Culture

How Scholasticism Helps Us to Understand Gender Roles, Orientation, and Transhumanism

July 22, 2019 by wagraham 1 Comment

Evangelical Christians face a threefold challenge concerning sex. First, many evangelicals have split over the issue of women in pastoral ministry. Second, gender identifies and gay marriage have challenged traditional evangelical understandings and caused yet another rift in the church. Lastly, transhumanism promises to soon create another theological chasm: ought Christians to remain in their natural bodies, or can they augment themselves via technology?

Are we stuck in schism and statemate? How might we address these questions? As strange as it might seem, we already have powerful answers to these potent challenges. Scholasticism, a method to understand the truth, has provided us with the framework to understand these challenges and overcome them. Before explaining why that it is, it is worth surveying how the above three challenges typically work out in the church. [Read more…] about How Scholasticism Helps Us to Understand Gender Roles, Orientation, and Transhumanism

Can Christians Use Cultural Ideas without Compromising Their Faith?

July 13, 2019 by wagraham Leave a Comment

Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) transports triglycerides and cholesterol to repair and to provide cells with energy. We know this because modern science has discovered this reality and invented the language (low-density lipoprotein, triglycerides, and cholesterol) to conceptualize how my body works.

We use all sorts of words that our culture has invented and which derive from larger concepts. We engage in a capitalistic, free-market economy. We program with Java and Ruby. And like LDL or other medical concepts, we use these words freely and participate in their respective systems of thought (e.g., the free market, nutrition, etc.).

But can using language and engaging cultural ideas have a negative outcome? Some think so. A group of American evangelicals have used the analytic tools of a contemporary political ideology to describe inequality in American culture. In response, a second group has decried such a method as being incompatible with Christianity. Who is right?

Well, the answer to such questions relies on how we understand cultural words and ideas and their ability to integrate into Christian modes of thinking. Here are some scriptural and non-scriptural examples that will ground our thinking on the matter. [Read more…] about Can Christians Use Cultural Ideas without Compromising Their Faith?

Does My Gender Define Me?

April 19, 2019 by wagraham 1 Comment

In the mid-nineteenth century, European legislators invented a taxonomy of gender to identify various sexual disorders (Blank 2012: 15–21). In this way, legal scholars created the idea of orientation, and new words like heterosexual and homosexual came into use.

As Michael Hannon explains, “Heterosexuals, like typewriters and urinals (also, obviously, for gentlemen), were an invention of the 1860s.” And according to Hanne Blank, “It has, in point of actual fact, only been possible to be a heterosexual since 1869” (2012: xiv). It would take about 60 years until these theories made their way into North America.

The straight truth is: heterosexuality is an invention of European legal philosophy. It is neither good nor bad for this reason. And yet we seriously need to question the validity of such gendered-identities. Especially now, since gendered categories have made their way into popular social paradigms.

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Review of Provocations by Camille Paglia

February 6, 2019 by wagraham Leave a Comment

I first heard Camille Paglia in a conversation between her and Jordan Peterson. At first, I did not register too much interest. She seemed intelligent and engaging. Later, I saw that historian Carl Trueman interviewed Paglia. This caught my attention. I respect Trueman. So if he found it worthwhile to interview Paglia, I should at least take a deeper look.

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Why Marie Kondo and Minimalism Are So Popular

February 1, 2019 by wagraham 2 Comments

Marie Kondo sparks joy in millions who have decluttered and organized their homes. In her recent Netflix series, Kondo teaches her clients how to let go of possessions they do not need and to keep items that spark their joy. Kondo’s appeal goes far beyond the minimalist movement that seems more suited to spartan men than the average person.

Instead of only getting rid of items, Kondo teaches people to manage possessions. She shows them how to order their clothing, dishes, and sentimentals. In short, she mixes minimalism with organization.

And the effect seems to be pervasive. San Francisco thrift stores have had to limit donations largely due to people minimizing their households. Netflix hosts not only a documentary on minimalism but also a whole season of Marie Kondo doing what she does best.

So why are Marie Kondo and minimalism so popular? Why do so many people feel oppressed by their households and need the freedom that comes by tidying up?

[Read more…]