed is what struck me. Habermas took the opportunity to ask Reggie Finley, the host, whether he, as a naturalist, believed in free will. Reggie paused, then conceded that he was still trying to figure that one out. Good luck, Reggie, because while free will may be problematic for the theist, it is probably a lost cause for the naturalist. For example, in his excellent and lucid work, The Significance of Free Will, Robert Kane manages to find a place for indeterminacy in matter (in quantum theory), but not for agency, the sine qua non of free will in my judgment. My point is not to wade into the deep waters of human freedom. Rather, I'm taking exception to the widespread impression that it is only the theist who must accept mysteries, antinomies, and quandaries. The truth is, all worldviews are beset by unique difficulties and internal conceptual problems. And, we remain perplexed by many mysteries that we share in common. That is to say, we're in this together. With our amazing, but limited human faculties, the world remains puzzling to us all. In the ongoing debate about what is and is not real, it would serve us well to be mindful of the problems with which each worldview must wrestle. To that end, here are some that occur to me for both Christian theism and for Naturalism.
Thomas Sowell (Basic Books : June 4, 2007), 352 pages.
This latest work by Sowell examines two competing visions which shape our debates about the nature of reason, justice, equality, and power. These visions are the "constrained" vision, which sees human nature as unchanging and selfish, and the "unconstrained" vision, in which human nature is malleable and perfectible. The book builds a convincing case that ethical and policy disputes are ultimately based on the differences in these visions. It covers a wide variety of political, philosophical, and economic thought. Although occasionally abstract, this volume is an important contribution to our understanding of current social issues. Recommended for large public and all college and university libraries. ~ Library Journal
"The Challenges of Postmodernism", chap.14 in Passionate Conviction, eds. Paul Copan and William Lane Craig (B&H Academic, Nashville : 2007), p.206.
An important and, sadly, often neglected component of Christian apologetics is the task of showing how Christian ideas enhance and do explanatory work across the academic disciplines and how rival worldviews harm and fail to do commensurate work in those same fields. And given that the various aspects of the image of God are recalcitrant facts for rival worldviews such as naturalism and postmodernism, one would expect that in those fields that examine that image, Christianity would enhance and its rivals would harm work and practice in these fields in particular. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the field of psychology.
Charles Taylor (Belknap Press: Sep 20, 2007), 896 pages.
In his characteristically erudite yet engaging fashion, Taylor, winner of the 2007 Templeton Prize, takes up where he left off in his magnificent Sources of the Self (1989) as he brilliantly traces the emergence of secularity and the processes of secularization in the modern age. Challenging the idea that the secular takes hold in a world where religion is experienced as a loss or where religions are subtracted from the culture, Taylor discovers the secular emerging in the midst of the religious. The Protestant Reformation, with its emphasis on breaking down the invidious political structures of the Catholic Church, provides the starting point down the road to the secular age. Taylor sweeps grandly and magisterially through the 18th and 19th centuries as he recreates the history of secularism and its parallel challenges to religion. He concludes that a focus on the religious has never been lost in Western culture, but that it is one among many stories striving for acceptance. Taylor's examination of the rise of unbelief in the 19th century is alone worth the price of the book and offers an essential reminder that the Victorian age, more than the Enlightenment, dominates our present view of the meanings of secularity. Taylor's inspired combination of philosophy and history sparkles in this must-read virtuoso performance.
Kenneth Richard Samples (Baker Books: Sep 1, 2007), 320 pages.
Recent Barna research indicates that less than one in ten evangelical Christians hold a biblical worldview. A World of Difference seeks to change this disturbing fact by educating readers on how the Christian perspective is uniquely reasonable, verifiable, and liveable. Author Kenneth Richard Samples faced a profound test of his own belief system during a personal life-and-death crisis. In A World of Difference, he uses nine distinct tests to compare the Christian worldview with current religious and philosophical competitors, including Islam, postmodernism, naturalism, and pantheistic monism. Samples tackles tough issues through this in-depth study of Christianity's history, creed, and philosophical basis. An excellent resource for readers who want their view of life and the world to make sense. ~ Product Description
J.P. Moreland (Zondervan: May 5, 2007), 240 pages.
Here is penetrating analysis and critique of Western society’s dominant
worldviews, naturalism and postmodernism, which have also influenced the church. Moreland issues a bold call to reclaim powerful kingdom living and influence through recovery of the Christian mind, renovation of Christian spirituality, and restoration of the Holy Spirit’s power. "Preachers need to understand the culture, but even more they need to
have tools for leading their people out of the cultural confusion that characterizes our age. J. P. Moreland has provided a powerful guide for
pastors….This is an important book for church leaders." ~ Preaching magazine
The place for resources and discussion on the cornucopia of religious varieties. Belief.net is itself non-partisan, but provides a space for pluralists and proponents of every faith to speak their peace on all manner of religious issues.
Irreverent reflections on the life of faith from those who've been there and back. Killing the Buddah features a remarkably eclectic, occasionally offensive, and always provocative collection of writers. About itself, it says: Killing the Buddha was founded in November of 2000 by Peter
Manseau, Jeff Sharlet, and Jeremy Brothers. Since then, it has won an
Utne Independent Press Award, receivedvarious press and praise, and published Killing the Buddha: A Heretic’s Bible, which was named one of Publishers Weekly’s best religion books of 2004. Believer, Beware: First Person Dispatches from the Margins of Faith is being published by Beacon Press in 2009. Utne Reader declared Ktb as “one of fifteen websites that could shake the world.”
"World Magazine's Top 40 Books of 20th Century" in World (July 3, 1999).
World Magazine describes their list as "the best titles proclaiming or applying a biblical worldview in a hostile 20th century". World is a distinctly Christian publication: "We stand for factual accuracy and biblical objectivity, trying to see the world as best we can the way the Bible depicts it. Journalistic humility for us means trying to give God's perspective. We distinguish between issues on which the Bible is clear and those on which it isn't. We also distinguish between journalism and propaganda: We're not willing to lie because someone thinks it will help God's cause." Accordingly, the list emphasizes works amenable to Christian theism, though also with a notable presence of Communist critique.
Nancy R. Pearcey (Crossway Books: Jun 29, 2004), 512 pages.
As a religiously adrift young adult in the 1960s, Pearcey found her way to the Swiss retreat, and the intellectually rigorous faith, of the Calvinist maverick Francis Schaeffer. This book continues the Schaeffer-inspired project that Pearcey and Chuck Colson began in How Now Shall We Live? — awakening evangelical Christians to the need for a Christian "worldview," which Pearcey defines as "a biblically informed perspective on all reality." Pearcey gives credibly argued perspectives on everything from Rousseau's rebellion against the Enlightenment, to the roots of feminism, to the spiritual poverty of celebrity-driven Christianity. She also provides a layperson's guide to the history of America's anti-intellectual strain of evangelicalism. ~ Publishers Weekly
James W. Sire (InterVarsity: June, 2004), 172 pages.
For more than thirty years James W. Sire has grappled with this
issue. In this book he offers readers his most mature thought on the
concept of a worldview, addressing such questions as: What is the
history of the concept itself? What is the first question we should ask
in formulating a worldview: What is the really real? or How do we know
anything at all? How are worldviews formed existentially as well as
intellectually? Is a worldview primarily an intellectual system, a way
of life or a story? What are the public and private dimensions of a
worldview? What role can worldview thinking play in assessing our own
worldview and those of others, especially in light of the pluralism
within which we live? In his widely used textbook The Universe
Next Door, first published in 1976, Sire offered a succinct definition
of a worldview and cataloged in summary fashion seven basic worldview
alternatives. Students, critics, new literature and continued
reflection have led him to reexamine and refine his definition of a
worldview. This companion volume to The Universe Next Door is the fruit
of that effort. Here is an excellent resource for all who want to
explore more deeply how and why worldview thinking can aid us in
navigating our pluralistic universe.
James W. Sire (Intervarsity: May 1, 2004), 252 pages.
When The Universe Next Door was first introduced nearly thirty years
ago, it set the standard for a clear, readable introduction to
worldviews. In concise, easily understood prose, James W. Sire
explained the basics of theism, deism, naturalism, nihilism,
existentialism, Eastern monism and the new consciousness. The second
edition was updated and expanded to include sections on Marxism and
secular humanism, as well as a completely reworked chapter on what is
now widely known as New Age philosophy rather than new consciousness.
And the third edition offered further updating and revisions, including
a thoroughly revised chapter on New Age philosophy and, perhaps most
importantly, a new chapter on postmodernism. Now the fourth edition
refines the definition of worldview itself, incorporating Sire's
thinking and teaching during the past decade.
The Universe Next Door has been translated into several languages and
has been used as a text at over one hundred colleges and universities
in courses ranging from apologetics and world religions to history and
English literature. With the publication of the fourth edition, this
book will continue to aid students, teachers and anyone who wants to
understand the variety of worldviews that compete with Christianity for
the allegiance of our minds and hearts. ~ Product Description
J. P. Moreland and William Lane Craig (InterVarsity Press: April 1, 2003), 500 pages.
What is real? What is truth? What can we know? What should we believe? What should we do and why? Is there a God? Can we know him? Do Christian doctrines make sense? Can we believe in God in the face of evil? These are fundamental questions that any thinking person wants answers to. These are questions that philosophy addresses. And the answers we give to these kinds of questions serve as the foundation stones for constructing any kind of worldview. In Philosophical Foundations for a Christian Worldview, J. P. Moreland and William Lane Craig offer a comprehensive introduction to philosophy from a Christian perspective. In their broad sweep they seek to introduce readers to the principal subdisciplines of philosophy, including epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of science, ethics and philosophy of religion. They do so with characteristic clarity and incisiveness. Arguments are clearly presented, and rival theories are presented with fairness and accuracy. Philosophy, they contend, aids Christians in the tasks of apologetics, polemics and systematic theology. It reflects our having been made in the image of God, helps us to extend biblical teaching into areas not expressly addressed in Scripture, facilitates the spiritual discipline of study, enhances the boldness and self-image of the Christian community, and is requisite to the essential task of integrating faith and learning. Here is a lively and thorough introduction to philosophy for all who want to know reality. ~ Synopsis
Reasonable Faith (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1994)
It is imperative that we turn the whole intellectual climate of our culture back to a Christian world view. If we do not, then what lies ahead for us in the United States is already evident in Europe: utter secularism. Throughout Europe, evangelism is immeasurably more difficult because the intellectual climate and culture there are determined by the conviction that the Christian world view is false and therefore irrelevant. Therefore, Christian missionaries often must labor years to get a handful of converts. If we lose the theoretical issues, then in the end our practical application will be fruitless.
Gilbert K. Chesterton (Ignatius Press: 1993)
As always with Chesterton, there is in this analysis something (as he said of Blake) "very plain and emphatic." He sees in Christianity a rare blending of philosophy and mythology, or reason and story, which satisfies both the mind and the heart. On both levels it rings true. As he puts it, "in answer to the historical query of why it was accepted, and is accepted, I answer for millions of others in my reply; because it fits the lock; because it is like life." Here, as so often in Chesterton, we sense a lived, awakened faith. All that he writes derives from a keen intellect guided by the heart's own knowledge. ~ Doug Thorpe