First, it's a Western, not just Protestant problem. Most Catholics think the same way.
Secondly, the best reframing of the vision (at least at a level I can understand) is by Anglican priest Fr Sam Wells, Vicar of St Martin-In-The-Fields in London. He posits that The Mystery Underlying Creation (whom we call God) is Relationship (hence the Trinity) and calls us into relationship with himself and "Sin" is what poisons and destroys relationships.
Wells is author of Humbler Faith, Bigger God: Finding a Story to Live By which I highly recommend.
"Protestantism" has a great deal of variation, with Anglo-catholicism and Lutherans who see themselves as "evangelical catholics" among those who don't fit with the portrayal of Protestantism in this post.
As I recall, Luther accepted traditions that did not contradict Scripture. As a "conservative reformer," he has been derided as a "half-way man" by those who were more radical. He kept more "catholic substance" than many others did, as do many Lutherans today.
"Sola scriptura" arose as a corrective to what church authority asserted above Scripture, in the view of the reformers. When taken out of this context, this phrase can be misunderstood and misapplied. This is one of the problems of any two word slogan.
The power struggles at the time of the Reformation made so many of the doctrinal disputes impossible to resolve at that time. Fortunately, great progress has been made regarding these disputes in recent years.
This series is strong in presenting what the writer knows well. It offers an insightful analysis of contemporary Western culture and religion. I resonate with what it affirms.
I really enjoyed the Metaphysics of Faith series. I’ve been on a journey to see God as you have described in the series. Hard to do! I have two questions. 1) I’m curious about the Hebrew OT view of the metaphysical. Is there one? How would it differ from the Neoplatonic? And why wouldn’t we try to recover some of that view instead of the Neoplatonic? 2) You used the illustration of planting the gospel in soil and the soil is our metaphysical belief system. Your illustration makes it seem like we need to cultivate the soil with a better metaphysical foundation in order for the gospel produce healthy plants. But how does that work for other cultures? I.e., Eastern culture? Would there need to be a cultivation of non- eastern metaphysics in order for the gospel to flourish? I love missiology so that’s where my mind goes.
Great series, Richard. Please add to it as you can articulate further insights.
This is a large part of what was going on with me 25 years ago, but I didn't have the conceptual framework or the philosophical language or the historical knowledge (yet) to put it all into words. All I could do was allow my heart to cry (with one of the Vineyard songwriters of the time, a Canadian...) "There must be more!" I searched high and low for the next few years, trying to find a way to remain an Evangelical. I have to say, finding your blog gave me substantial help to work through some things. And... you know the end of the story...
I track so much with this strong diagnosis of symptoms in the West. Brilliant. My own “but” about understanding the deep roots/strategic response I registered earlier, so will not repeat here. However, your first-level diagnosis I will repeat widely. Thanks for your work.
A couple of things.
First, it's a Western, not just Protestant problem. Most Catholics think the same way.
Secondly, the best reframing of the vision (at least at a level I can understand) is by Anglican priest Fr Sam Wells, Vicar of St Martin-In-The-Fields in London. He posits that The Mystery Underlying Creation (whom we call God) is Relationship (hence the Trinity) and calls us into relationship with himself and "Sin" is what poisons and destroys relationships.
Wells is author of Humbler Faith, Bigger God: Finding a Story to Live By which I highly recommend.
"Protestantism" has a great deal of variation, with Anglo-catholicism and Lutherans who see themselves as "evangelical catholics" among those who don't fit with the portrayal of Protestantism in this post.
As I recall, Luther accepted traditions that did not contradict Scripture. As a "conservative reformer," he has been derided as a "half-way man" by those who were more radical. He kept more "catholic substance" than many others did, as do many Lutherans today.
"Sola scriptura" arose as a corrective to what church authority asserted above Scripture, in the view of the reformers. When taken out of this context, this phrase can be misunderstood and misapplied. This is one of the problems of any two word slogan.
The power struggles at the time of the Reformation made so many of the doctrinal disputes impossible to resolve at that time. Fortunately, great progress has been made regarding these disputes in recent years.
This series is strong in presenting what the writer knows well. It offers an insightful analysis of contemporary Western culture and religion. I resonate with what it affirms.
Don’t stop now! You’re just getting going!
I really enjoyed the Metaphysics of Faith series. I’ve been on a journey to see God as you have described in the series. Hard to do! I have two questions. 1) I’m curious about the Hebrew OT view of the metaphysical. Is there one? How would it differ from the Neoplatonic? And why wouldn’t we try to recover some of that view instead of the Neoplatonic? 2) You used the illustration of planting the gospel in soil and the soil is our metaphysical belief system. Your illustration makes it seem like we need to cultivate the soil with a better metaphysical foundation in order for the gospel produce healthy plants. But how does that work for other cultures? I.e., Eastern culture? Would there need to be a cultivation of non- eastern metaphysics in order for the gospel to flourish? I love missiology so that’s where my mind goes.
Great series, Richard. Please add to it as you can articulate further insights.
This is a large part of what was going on with me 25 years ago, but I didn't have the conceptual framework or the philosophical language or the historical knowledge (yet) to put it all into words. All I could do was allow my heart to cry (with one of the Vineyard songwriters of the time, a Canadian...) "There must be more!" I searched high and low for the next few years, trying to find a way to remain an Evangelical. I have to say, finding your blog gave me substantial help to work through some things. And... you know the end of the story...
Dana
I track so much with this strong diagnosis of symptoms in the West. Brilliant. My own “but” about understanding the deep roots/strategic response I registered earlier, so will not repeat here. However, your first-level diagnosis I will repeat widely. Thanks for your work.
Great series!