Historia ecclesiastica

Your post is uncharacteristically vague regarding the players in the current crisis. To draw out your international analogy with North American Evangelicalism, who or what figures as "Israel" and who or what figures as "Hezbollah"? What is this unnamed threat? Secondly, to the extent North American Evangelicalism is rooted in modernity, philosophically, it may follow its logical conclusion, philosophically: post-modernity. If the root is not Christian, what is cut off (analogically) is not Christian either, is it? A concrete example would help me consider whether I agreed or disagreed with your alarm.

Hi Michael,

I'm making similar observations. My initial guess is that people who lost touch with history are trying to regain touch without any direction or method of doing so. It's a postmodern conundrum. The End of History was declared and people were glad to end all the debating and fighting and loyalty to ideologies that competed with each other. Now, having been adrift in subjectivism so long, people are trying to find roots again. We've got to show them the way back. We've got to invite them to view history Christianly - understanding God's soveriegnty over history and that God is steering this Age to the consummation of the Kingdom of God. Our contemporaries need perspective. I'm well educated and am so surprised (though I guess I shouldn't be) how few people there are who understand their place in God's created order - Christian or not.

Scott
http://evangelicalanglican.blogspot.com/

Nancy:

I wanted to be vague to some degree. But here goes as to some specificity: the first group are boomers--and generationally that is where I am too--who are so fascinated with their generation that they seem to be convinced that nothing that happened prior to the 1970s/1980s has nay relevance for today.

The second group are emergent types who believe--rightly I think in far too many cases--that the previous generation has sold out to the zeitgeist. They are longing for roots and a sense of belonging. But are seeking those roots in places that long-term will bring them to turn thier backs on a precious jewel--the Evangelical tradition.

And Scott: Amen!

The current international crisis is a blip on the screen of the history of the Middle East. Israel and its neighboring Islamic countries have been at odds since its birth in 1947, and have had several wars. To try to draw links between this crisis and Evangelicism is unsubstantiated. You are drawing your conclusions from an empty source, Michael.

The current international crisis is a blip on the screen of the history of the Middle East. Israel and its neighboring Islamic countries have been at odds since its birth in 1947, and have had several wars. To try to draw links between this crisis and Evangelicism is unsubstantiated. You are drawing your conclusions from an empty source, Michael.

Michael,

I totally agree with your post! There seems to be a real lack of discernment on which voices to trust and a deep biblical illiteracy among people of my generation (the emerging generation). Authors such as McLaren, etc. are their authorities, not Scripture itself; in fact, many do not even know what Scripture says. Blessings,

Nick

Jeremiah 6:16 (from the "New Living Tranlation" - capitals for emphasis, mine)
So now the LORD says, "Stop right where you are! Look for the OLD, GODLY WAY, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, `No, that's not the road we want!'

...at least the post-modern Christian has this going for him. Like the rest of us, his own Bible reveals his sin!!!

Dr. Haykin, I think I understand the angst, given your examples of Boomers and Emergers. If I can categorize broadly, The Christian Boomers used to be the "counter-cultural" Jesus-freaks, and they greatly redefined "church," often in terms of anything counter to "long-standing tradition," rather than in terms of "the third way" of Christianity (to allude to Os Guinness, probably painfully out of context). As for the Emergers, I think you have provided clarity for me. A friend who used to be on staff with a well-known evangelical campus ministry, dedicated to spreading the gospel, has recently converted to Catholicism, because in her words, it demonstrates unity, has long roots, engages all her senses in worship, and is concerned for social justice and human rights as equally as evangelism, embracing all the consequences of sin, whereas Protestants, especially Evangelicals, embrace American culture and have shallow roots. (She was trained at a conservative, Evangelical seminary in missions; so, she is not "uneducated" about history, per se.)

Dear Michael

Amen to your post. How true that because we have forgotten where we have come from we have no idea where we are going. I to am a fellow blogger trying to defend the doctrines of grace. I have put a link to you web page and you blog on my blog. You blog is much better than mine

Dear Bartimaeus

Good to hear from you. Thanks for stopping by. You are obviously close in Toronto--if you would like to meet sometime in the fall I would be honoured.

Michael.