I don’t usually post other people’s stuff. But I think this is sufficiently important for people to hear that it’s worth me doing so. Like many Christians, I’ve watched with growing alarm the abandonment of what Paul refers to as “sound doctrine,” “deep truths,” and “godly teaching;” the reluctance to talk about sin (or the redefining of what sin is); the emphasis on what we euphemistically call Social Justice but which often ends up becoming good works salvation; and the gentle erosion of the authority of scripture by well-meaning Christian pop icons like Steve Chalke, Rob Bell, and Brian McLaren. These, and a plethora of other cultural and theological changes taking place in the Church have turned the Christianity of your parents into what one writer called “more of an ethical habit of mind than a faith based on divine revelation.”[1]
Because I’m a bit slow, I thought that what I was witnessing was simply the influence of postmodernism on the Church, and that it was expressing itself in a variety of places – our sermons, our songs, our conversation, our beliefs etc. That was true in one sense. But what I didn’t realize was that these expressions were themselves, collectively, an ideology that calls itself Christian, believes that it is Christian, and claims emphatically that the positions it holds, though often fluid, contradictory, or impossible to pin down, are true to Jesus Christ. In fact, if there’s one defining characteristic I’ve discovered in talking with Progressive Christians, it’s the sense of superiority they quietly exhibit while simultaneously appearing to be humble and non-judgmental. They believe they are living true Christ-likeness. And yet, there is a palpable yet unspoken disdain for other (ignorant) Christians who are, sadly, unenlightened.
If your interaction with Christians is only with people over 50, chances are all of this will be new to you, and this video will probably be somewhat meaningless. But if you’ve ever tried to have a conversation with a younger Christian and it’s seemed like all the common ground you thought existed between believers, all the givens that make it possible to discuss, debate, or refute are no longer acceptable, then this interview might explain things.
[1] -Jon Meacham, Time, Apr 14, 2011.
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