I am just reading "Planting New Churches in a Postmodern Age" by Ed Stetzer. Some helpful advice in this book, but I can't help thinking he confuses philosophy with culture. He claims that once we "understand the cultural nature of postmodernism, (we'll see that) a postmodern church is just about as acceptable as an Arab church, a contemporary church or an inner city church" (128). Much is then made of the need to adapt the church so that unchurched 'postmoderns' will come.
In the NT, Paul made cultural adaptations so as not to offend unnecessarily - but he didn't concede to a worldly philosophy in order to make Christianity attractive to people that held it! If that was the case then Paul would probably have had to plant two churches in Athens... one for the Epicureans and one for the Stoics.
The need of the hour is not 'contextualization' - but an unceasing bold declaration of man's need and God's remedy, with fervent prayer for God's accompanying mercy!
Ah well... on with the book...
T
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1 comment:
Amen
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