A Primer on Postmodernism
Overview
From the academy to pop culture, our society is in the throes of change rivaling the birth of modernity out of the decay of the Middle Ages. We are now moving from the modern to the postmodern. But what is postmodernism? How did it arise? What characterizes the postmodern ethos? What is the postmodern mind and how does it differ from the modern mind? Who are its leading advocates? Most important of all, what challenges does this cultural shift present to the church, which must proclaim the gospel to the emerging postmodern generation? Stanley Grenz here charts the postmodern landscape. He shows the threads that link art and architecture, philosophy and fiction, literary theory and television. He shows how the postmodern phenomenon has actually been in the making for a century and then introduces readers to the gurus of the postmodern mindset. What he offers here is truly an indispensable guide for understanding today’s culture.
Top Highlights
“Postmodern thinkers no longer find this grand realist ideal tenable.5 They reject the fundamental assumption on which it is based—namely, that we live in a world consisting of physical objects that are easily identifiable by their inherent properties. They argue that we do not simply encounter a world that is ‘out there’ but rather that we construct the world using concepts we bring to it.” (Page 41)
“Beliefs are important because they shape conduct. Our fundamental belief structure is reflected in our actions. As Christians, then, we should be concerned to gain knowledge and to hold to correct doctrine in order that we might attain wisdom for living so that we might please God with our lives.” (Page 173)
“A postmodern articulation of the gospel is post-rationalistic. It no longer focuses on propositions as the central content of Christian faith. Instead, it takes seriously a dynamic understanding of the role of the intellectual dimension of human experience and our attempts to make sense of life.” (Page 171)
“We must take seriously the discoveries of contemporary communitarians.6 They are echoing the great biblical theme that the goal of God’s program is the establishment of community in the highest sense.” (Page 168)
“It asserts that the world has no center, only differing viewpoints and perspectives” (Page 7)
- Title: A Primer on Postmodernism
- Author: Stanley J. Grenz
- Publisher: Eerdmans
- Print Publication Date: 1996
- Logos Release Date: 2015
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subject: Postmodernism
- ISBNs: 9780802808646, 0802808646
- Resource ID: LLS:PRMRPSTMDRNSM
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T02:24:08Z