Brian D. McLaren, the guru of the so called "Emergent Church" has written a book called "A Generous Orthodoxy: Why I am a Missional + Evangelical + Post/Protestant + Liberal/Conservative + Mystical/Poetic + Biblical + Charismatic/Contemplative + Fundamentalist/Calvinist + Anabaptist/Anglican + Methodist + Catholic + Green + Incarnational + Depressed-Yet-Hopeful + Emergent + Unfinished Christian."
In it he says "To be a Christian in a generously orthodox way is not to claim to have the truth captured, stuffed, and mounted on the wall. It is rather to be in a loving (ethical) community of people who are seeking the truth (doctrine) on the road of mission..." (293).
Notice his disdain for the truth. He pictures it as a dead animal head mounted as a trophy. His vision is no different than the Unitarian\Universalist church, which tolerates any belief as long as you want to come and hang out together. He just wants to move this non-believing vision into the believing church.
Two problems. First, Jesus said he is the Truth (John 14:6). That makes McLaren's philosophy wrong per se. The purpose of the church is not to sew a patchwork quilt of beliefs from various seekers who get together over coffee. It is to know the truth, teach the truth, and live the truth. Otherwise, the church is irrelevant. It has nothing to offer the local book club or motorcycle gang does not.
Second, if there is no truth to dispense, we do not need McLaren or any other guru. The blind do not need another blind man to lead them. They can stumble along in darkness just fine all by themselves.
3 comments:
In defense of Mc. as a postmodernist, he wont deny truth. They dont all deny truth "per se," but their grounds for truth are different. Faith. If anything, he's making a statement against modernism and their scientific and systmatic approaches to truth, like the postmodernist do. Their movement is a response to modernism. But, his appeal to faith, and quite possibly his "experiencing Jesus," as many say, the book should probably and more accurately be titled, "A Generous NEO-Orthodoxy." Josh is sitting next to me...He says, cause I haven't actually read the guy (just many like him), he does not deny absolute truth (he does also deny relativism), and stands strongly for it. Which even Carl Raschke will do, even though he also calls himself a "Post-modern Christian." But, his book is crap...and he tries to correlate Postmodernism with the Reformation. Though, they are definitely wrong and absurd in some of their assertions.
Postmodern-Christians, also do not like using terms that put God in a box. They think that by using such terms they place limitations on God, who cannot truly be known by these terms. God transcends our own terminology. ( I think they do overlook the fact that God condescended and describes himself in such terms so that we can understand HIm. But, his first statement seems to be geared towards Modernism. I do not think he has a disdain for truth. he states that he's still seeking it and doctrine, not just by himself, but as a community, body, and Church. This is another thing that they stress in postmodernity, community. Which is exemplified in the Acts Church. That is not bad at all. But he is not claiming to know all the truth as the modernist's...the rationalists, who prize reason and education over God.
it's too cold out, and the storm is on its way in. Levi and Josh are at home. We are at home. We are going to try to geta few more hours of sleep and study. our exams were graciously moved tomorrow when we're expecting 2+ inches of ice and snow...haha. dang it!! i can't win larry. i can't win.
I hate postmodernism, it's always changing and it cannot be defined.
Only a seminary student could say so much about a book he has not read.
haha, josh has read it! and he was sitting next to me...but, i have read guys of his type. love you too larry...thanks...thanks.
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