Comments on: Tell Me a Story http://kreitsauce.renewingminds.com/2009/06/tell-me-a-story/ Philosophy, Culture, and the Bible Tue, 09 Mar 2010 05:13:53 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 hourly 1 By: kreitsauce http://kreitsauce.renewingminds.com/2009/06/tell-me-a-story/comment-page-1/#comment-271 kreitsauce Thu, 04 Jun 2009 01:40:39 +0000 http://kreitsauce.renewingminds.com/?p=622#comment-271 I do think that it's curious that postmodernism is a reaction to modernism, since, in Christianity at least, postmoderns within the emergent church movement actually share a lot of beliefs with the modernists around the turn of the 20th Century. Rob Bell, for instance, has a lot in common with Karl Barth as you can see here: <a href="http://apprising.org/2008/08/rob-bell-and-karl-barth-2/" target="_blank">http://apprising.org/2008/08/rob-bell-and-karl-ba...</a> I'm a little skeptical about reacting to movements, since reacting can also thrust me into error. I think that is what has happened to a lot of emergents and postmodern Christians. They see what's wrong with churches and preaching, and they react to the wrongness and stray to the other side of the road. Obviously, there's different degrees of postmodernism, and not everyone falls into the same category. Thanks for the comment! I do think that it's curious that postmodernism is a reaction to modernism, since, in Christianity at least, postmoderns within the emergent church movement actually share a lot of beliefs with the modernists around the turn of the 20th Century. Rob Bell, for instance, has a lot in common with Karl Barth as you can see here: http://apprising.org/2008/08/rob-bell-and-karl-ba...

I'm a little skeptical about reacting to movements, since reacting can also thrust me into error. I think that is what has happened to a lot of emergents and postmodern Christians. They see what's wrong with churches and preaching, and they react to the wrongness and stray to the other side of the road. Obviously, there's different degrees of postmodernism, and not everyone falls into the same category.

Thanks for the comment!

]]> By: DrewDowns http://kreitsauce.renewingminds.com/2009/06/tell-me-a-story/comment-page-1/#comment-270 DrewDowns Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:22:12 +0000 http://kreitsauce.renewingminds.com/?p=622#comment-270 I sort of agree with you except for one thing: you seem to suggest that propositional statements are not only declarative but clear or universally understood. One of these statements that you make note of in particular is a common source of conflict, which is the statement from Jesus by way of John's Gospel: "I am the way". Yes, this is a propositional statement, but it doesn't also include the following statement: "I am the way--so attend this church, believe this dogma, and reject all else." This very propositional statement is not only vague and wide open for interpretation, but is itself, ripe with story! I do agree that it is important to work with propositional and declarative statements (evidently). But I also like to look at the nature of the scripture. Virtually all of Jesus' propositional statements in the Synoptics are directly attached to a story, a parable, or a visual aid of some sort. The scripture is short on instances of "do this and this and you're fine" and long on "about that--there was this guy..." Your discussion of postmodernity is otherwise well-considered and I appreciate your skepticism, but I think part of "our" relative confusion about this phenomenon is that it is both a direct response to the dualistic and combative methods of modernity, while also rejecting many of its presuppositions. In other words, it is forced to be a direct response to its predecessor, while also being timeless. One of the ways this is achieved is by being a response to ancient thinking as well. I just thought I'd share my own thoughts. I appreciated your post. I sort of agree with you except for one thing: you seem to suggest that propositional statements are not only declarative but clear or universally understood. One of these statements that you make note of in particular is a common source of conflict, which is the statement from Jesus by way of John's Gospel: "I am the way". Yes, this is a propositional statement, but it doesn't also include the following statement: "I am the way–so attend this church, believe this dogma, and reject all else." This very propositional statement is not only vague and wide open for interpretation, but is itself, ripe with story! I do agree that it is important to work with propositional and declarative statements (evidently). But I also like to look at the nature of the scripture. Virtually all of Jesus' propositional statements in the Synoptics are directly attached to a story, a parable, or a visual aid of some sort. The scripture is short on instances of "do this and this and you're fine" and long on "about that–there was this guy…"

Your discussion of postmodernity is otherwise well-considered and I appreciate your skepticism, but I think part of "our" relative confusion about this phenomenon is that it is both a direct response to the dualistic and combative methods of modernity, while also rejecting many of its presuppositions. In other words, it is forced to be a direct response to its predecessor, while also being timeless. One of the ways this is achieved is by being a response to ancient thinking as well.

I just thought I'd share my own thoughts. I appreciated your post.

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