Worldview and Assumptions

Often Christianity is criticized by its critics for bringing assumptions by which it views the world. Scholarly method, according to many critics, unlike Christianity has no assumptions.

It is of course a secularized view of Descartes' mythology which glorifies in the human ability to know all. The irony is that increasingly most thinkers in their disciplines acknowledge that it is impossible to have any semblance of rational thought without assumptions. However, rarely is this realization ever acknowledged in the secular battle against religion.

Naturalism and evolution are viewpoints with assumptions. You will find many who claim that the case many expound against God is fully rational and has no assumptions of its own but there are innumerable assumptions these positions have.

The point of this is not to examine the assumptions of Christianity and secular method but simply to encourage Christians to not feel the field is being played fairly. Often the secular method demands far more in way of proof from Christianity than it requires of itself.

At times it argues that the secular viewpoint is "simpler" and should be the "default viewpoint" and thus the "burden rests on religion." Whatever the case, often the argument is played on terms stacked against religion.

If secular viewpoint required of its own views the rigor it often requires of Christianity (that there be not a single assumption) it would have to admit that it has many viewpoints and assumptions which it begins with. For those who believe in God it is important to remember in discussions with those who expound secular worldview that often the world refuses to give religion a rational consideration.

Biblical Definitions

Often the bible defines things quite differently than the world. Leadership in the bible is often servant leadership.

Success in the bible is living according to God's will and living life faithfully before God. You will see many people biblically who are great leaders and biblically very successful who the world views as having no success.

You see we often define things in ways quite contrary to biblical definitions. Our nature as fallen creatures is to define things in a certain way.

It'd be best to come to scripture originally from a state of neutrality from which to interpret scripture. Instead we come to scripture loaded down with unhelpful assumptions and unbiblical definitions.

It is not that we intentionally come to scripture at a disadvantage, but each culture in every time and place is fallen and brings its wrong assumptions to the text.

The bible meets us where we are, but if we are faithful to the bible we will find that it always demands that we think and it often prods us to be better people or to change in this or that way.

We never stop growing in this life. If we think we are without sin we make God a lier. We grow slowly by grace throughout all of life. Day by day becoming more like Christ.

Organic Theology

1. The Problem

Theology in the present day is typically very straight forward. Often in the first few minutes of listening to a preacher he tips his hand to his assumptions and the rest of his sermon can be predicted. You can predict what parts of the text the preacher will emphasize and what parts of the text the preacher will gloss over.

I see American theology in a state of crisis because almost all theology of the present day suffers from redaction. Redaction is a systematic process where the teaching of the bible is ignored on certain issues. Liberal theology and conservative theology today redact scripture.

Liberal theology primarily redacts the Bible's teaching on salvation, human relationships, ethics related to human life. Conservative theology primarily redacts the Bible's teaching on the poor, social justice, and the Christian's obligation to the non-Christian.

Often the picture is painted in such black and white terms in the current day: Liberal theology ignores the whole teaching of scripture while conservative theology accepts the teaching of scripture. In reality conservative theology often redacts scripture by simply ignoring scripture.

2. Why the Problem is Entrenched

Mainly both liberals and conservatives consider each other enemies and themselves as having the monopoly on truth. The reality is that both sides to some degree are ignoring scripture.

3. How to do Organic Theology

Organic theology is simply accepting what the bible accepts. You see in traditional theology that certain texts are given priority over others and used to interpret other texts. It seems better to simply affirm all texts and say "yes" to what they teach.

You see theology is not done in this way because it is more paradoxical to say "yes" to all the contents of the bible than to force the bible into a neat tiny mold. The issue today is that theology is irrational in its pursuit for pristine logic; it cannot interpret all of scripture without paradox so it instead philosophizes by determining priority.

4. Why Organic Theology is Biblical

The Bible is God's word where He speaks to us. We cannot interpret some texts through other texts in a way which destroys the meanings of other texts. The issue today is that philosophy has triumphed over true exegesis.

5. Why Organic Theology is Desirable

The Bible says that the whole bible is useful for teaching and instruction. That is why American Christianity is weak. We separate into camps each of which ignores parts of the bible.

Theology and Philosophy and Science

An interesting development in the modern world is the concept that a person cannot rationally assume some beliefs as a foundation for thought.

Philosophy and Science are often attacking religion as having contents outside of science. There are unverifiable elements of religion which cannot be scientifically tested.

The great irony is that all thought needs feed points. You cannot begin with a blank slate and think. We must posit some assumptions and begin to work from them.

Actually there is a great deal of modern philosophy which makes exactly the point that there a presuppositions (things which are assumed beforehand) for all thought. A typical argument form is:

1. List of presuppositions 2. Argument 3. Conclusion

Actually to reject many arguments you may simply reject the assumptions going into them.

For the worldview that is typically stated like this: "All belief must be verified by science." There is an unstated presupposition that all belief systems need all contents to be verified by science.

This presupposition is the error in the system as it is: 1. impossible 2. makes the system incoherent because it cannot be verified by the scientific system.