Postmodernism
as an era in human history marks a period characterized by a relativist view of
truth. In reaction to the absolutes and metanarratives (the grand frameworks of
human events according to a particular worldview) espoused by the thinkers of
past centuries, postmodern thinking prides itself on "universal tolerance" and
the rejection of absolute truth. A popular slogan of the movement is "You live
by your truth, and I'll live by my truth." Although the seeds were in place
earlier, the transition from Modernism to Postmodernism can be seen in the
cultural and academic trends of the 1960s-1990s.
Why POST-Modern?
The
term "postmodern" was first coined in 1979 with the publication of The Postmodern Condition by French
philosopher Jean-Francois Lyotard. The philosopher viewed the metanarrative of
modernism (that the world would keep getting better by all humanity seeking one
absolute truth through reason) as inadequate to explain or advance the
diversity of the world's cultures. Similarly, the monotheistic metanarratives
(such as Christianity, Islam, or Judaism) were too narrow for the world's
diversity as well. Therefore, Lyotard and other postmodernist philosophers
declared a "Collapse of the Grand Narrative." Since the winds of globalization
have pushed the Western Cultural Tradition into the East and the Eastern
Cultural Tradition into the West, most nations are now left with very
pluralistic societies that no longer prescribe to one absolute truth.
Therefore, the postmodern path has led to the acceptance of "all views" as
equally valid and no truth as absolute.
A Christian Response
The
questioning of truth is nothing new. With a tone dripping with skepticism,
Pontius Pilate asked Jesus, "What is
Truth?" (John 18:38). Christians should be prepared for a dialogue on this
issue. While Christians should not be "modernists" (believing every matter is absolute and that
humans always possess an absolute
answer to every question), Christians also cannot subscribe to the "postmodern"
agenda. Why? Jesus, on many occasions, does speak in absolutes. He says, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No
one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6). So, as G. K.
Chesterton brilliantly develops in The
Everlasting Man, Christians do believe in the Grand Story -- the
Christ-centered Metanarrative -- the view of all of human history as an hour
glass that narrowed to the focus of Jesus of Nazareth and then expanded again
to the rest of the world being redeemed through Him.
"Right in His Own Eyes"
We've
been through this before. Mankind moves through cycles. There is nothing new
under the sun. The biblical narrative of the period of Judges is written in
part to show the inevitable result of a society with no definite standards. The
Israelite nation drifted first into religious pluralism (mixing their religion
with that of the surrounding nations) and eventually into an unjust, greedy,
idolatrous, sexually depraved, and violent society based on moral relativism.
How do we know? Consider the repeated statement in the Book of Judges, which is
also the book's concluding statement: "In
those days there was no king in Israel (no standards, no source of
authority); everyone did what was right
in his own eyes" (Judges 17:6; 21:25). Postmodern thinking has no standard
of moral right and wrong. As Fyodor Dostoyevsky said through his character Ivan
Karamazov, "If there is no God, then everything is permitted."
Postmodern
Inconsistencies
Postmodern
thinking ultimately defeats itself. Notice how we cannot even write in coherent
sentences without declaring Absolutes. To say "all truth is relative" is an
absolute statement, one which by postmodern thinking we would have to reject,
or at least we would have to equally accept the statement "some truth is
absolute." A postmodern mind cannot be consistent, or else it would have to
reject all known facts. Is the mathematical formula 2 + 2 =4 relative to time,
place, or culture? Or is the answer absolutely consistent regardless of
setting? So to truly "accept" all worldviews, a postmodernist must also accept
a worldview that sees some truth as absolute and unchanging.
Positives from the Postmodern
Era
As
a culture that has rejected the arrogant humanism of the modern period, a door
has been opened for the open discussion of ideas. Most staunch atheists still
cling to a modernist mindset, serving science and reason as their gods. So
atheism is also a metanarrative that postmodernism to its credit rejects. So
the open-mindedness of the era can open up opportunities for the Gospel.
However, as G. K. Chesterton says, "the purpose of an open mind is the same as
the purpose of an open mouth -- to close it around something." Could that
something be the Gospel?
To His Glory,
Caleb