Christian Mission in the Context of Postmodern culture.

1. Used by Joshva Raja from the Web

2. Premodern
 Telescope
 Psalm 8
 Reality explained in
terms of far-off
transcendence

3. Modern
 Microscope
 “I think, therefore I
am” -- Descartes
 Reality is
observable,
dissectible, and
explainable

4. Modernity: The Triumph of
Reason
The Tenets of Modernity
 True knowledge is determined with certainty by reason
 Two levels of knowledge: objective/scientific (open to debate) and
subjective/spiritual/moral (only personal conviction)
 World exists in cause-effect relationship
 Knowledge is good; facts are “value-free”
 Progress and scientific discovery will lead to better world and
happiness
 Humanity basically good and reason can solve all problems
 Individuals are autonomous in society and have rights society must
honor
Graham Johnston, Preaching to a Post-Modern World, Baker, 2001, pp. 25-26

5. Modernity and Progress
 A Challenge to the centre of our society from the
margins
 Progress Via Modernity (1470 – the beginning of the
Italian Renaissance) and Enlightenment (1700 – the
start of the enlightenment)
 Modernity – a. secular, natural and this worldly b.
power of individual minds, no more submission c.
belief in Progress d. experimental study of nature,
inventions to control nature and subdue for social use

6. Dewey’s Modern Man
 Self Assured
 In control of his own destiny
 Knows what he knows and knows with certainty
 Needs no authority outside of himself as he is autonomous, a
law or authority unto himself
 Needs no salvation outside of himself
 Liberated from past authorities and superstitions and follow
reason
 Enjoy the fruit of human progress

7. Faith in the progress
 The spirit of modernity is a spirit of progress
 Progress is what the Columbus story is about – dominant
motif in Western Society – the working faith of our civilisation
 The progress ideal functions as an article of faith, the unifying
commitment or civil religion of Western Civilisation
 It tells a story – similar to Myths – Myths history begins with
Egypt and Greece not with China or Africa

8. Myth of Progress and Tower of
Babel
 Grand dream or vision or cultural aspiration symbolised
by the Columbus’ vision
 Dreams of cities, buildings and towers
 Genesis 11:1-9 Building a city with a tower reaching to
the heavens – Western dreams of progress – towering
civilization, a social and cultural accomplishment of
immense and achievement - Eiffel tower, Toronto CN
Tower

10. Genesis 11:1f
 The Tower of Babel
 1 Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. 2 As men
moved eastward, [a] they found a plain in Shinar [b] and settled there. 3 They
said to each other, "Come, let's make bricks and bake them thoroughly."
They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. 4
Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, with
a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may
make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the
face of the whole earth."

11. Genesis 11 contd…
 5 But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the
men were building. 6 The LORD said, "If as one people speaking
the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they
plan to do will be impossible for them. 7 Come, let us go down and
confuse their language so they will not understand each other."
 8 So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and
they stopped building the city. 9 That is why it was called Babel [c]
—because there the LORD confused the language of the whole
world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the
whole earth

13. Floors in the Babel
 Ground floor of modernity was science
 first floor is enlightenment and Scientific rationality
-Age of industrial revolutions –age of machines
 Second floor is technology – gives power over
environment..
 Third floor Economic growth - Market forces –
entrepreneurial spirit and the profit motive
 Western Culture as final floor

14. Modernity in trouble
 When finished our street will be platinum, never
mind gold. Too good to be true! Progress myth is
losing its power!
 The foundation of Babel tower is founded on
Human autonomoy
(Gen 2:17 and Gen 3)
 Independence from the Creator by eating the fruit
of the tree
 Auto – self; nomos – law – self determining freedom

15. Idols of Modernity
 The idea of progress was based on idolatrous
faith – on science, technology and economic
growth.
 Science as authoritative knowledge, technism
as power and control over the creation,
standard of living economic growth raises the
standard of life and route to personal
happiness and social harmony…

16. Anxiety
 War and Bombs? Hiroshima and Nagasagi –
economic Progress? – WW1 as war to end all
wars – Vietnam war
 Loss of hope and sense of anxiety
 Catch-22 film in 1986 – US being destroyed?
 Fear of new world order – economic security,
sexual morality different and odd ideas that
emerge

17. Biblical references
 Isaiah 46:1-5 become like them
 Psalm 115 instability of idols
 Jeremiah 10:3-5 like Scare crows

18. Isaiah 46:1-5
 Isaiah 46
 Gods of Babylon
 1 Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low;
their idols are borne by beasts of burden. [a]
The images that are carried about are burdensome,
a burden for the weary. 2 They stoop and bow down together;
unable to rescue the burden,
they themselves go off into captivity.
 3 "Listen to me, O house of Jacob,
all you who remain of the house of Israel,
you whom I have upheld since you were conceived,
and have carried since your birth.
 4 Even to your old age and gray hairs
I am he, I am he who will sustain you.
I have made you and I will carry you;
I will sustain you and I will rescue you.
 5 "To whom will you compare me or count me equal?
To whom will you liken me that we may be compared?

19. Psalm 115
 Psalm 115
 1 Not to us, O LORD, not to us
but to your name be the glory,
because of your love and faithfulness.
 2 Why do the nations say,
"Where is their God?"
 3 Our God is in heaven;
he does whatever pleases him.
 4 But their idols are silver and gold,
made by the hands of men.
 5 They have mouths, but cannot speak,
eyes, but they cannot see;
 6 they have ears, but cannot hear,
noses, but they cannot smell;
 7 they have hands, but cannot feel,
feet, but they cannot walk;
nor can they utter a sound with their throats.
 8 Those who make them will be like them,
and so will all who trust in them.

20. Jeremiah 10
 3 For the customs of the peoples are worthless;
they cut a tree out of the forest,
and a craftsman shapes it with his chisel.
 4 They adorn it with silver and gold;
they fasten it with hammer and nails
so it will not totter.
 5 Like a scarecrow in a melon patch,
their idols cannot speak;
they must be carried
because they cannot walk.
Do not fear them;
they can do no harm
nor can they do any good."

21. The Changing realities
 Realisation - Centre of Universe is no more centre
 Suspicion that modern West inflicted violence on others
and non-Western too but claims of higher moral status
 Questioning everything – responsibility of US to lead the
world, the ability to solve all environmental problems by
Western Technology, the strength and durability of
market system, the superiority of Western intellectual
tradition

22. What is reality?
 Three umpires after a baseball game
 One, “There’s balls and there’s strikes and I call
‘em the way they are”
 Second,”There’s balls and there’s strikes and I
call ‘em the way I see ‘em.
 Third, “There’s balls and there’s strikes and they
ain’t nothin’ until I call ‘em

23. What is Reality then?
 First umpire is naïve realist – human knowing is direct
correspondence between the external world and
epistemological judgements - Objective
 Second umpire is perspectival realist – the way he
sees the world invariably affects his epistemological
judgements - Subjective -
 Third umpire is radical perspectivalism –his
perspective is all there is or atleast all that matters -
Honest position

24. Reality
 Reality is a human construct and also a social
construct
 Whose reality? From whose perspective? Why
someone’s perspective of reality rules? Why
someone’s construction of reality is given
privileged status?

25. Critique
 Scientific objectivity is to master the world once
and for all by enclosing it within an illusory but
absolute system which represents or
corresponds to a unitary being beyond history,
particularity and change
 Mastering means to legitimate Western conquest
and political superiority and masters and
possessors of nature

26. Postmodern
 Kaleidoscope
 “an ever-changing mosaic
of pieces of broken glass
that is beautiful when light
shines through it”
 Erwin McManus
 Reality is evolving and
understood through
brokenness and
interrelationships

27. Post-Modernity: The Triumph of
Ignorance
The Tenets of Post-Modernity (Johnston, 26)
 Reacting to the all the tenets of Modernity
 Reject idea of objective truth
 Suspicious and skeptical of authority (family, government and society)
 In search of identity apart from knowledge but through relationship
 less morality, only expediency
 In search of transcendence, to experience otherness

28. Christian Mission in the
Postmodern World
Peterstephenson
 A. Suspicion of All Big Stories progress vs
ecological disaster
 Deconstruction as mission?
 Come clean about the churches’ past
 Examine ourselves for oppressive tendencies
 Search ourselves for signs of syncretism

29. B Distrust of Authority and
Institutions
 Big stories are construction of those in power
built to legitimise and preserve that power
 No favours to elders due to ecological disasters –
Live for today
 Image – free to choose – any truths
 Global awareness – ecological destruction,
human rights, destruction of ethnic cultures,
racial and religious intolerance, sexual
discrimination, abuse of animals

30. Modernism vs. Post-Modernism
Modernity’s Post-Modernity’s
View of Life View of Life
 Romantic view of life  Absurd view of life
 Have a purpose  Play instead
 Design  Chance
 Hierarchy  Anarchy
 Word-oriented  Silence-oriented
 A completed work  Work in process
 Analysis from a distance  Analysis thru participating
 Creation/synthesis  Deconstruction/antithesis
 Metaphysics (philosophy that  Irony
deals with first principles to “The Simpsons”
explain the nature of reality)
“Father Knows Best”

31. From Modern to Postmodern
 Modern  Postmodern
 Conquest and Control  Conservation
 Mechanistic  Organic, ecological
 Analytical  Holistic, passionate
 Secular-scientific  Spiritual-scientific
 “Knowing God”  “Experiencing God”

32.  Here are some
things that allow
the flourishing
relational context
of time and space
in which people
can become
disciples of Jesus
Christ:

33.  “We’d better learn to
count not just
conversions but
conversations.”
 Brian McLaren
 Seeing evangelism as a
relational dance rather
than a win/lose
conquest
› Don’t press for decision
now, just keep the
conversation going
 Takes 10+ for
conversion

34.  Opposite of modernity
 Member-first, then included
 Rhetoricof inclusion
rather than exclusion
 Jesus threatened people
with inclusion
 “People don’t become
disciples in the right order
any more.”
 George Hunter, How to
Reach Secular People, 1990

35. Both precede “Believing”
 In Alcoholics
Anonymous:
 “I come …
 “I come to …
 “I come to believe.”

36.  It’s about
• their story (listen!)
• your story (share)
• and God’s story (proclaim)
 The Gospel must be
presented in story form
rather than a set of facts,
rules, propositions, laws
• Bible itself has God speak to
us via prophets, poets,
philosophers, priests

37.  “The greatest
hermeneutic of the
Gospel is a community
that lives by it.”
› Leslie Newbigin
 Belonging precedes
becoming precedes
believing

38.  Instead of:
 Decision-Discipleship
 Evangelism-Follow up
 Think: “disciple-making”
 Understand but collapse the
Engel scale
 A holistic process
 Space/time
 Teach “how” rather than
“what” to believe
(McLaren: Finding Faith)

39.  Believe that God is already
“out there” and at work in
everyone (Blackaby)
› There are others on the case
besides you!
 Others in the church
 Not just in church but also
culture
 God is always trying to “get
in or get out” of peoples’
lives

40.  See evangelism as part of
my own discipleship, not
just the other person’s
 “There is enough bad in the
best of us and good in the worst
of us that it behooves all of us to
speak no ill about any of us.”
 Abraham Lincoln

41.  See evangelism as
recruiting people
for God’s mission
here on earth, not
just souls for heaven
 Gospel of John:
eternal life begins
now!

42. You do need to love emerging
generations and have your
heart broken for them –
they need you.

43. “As he approached
Jerusalem and saw
the city, he wept over
it and said, “If you,
even you, had known
on this day what
would bring you
peace…”
- Luke 19:41

44. “When He saw the
crowds He had
compassion on them,
because they were
harassed and
helpless,like sheep
without a shepherd.”
Matthew 9:36-38

45. Postmodernist church
 Strong tendency toward personal spirituality
 Deep thoughtful Christians
 Tendency to live out their faith in society
 Desire for community
 Less tendency to fight with other Christians
over the doctrine
 Living in Metaphors

46. Weakness of the Postmodern
Church
 Desire for Individual spirituality
 Desire for Individual Truth
 Potential to get attracted with Spirituality itself
 Tendency not to reflect biblically about social
issues
 Pragmatism without biblical reflection is no good
 Tendency to hold personal doctrine above
biblical doctrine

47. Postmodern models
 Testimonies, symbols, paradox, parables and
stories to share
 Creative artistic expressions
 Talents and gifts of spirit using them in
ministry
 Sharing through the web of relationship
 Avoiding denominational identities
 Using all media

48. Models of churching
 Non-church-like names
 Home web of cell groups
 Smaller churches
 Corporate worship is like a theatre room
 Churches filled with art meeting non-
traditional hours
 Distrust marketing techniques
 No leader but leaders