James Emery White: Christ Among the Dragons: Finding Our Way Through Cultural Challenges (2010, IVP Books).
From the dust jacket: ¢â‚¬ËœWhen medieval mapmakers came to the end of the world as they knew it, they would write on the edges of their maps, “Here Be Dragons.” Without a way to navigate, these areas were, at best, promising yet unexplored, and at worst, perilous.
¢â‚¬ËœAt the beginning of the twenty-first century, evangelical Christians have an equally unsettling map and a lack of unity in regard to how we will find our way through uncharted territory as we stray from core ideas and differ on key issues. ¢â‚¬â„¢
If you ¢â‚¬â„¢re not a fundamentalist/evangelical, and try to read a book outside your comfort zone each year (a good idea), here ¢â‚¬â„¢s one that might interest you.
Dr James Emery White, an American Southern Baptist, is an Evangelical pastor (planting the church he currently leads: where 79% of additions to membership were previously unchurched), teacher (theology and culture at the evangelical Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary) and leader (he was, for a year, president of that seminary). He ¢â‚¬â„¢s authored over a dozen books, and tries to write one each year (not bad for a practising pastor).
He ¢â‚¬â„¢s conservative, theologically. Wikipedia notes that in November 2009, White signed the Manhattan Declaration calling on evangelicals, Catholics and Orthodox not to comply with rules and laws permitting abortion, same-sex marriage and other matters that go against their religious consciences. But he ¢â‚¬â„¢s not a fundamentalist: he ¢â‚¬â„¢s caustic about Dr. Bob Jones Sr – probably the best-known American preacher happy to be called a Fundamentalist – threatening to sack any of his staff who attends a Billy Graham crusade.
White identifies four main areas of evangelical ¢â‚¬Ëœfuzziness ¢â‚¬â„¢ (my term): (1) ¢â‚¬ËœTruth ¢â‚¬â„¢: the Oxford Junior Dictionary now includes words like ¢â‚¬Ëœtruthiness ¢â‚¬â„¢ and ¢â‚¬Ëœwikiality ¢â‚¬â„¢ but has removed ¢â‚¬Ëœdisciple ¢â‚¬â„¢, ¢â‚¬Ëœsaint ¢â‚¬â„¢ and ¢â‚¬Ëœsin ¢â‚¬â„¢. (Surprising: I must check that out). (2) ¢â‚¬ËœCulture ¢â‚¬â„¢: White invites us not simply to debate cultural issues, but engage with *people* across cultures and subcultures. (3) ¢â‚¬ËœUnity ¢â‚¬â„¢: especially as the key ¢â‚¬ËœMark of a Christian ¢â‚¬â„¢ is supposed to be love. (4) The Church: why are more people in the Western world becoming disillusioned with church/religion?
White is concerned that we integrate faith and reason; that we understand the bible as conceptually ¢â‚¬ËœHebraic ¢â‚¬â„¢ rather than ¢â‚¬ËœGreek/Latin ¢â‚¬â„¢.
Some teasers:
* ¢â‚¬ËœIn every aspect of religious life, American faith has met American culture ¢â‚¬“ and American culture has triumphed ¢â‚¬â„¢ (Alan Wolfe). An example: if Christmas Day falls on a Sunday more and more American churches don ¢â‚¬â„¢t have a worship service.
* Re GLBTQ persons: ¢â‚¬ËœYes to being fully human ¢â‚¬ ¦ no to GLBTQ who embrace such lifestyles being blessed by the church ¢â‚¬â„¢.
* ¢â‚¬ËœIf India is the most religious country on our planet, and Sweden is the least religious, America is a land of Indians ruled by Swedes ¢â‚¬â„¢ (Peter Berger).
* The best chapter ¢â‚¬“ by far ¢â‚¬“ is on civility and grace. He likes The Message translation of Romans 5: ¢â‚¬ËœWhen it ¢â‚¬â„¢s sin versus grace, grace wins hands down ¢â‚¬ ¦ Grace invites us into life ¢â‚¬â„¢. And he likes this emphasis from a favourite author, Frances Schaeffer: [Jesus says to the world]: ¢â‚¬ËœOn the basis of my authority, I give you a right: you may judge whether or not an individual is a Christian on the basis of the love they show to all Christians ¢â‚¬â„¢.
* There were 33,000 delegates at the acrimonious 1988 Southern Baptist Convention for their famous debates about biblical inerrancy. ¢â‚¬ËœThere were 6000 present in 2008, with membership and baptisms in continuing decline ¢â‚¬â„¢.
An interesting read ¢â‚¬ ¦
Rowland Croucher
January 2011
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