From Carson to Grenz

Just finished D. A. Carson’s book (Becoming Conversant with the Emerging Church – see post on May 9th). After the Truth-Project-showing that I alluded to in my May 19th post, we were discussing the emergent phenomenon (most Christians present had not even heard of such a beast) after the meeting concluded and I found myself advocating the book to those who were listening. Now this is no small decision. To whatever degree that I believe that many honest and concerned Christians are removing barriers to apostasy, to that degree, I must take very serious any recommendations for further intellectual and spiritual pursuits in that area. So after some serious reflection, I have decided that this literary effort is sufficiently penetrating, honest, and logical that I am advocating it for serious consideration.

There are too many solid Christians who are in the process of polarizing regarding this debate for me to slay dragons as of yet. I have alluded to that fact in a previous post. It would be beneficial, it would seem, to recommend literature from both polarized houses. I have yet to find one that would express the emergent/postmodern position. My next effort will be to go to the 1999 effort by Stanley Grenz - A Primer on Postmodernism – (Eerdmans: Grand Rapids). Perhaps this effort will be a candidate. Dr. Grenz was a world-class scholar. Let’s see what he has to say. I may consider Brian McLaren’s A Generous Orthodoxy at some later date, but that would be to offer that literary effort as a polarized view of emergent that may be loved by some, but that I would consider the worst that they have to offer. Some of you may have noticed that I am not advocating Beyond Foundationalism by Dr. Grenz (and J. R. Franke) – see post on May 7. The authors are certainly robust enough to teach us much concerning this issue; it’s just that this effort was too pedantic and epistemologically nuanced to be a useful tool at this time.

So back to Carson. The author has raised many objections to the EC. This is not a book review, so I won’t go into them on this site. Let me just suggest that there is one point that he has made that may transcend all others in importance; namely that he finds little, if any, scriptural exegesis in the writing of those who advocate that belief-system. So far, I have found that suggestion to be totally true. This observation generates a serious concern. In the author’s estimation, it is a conscious decision of the most hardened of the postmodernist’s to do so. Brian McLaren certainly comes to mind at this point. So, I will be aware of this phenomenon as I read EC literature, and will tend to ask the question as I do so: Will there be any claims to Scripture as a base for their belief-system, and if not, will this trend continue as I read more of their literature? Dr Carson alludes to this theme several times but I find the following to be a good summation of the spiritual damage that it could cause:

Third, granted that the emerging church movement is driven by its perception of widespread cultural changes, its own proposals for the way ahead must be assessed for their biblical fidelity. In other words, we must not only try to evaluate the accuracy of the emerging church’s cultural analysis, but also the extent to which its proposals spring from, or can at least be squared with, the Scriptures. To put the matter differently: Is there at least some danger that what is being advocated is not so much a new kind of Christian in a new emerging church, but a church that is so submerging itself in the culture that it risks hopeless compromise? (p. 44) - bold has been added

The EC may not be heading for a hopeless compromise, but if they are, is this not a serious matter of the highest order?