My semester has become quite involved, and so I am going to write a bit without the aid of texts and objective-"proofs" (for lack of a better term). I am troubled a bit by a friend's trouble with the Christian's role in the public square, and I wonder if it is on account of a fundamental difference of belief, and therefore irreconcilable.
I can think of several reasons that I have begun building a life within this "square", and I will focus on one or two, but my first question is this: what choice do I have? It is not as if I can pack my bags and move somewhere else. I suppose I might become a hermit of sorts and refuse to exist within the confines of this world, but this seems no more logical than to say that I am going to play football while only observing the rules of hockey. For better or worse, whether I like it or not, this world is indeed my home for the forseeable future, and my responsibility as a Christian is to live responsibly in it, not retreat from it.
How does one do this?
I will not presume to have the answers to this question, at least not entirely, but I do have some theories and musings towards this end. What of the "cultural mandate" that is so often spoken of in Christian circles? When we (humans) were created in the garden we were given charge to "be fruitful and multiply", which seems to be a concept that many Christians have taken up with gusto, but we were also called to "subdue" the Earth, which seems conversely to be the great forgotten-mandate of modern Christendom. Without going in to details better elucidated by authors greater than I, Adam subdued through using his creative and cognitive powers (e.g. naming the animals), but for some reason we (mod. Xian) do not see this any longer as our call. We will birth 15 children in an effort to fulfill a part of the original call of the believer, but we will not allow ourselves to be involved in the other half.
Why?
Fear? - Are we afraid of getting swept into the raging sea of "worldliness", and so we hide behind the shutters of faith, daring not to emerge from our cocoon until the saviour comes to claim us back from our bondage on Earth? If we dared to immerse ourselves deep within the arts, understanding form, beauty, symmetry and composition, would we then drift from God, or might we value he and his world all the more? If we began to study the sciences seriously, perhaps even reconciling Darwinian evolution with our faith through a process of reasonable calculation, would that make us "less" of a believer, or might it bring us closer to God? If through philosophy we might come to a reasonable rendering of what most pursue as a fanatical-opiate, are we abandoning the faith, or are we rescuing it from the obscurity into which it has sunk?
St. Augustine, in his De Doctrina Christiana gives a beautiful rendering of reasons behind pursuing non-Christian studies. Strongest among these is his belief that it augments our knowledge of God and scripture. He gives great examples of natural studies, such as zoology, that served as guides to deeper scriptural understanding, and I am sure that most would resound with a hearty "Amen" at this ideal. Here is the problem, though: This requires immersion into "worldly" things.
One cannot in intellectual-honesty pursue studies in the common half-assed manner and claim to know what one is talking about. Even if one claims that "outside" study should only be pursued for the sake of scriptural understandings, a claim neither I nor Augustine would hold to, then these pursuits must be done in an appropriate manner. Far too many preachers on Sunday morning have read no more of Darwin or Nietzsche than was required for the "proving" of their preconceived theories, yet they berate them from the pulpit, belittling them as if they understood them. It is shameful.
The problem is that it would require hours, days and years of study to come to a clear understanding of these men, and this is time that many are unwilling to give because it detracts from the "true calling of the believer". The solution seems to either embrace the dark side and pursue a liberal education, filled with arts, sciences, and philosophy among others, or to flee from the world entirely, not referencing that which we choose not to understand. How then are we to stand before the Creator in good conscience, having discarded the mandate to subdue the world.
Instead, we loathe the world, shaking our head at its movies andtelevision, and shaking our fists at its politicians. What would happen if we no longer settled for mediocre (at best) Christian alternatives? What if, instead of putting out the next "Left Behind" or another in the long list of forgettable Christian media, one were to write the next 'great American novel' from a Christian worldview? Whereas one alienates Christianity from society, the other bridges the gap. The problem with infiltrating any of these problemed mediums is that it will require getting oneself "mired in the filth" to a degree.
I am tired.....so I am going to bed.....more later.
I can think of several reasons that I have begun building a life within this "square", and I will focus on one or two, but my first question is this: what choice do I have? It is not as if I can pack my bags and move somewhere else. I suppose I might become a hermit of sorts and refuse to exist within the confines of this world, but this seems no more logical than to say that I am going to play football while only observing the rules of hockey. For better or worse, whether I like it or not, this world is indeed my home for the forseeable future, and my responsibility as a Christian is to live responsibly in it, not retreat from it.
How does one do this?
I will not presume to have the answers to this question, at least not entirely, but I do have some theories and musings towards this end. What of the "cultural mandate" that is so often spoken of in Christian circles? When we (humans) were created in the garden we were given charge to "be fruitful and multiply", which seems to be a concept that many Christians have taken up with gusto, but we were also called to "subdue" the Earth, which seems conversely to be the great forgotten-mandate of modern Christendom. Without going in to details better elucidated by authors greater than I, Adam subdued through using his creative and cognitive powers (e.g. naming the animals), but for some reason we (mod. Xian) do not see this any longer as our call. We will birth 15 children in an effort to fulfill a part of the original call of the believer, but we will not allow ourselves to be involved in the other half.
Why?
Fear? - Are we afraid of getting swept into the raging sea of "worldliness", and so we hide behind the shutters of faith, daring not to emerge from our cocoon until the saviour comes to claim us back from our bondage on Earth? If we dared to immerse ourselves deep within the arts, understanding form, beauty, symmetry and composition, would we then drift from God, or might we value he and his world all the more? If we began to study the sciences seriously, perhaps even reconciling Darwinian evolution with our faith through a process of reasonable calculation, would that make us "less" of a believer, or might it bring us closer to God? If through philosophy we might come to a reasonable rendering of what most pursue as a fanatical-opiate, are we abandoning the faith, or are we rescuing it from the obscurity into which it has sunk?
St. Augustine, in his De Doctrina Christiana gives a beautiful rendering of reasons behind pursuing non-Christian studies. Strongest among these is his belief that it augments our knowledge of God and scripture. He gives great examples of natural studies, such as zoology, that served as guides to deeper scriptural understanding, and I am sure that most would resound with a hearty "Amen" at this ideal. Here is the problem, though: This requires immersion into "worldly" things.
One cannot in intellectual-honesty pursue studies in the common half-assed manner and claim to know what one is talking about. Even if one claims that "outside" study should only be pursued for the sake of scriptural understandings, a claim neither I nor Augustine would hold to, then these pursuits must be done in an appropriate manner. Far too many preachers on Sunday morning have read no more of Darwin or Nietzsche than was required for the "proving" of their preconceived theories, yet they berate them from the pulpit, belittling them as if they understood them. It is shameful.
The problem is that it would require hours, days and years of study to come to a clear understanding of these men, and this is time that many are unwilling to give because it detracts from the "true calling of the believer". The solution seems to either embrace the dark side and pursue a liberal education, filled with arts, sciences, and philosophy among others, or to flee from the world entirely, not referencing that which we choose not to understand. How then are we to stand before the Creator in good conscience, having discarded the mandate to subdue the world.
Instead, we loathe the world, shaking our head at its movies andtelevision, and shaking our fists at its politicians. What would happen if we no longer settled for mediocre (at best) Christian alternatives? What if, instead of putting out the next "Left Behind" or another in the long list of forgettable Christian media, one were to write the next 'great American novel' from a Christian worldview? Whereas one alienates Christianity from society, the other bridges the gap. The problem with infiltrating any of these problemed mediums is that it will require getting oneself "mired in the filth" to a degree.
I am tired.....so I am going to bed.....more later.
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Is it possible that those of us who have taken up the task of being fruitful and multiplying "with gusto" are also going about subdueing the earth with that same gusto. In the same way that Adam used his God-given cognitive skills to go about the tasks that God gave him (i.e. naming the animals) I strive to use my God-given skills to train our children and manage our home, which is the task that God has given me. Subdueing the earth has more to do with striving to accomplish the tasks that have been assigned to us than what those tasks entail. For me, managing our home. For you, studying great thinkers. Does this mean that I am ducking out of life in the public square? I don't think it does. Do I live life differently than most in the square? Certainly. Based on my conviction and choice. I live life in the square but I don't like it. I don't like the square and I hate that it is sometimes more alluring to me than my true home.
I applaud you, Michael, for bringing up these things and challenging me to think and study and strive for understanding. You're my connection to the academic world and I love your blog. Continue to probe and question. It sharpens me.