Evangelizing to the Postmodern Mind
Evangelizing To The Postmodern Mind
Adam McCloud
COMS 542-B01
February 9, 2012
Dr. David Allison
Evangelizing To The Postmodern Mind
Communicating truth to someone that is not sure what truth is, or if truth even exists at all, is a very difficult task. To the postmodern mind, truth is not absolute; therefore, the spiritual absolutes Christians hold to, the postmodern mind insists do not exist. For Christians, sharing the gospel with the postmodern world appears to be a daunting task. D.A. Carson, in his book Telling The Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns, compiles thoughts and strategies from various examples of contemporary evangelism. Carson’s compilation acts as a groundwork for sharing the gospel with the postmodern mindset of today’s world. For evangelism to be effective in the lives of the postmodern, the context of the postmodern and Christian beliefs must be bridged together at an intellectual, spiritual, and relational level.
To understand the context of postmodernism, a person must start with the intellectual shifts in culture that influenced postmodern thinking. Such significant shifts in postmodern thought include the popularization of the death of God movement, religious pluralism, the power to inform through the visual and the blurring of reality and imagination, the lost center of cultural molding, and the shifting of power to a younger world. As a result of these shifts, there has been a major epistemological impact on the world. Today’s philosophy has moved to the existential, artists have moved to the sensual side of humanity, religion has been moved into the mystical realm of spirituality, education has gained an aura of skepticism, and individuals have moved to transcendental thinking.
The impact of postmodern thought has divided the world. In the western world, Christianity has become marginalized; there has been a struggle with higher education and academic trends, as well as theology replacing religion. In the eastern world, western
Adam McCloud
COMS 542-B01
February 9, 2012
Dr. David Allison
Evangelizing To The Postmodern Mind
Communicating truth to someone that is not sure what truth is, or if truth even exists at all, is a very difficult task. To the postmodern mind, truth is not absolute; therefore, the spiritual absolutes Christians hold to, the postmodern mind insists do not exist. For Christians, sharing the gospel with the postmodern world appears to be a daunting task. D.A. Carson, in his book Telling The Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns, compiles thoughts and strategies from various examples of contemporary evangelism. Carson’s compilation acts as a groundwork for sharing the gospel with the postmodern mindset of today’s world. For evangelism to be effective in the lives of the postmodern, the context of the postmodern and Christian beliefs must be bridged together at an intellectual, spiritual, and relational level.
To understand the context of postmodernism, a person must start with the intellectual shifts in culture that influenced postmodern thinking. Such significant shifts in postmodern thought include the popularization of the death of God movement, religious pluralism, the power to inform through the visual and the blurring of reality and imagination, the lost center of cultural molding, and the shifting of power to a younger world. As a result of these shifts, there has been a major epistemological impact on the world. Today’s philosophy has moved to the existential, artists have moved to the sensual side of humanity, religion has been moved into the mystical realm of spirituality, education has gained an aura of skepticism, and individuals have moved to transcendental thinking.
The impact of postmodern thought has divided the world. In the western world, Christianity has become marginalized; there has been a struggle with higher education and academic trends, as well as theology replacing religion. In the eastern world, western
References: Andrus, Michael P. (2000). Turning To God: Conversion Beyond Mere Religious Preference. In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 153-164). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Bartel, Don (2000). Evangelizing Postmoderns Using A Mission Outpost Strategy. In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 343-351). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Buczynski, Andrea (2000). Examples of Effective Evangelism. In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 315-321). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Dever, Mark E. (2000). Communicating Sin In A Postmodern World. In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 138-152). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Gauthier, Mark (2000). Church/Campus Connections: Model 2. In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 206-213). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Hecht, Susan (2000). Faithfully Relating To Unbelievers In A Relational Age. In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 245-254). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Netland, Harold A. & Johnson, Keith E. (2000). Why is Religious Pluralism Fun- And Dangerous? In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 47-67). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Nyquist, John W. (2000). The Gospel Paradox: Declaring Sinners Righteous. In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 165-174). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Zacharias, Ravi (2000). An Ancient Message, Through Modern Means, To A Postmodern Mind. In D.A. Carson (Ed.), Telling the Truth: Evangelizing Postmoderns (pp. 19-29). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.