I called the Christian radio station today
While my Christian credentials are pretty solid—I also self-identify as a post-modernist, which is a combination that’s liable to confuse the Christian Broadcaster type. After all, postmodern thought is supposed to be an element of “the culture” which Christianity (in their view) is supposed to stand against (or, really, shelter its children from).
The host and an author were discussing the various flaws of modernism and postmodernism (or of caricatures thereof). And they were perplexed about why Christian students seemed to be lured in by the supposed evils of what they saw as postmodern thought. Then they mentioned that if I would like to join the conversation, I should call them at their 1-800 number.
It just so happened that I did want to join the conversation. I asked them to clarify why they seemed so antagonistic toward postmodernism. After all, the postmodern critique of cultural constructions is awfully similar to the religious critique of cultural idolatry. Shouldn’t the two be allies?
What I didn’t say was this:
I don’t believe your talk of the Christian worldview and the culture’s secular worldview. Your supposedly “Christian worldview” is really a subculture—and you don’t like postmodernism because it levels its critiques at your subculture as well. Postmodernism thinks that it’s awfully interesting and not at all coincidental that your churches are largely segregated on Sunday mornings and that your beliefs seem to be just radical enough for you to feel a close-knit community with those who share those beliefs, but not radical enough to demand serious material sacrifice. And your willingness to emphasize or de-emphasize elements of what you believe to fit into a conservative political ideology is also fascinating and predictable. I think your criticism of postmodernism is simply fear that somebody might shatter the golden calves you’ve gotten so comfortable with.
