I am reading Post-Modernism 101 by Heath White. He is an apparently conservative Evangelical Christian in the states who is a “professional philosopher”. And so he’s decided to write this book in order to explain the ins and outs of Post-Modernism to “Curious Christians”.
I am really enjoying the book, though of course there are some points that I would disagree with. But here’s a quote that I really liked… He is talking about “The Self” and why Christians shouldn’t be concerned at the notion of a “constructed self” (a post-modern concept). He is essentially arguing this against the modernist motion that the self is autonomous (independent), and something to be discovered through reason:
First of all, a Christian need not be dismayed at the idea that she is shaped in very fundamental ways by her relations with others. That i, the bare fact that one’s self is, to one degree or another, constructed shouldn’t trouble us too much. It is a fundamental Christian idea that a relationship with one very important other person - God himself – experts a singularly powerful transformative influence on a person, an influence that the Christian has every reason to embrace. That is a blow to modern dreams of autonomy, but it’s a keystone of a Christian worldview.
He further talks about how this Christian Self ought to be constructed… Something, that I know resonates in my church because… well it’s like pulling a tooth getting people involved in this way:
Believers in Jesus Christ are not supposed to operate freelance, hoisting themselves to spiritual heights using only their spiritual bootstraps. The church – the local congregation most immediately, but also the wider body of believers, including especially people in positions of spiritual leadership – is the community intended to shape and form that character, the self, of a developing Christian. The common name for this task is discipleship…
Absolutely! But why do so few Christians submit themselves to this kind of transformative discipleship? Bah… Because they are all individuals wanting autonomy. They have better things to do, I guess. And in this sense, Modernism is very much the enemy of Christianity.
