The Crossroads of Christianity and Culture

Recently in my church world I have heard this many times: “to not decide is to decide.” Specifically, to not make a conscious decision about whether to leave the UMC, or stay in, is to somehow abandon your responsibility to take a stand on whatever it is you don't like, or like, about United Methodism. Now this is actually just nonsense. God does not expect us to re-examine every commitment we’ve made every time our circumstances change slightly. I’m married. I see a pretty woman. Oops now I’m going to have to go through a process of discernment to decide whether I stay married or not because, to not decide is to decide. I’m an American citizen traveling abroad. I see that there are other countries and cultures. So now I must go through a process of discernment to decide whether or not I want to remain an American. Because to not decide is to decide. I read about a new religious faith. It seems attractive. So I’m now obliged to reevaluate my faith in Christ. Because although He h...

A few decades ago now Schubert Ogden published a book called “Is There One True Religion or are There Many“. Carefully reasoned, like all of his books, it concluded with while there may be more than one true religion there is no way to judge others from within the standpoint of one’s own religious commitment. Each religion begins with untestable axiomatic assertions, and in different religions these assertions are different. For Ogden religions were non-overlapping domains when it came to fundamental assumptions. Their adherents could talk about many things, but none had a standpoint from which to judge the other's axioms.  This, by the way, is the reason that Ogden refused to be called a  process  theologian. Because in his understanding Christian theology must arise from scripture, the source of Christian teaching. Ogden was a  Christian  theologian who found that process philosophy was a tool for articulating more clearly and fully the nature of the God taugh...

 And we need to go there.  Recently on Facebook the opinion was offered that the Metaverse created by Meta (formerly known as Facebook) was a bust because as yet it is sparsely inhabited. I fear the observation is both inaccurate and short-sited.  First, while Meta's Metaverse is indeed a bit empty (I've visited) it is also gaining inhabitants daily. To participate fully one really must have VR goggles, and that is obviously a limitation. But there is a feedback loop already occurring. To understand this we can look at the history of American frontier. In the 17th century the whole of the continent West of the mountains was inaccessible to the vast majority of Euro-Americans. But a combination of population pressure, emerging technologies (covered wagons, the railroad), and discoveries (the Cumberland gap) led first to pioneers, and then a flood of migration westward. Each time a small town was established, or a trading post, it became easier and more attractive for settl...