Why we believe Reason Faith Preference Discovery
How we view relationships Autonomous Holistic Pluralistic Inclusive community
What we value Security Legacy Gratification Eternity now
How we influence Institutions Tradition Deconstruction Modeling
How we measure success Product Process Justification Transformation
This is probably the most "dense" section of the book…the above is a chart that outlines the main points of the chapter. Huge and Matt argue that there are three distinct cultural paradigms (framework of understanding reality) that shape our praxis in ministry and Kingdom living:
1. Western Modernism – what they call, "WestMod" – coming out of the Enlightenment, the "lights when on" and people woke up to become "reasonable, smart, confident, and scientific in orientation. High dependence on human reasoning, extreme optimism, and the expansion/progress myth.
2. Easternism – those deriving from a non-roman world…primarily a non-European, western mindset that is shaped more by holism and theocentricity.
3. Postmodernism – so much has been written on the deconstruction of modernity and the issues of an emerging philosophical/reality paradigm through the gauntlet of "postmo", I won't bore you with the details.
The authors provide what they call, "A Gospel Response" to key issues in living, interpreting and navigating life in a new world…take a peak!
More to come tomorrow…