Week 5- Wednesday Class Reflection

It is interesting that the scholars of the world are baffled at why the poor still have not inherited the earth. We will always be misled if we do not accept the fact of human evil and desire to take advantage over others. I readily agree with the concept of hegemony. All human institutions and structures will misuse power.

Week 5- Monday Reflection

The class was refreshing and helpful today. I feel like we are moving from abstract theory to real ways of doing ministry. This shift was also seen a bit in Barker's book, where, after all the talk about the fluidity of reality and slippery nature of truth, we are now talking about strategy for improving life.

Week 4- Cobb Chapter 4 (Theological Tools)

The concept of religion(3) is very helpful. I am concerned that those in the "secular" world and those in the "sacred" world have both forgotten the adaptation of 'religious'(1) ideals into popular culture. Too often churchgoers want to separate themselves from art, sports, science, and certain musical genres without recognizing that the Church gave birth to these ideals and forms they are rejecting! I am interested to interview my current church to see what areas of popular culture families reject and which ones they accept.

Week 4- Bevans Chapter 4 (translation model)

The translation model is helpful in a very real way. Bevans' warnings towards swallowing the translation model are legitimate. However, I do feel like the translation model is right to assert that there is some essential core to the Gospel. This is the task we are all called to, a lifelong struggle of peeling off the layers of our culture and the layers of Jesus' culture, all the while noting where God may be incarnate. The translation model is a comprehensive and helpful tool.

Response to Simon Castagna's Blog

"I guess postmodernism grew in such a way because technology enabled it to."

This is a great insight Simon. It is especially interesting because this leads us back to Marx's foundational assumptions. Our society has shifted to an idea producing society, in large part due to revolutionary shift in the means of production. While Marx can be reductionistic, there is much truth to be found in the influence of economic realities upon culture. Perhaps where Marx was wrong is in his failure to see the real circuit of culture. Since technology has made possible the production of media even at the level of the individual, individuals have then been able to place demands on the market and have asked for the perpetuation of this new postmodern Information Age.

Week 4- Barker Chapter 8 (Subjectivity and Identity)

The essence of this chapter is that we are defined by our culture. This chapter helps to recognize that concepts of truth are influenced greatly by social environment. However, if there is no essential cultural or biological anthropological definition, how do we uphold "strategic essentialism" (Barker 2003, 244). Barker feels that strategic essentialism can be valuable "for the improvement of the human condition" (Barker 2003, 244). Progress in this direction seems unlikely if we are to take Barker seriously in that no one truly knows the essential nature of the human. Who is to define what improvement is?

Week 4- Barker Chapter 7 (Postmodernism)

The most meaningful insight from this chapter is that in a philosophical sense, postmodernism truly is the resurgence and the maturing of modernism (Barker 2003, 207). Kant's thinking is evident within every aspect of postmodernism. However, it is also true that contemporary life for many in the Western countries is dominated by what could be termed a "postmodern" lifestyle or culture. Not only is it true that we are living in the days of postmodernism, it is also true that postmodernism holds great hope for the future. I think that it is extremely helpful to distinguish between different "regimes of truth".

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
I think it is helpful for Christians also, who hold that there is an absolute truth that is Christocentric through and through. In Christian witness, our job is to distinguish between the various systems of truth in the world (secular humanism, Buddhist and New Age influences, etc...) and the truth system that we present. In the end, I do believe that those other systems are false, but that does not preclude those systems from operating upon an inner logic. In the same way, the Christian system of theology operates in a system of logic that is not readily observable to outsiders. This fact requires us in our witness to then go about enculturating others to the Christocentric inner logic. This requires teaching others a new language. I find this a helpful paradigm for Christian life and witness.