LCMS Convention Proceedings St. Louis, Missouri — 1998, Page 78

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78

CONVENTION ESSAYS AND BIBLE STUDIES
he speaks to them and gives them wisdom and guidance. They therefore claim, “I follow the words of
Jesus.”

8. The postmodern philosophy is logically untenable. To
make the statement “there is no such thing as objective, absolute truth,” causes the reasonable person to
ask, “Is that statement itself objectively and absolutely true?” If there is no such thing as objective
and absolute truth, one must conclude that the statement “there is no such thing as objective and absolute
truth” is itself neither objectively nor absolutely true.
The statement is self-refuting. Also, it is impossible
to communicate the notion that words do not convey
objective meaning. In order to do so, one must employ
words. Regarding the enthusiasts, Luther wrote:
“Just so our enthusiasts are condemning the external
Word and yet are not silent themselves but filling the
world with prating and writing.” In the same way,
postmodernists are filling the bookshelves with books
written in the very language that they are attempting to deconstruct. If we apply the postmodern notion
of the deconstruction of words to the many words
written by the postmodernists themselves, they obviously become victims of their own philosophy. They
refute themselves. Why would anyone read the words
of an author who is suggesting through those very
words that words themselves do not convey objective
meaning?
9. The Re-imagining Rebuttal,” published by the Ecumenical Coalition on Women and Society.
10. Jim Leffel comments: “Authors, they claim, are social
constructs—virtually impersonal, socially constructed
‘nodes.’ According to postmodernists, authors can’t create unique or original works that express their thought
or feelings as individuals. They can only restate what
is ‘already present’ in their social reality. This means
that there is little value in viewing the author as the
one who gives the text its meaning, as though he or she
occupies some privileged place in the communication
process” (Dennis McCallum, The Death of Truth [Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1996], p. 89).
11. Sociologists Dean Hoge, Benton Johnson, and Donald
Luidens describe the nature of Bible study in successful
baby-boomer churches: “These churches profess strong
biblical authority yet leave final authority up to individuals without any attempt at achieving agreement or
imposing official statements. The pastor gives a perspective on any passage and then invites the members
to study, pray, ask for inspiration from the Holy Spirit
and decide for themselves” (Vanishing Boundaries: the
Religion of Mainline Protestant Baby-boomers
[Louisville: Westminister, John Knox Press, 1994], p.
208).
12. Dennis McCallum writes: “Today, evangelicals should
be concerned not only because the secular world has
opted for the centrality of experience and power over
and above truth, but because some evangelicals are
tempted to do the same! If we think we can offer an experience that will compete effectively with other post-

modern religious experiences, we tread ground alien to
the New Testament. Paul never argued that Christ
could top the mystery religions and other ecstatic cults
in terms of religious experience. He offered the truth—
Jesus Christ and Him crucified. This was the power of
God to which he wanted them exposed” (The Death of
Truth, p. 239).
13. Henry Knight writes: “If the resurrection is true, then
there will be Christian communities where its impact
will be evident, and persons for whom faith in it will
have made a significant difference in how they live
their lives. For many in a postmodern world, the existence of such communities and lives will be the only evidence they will seek” (A Future for Truth, p. 75).
Knight’s comments are very interesting. The community of faith with the nicest people, the best families
with well-behaved children, and cutest puppies will
win the day!
14. In his 1972 book, Why Conservative Churches Are
Growing, Methodist minister Dean M. Kelley defined
what he termed “weak” churches and “strong”
churches. For Kelley, the weak church did not proclaim
a singular clear-cut compelling message with a claim
to absolute truth. Weak churches offered a variety of
interpretations and were not critical of other traditions. They were receptive to divergent views and believed that no one had a monopoly on the truth. Alternatively, strong and, in 1972, growing churches offered
compelling, exclusive, and absolute truth concerning
the meaning of human existence and sought to integrate the next generation into that truth. Kelley, of
course, was writing before the wide proliferation of the
experientialism of Pentecostalism and the consumerism of the Church Growth movement. Today,
strangely, by Kelley’s definitions, weak churches are
growing churches.
15. Gene Veith writes: “Where there are no absolute
truths, the intellect gives over to the will. Aesthetic criteria replace rational criteria. Listen to the way people
today discuss religion. ‘I really like that church,’ they
will say. Agreeing with that church or believing in its
teaching scarcely enters in” (Postmodern Times, p.
193).
16. See Charles and Steven Crane, Ashamed of Joseph:
Mormon Foundations Crumble (Joplin, Missouri: College Press, 1993).
17. Oprah Winfrey’s personal guru Marianne Williamson
puts it this way: “The word Christ is a psychological
term. No religion has a monopoly on the truth. Christ
refers to the common thread of divine love that is the
core and essence of every human being ... Focus on
Christ means focus on the goodness and power that lie
latent within us, in order to invoke them into realization and express ... ‘I accept the Christ within,’ means
‘I accept the beauty within me as who I really am’ ” (A
Return to Love [New York: Harper-Collins, 1992], pp.
31–32).
18. David Wells writes: “This generation is in the market
for religious goods, and it is only to be expected that