As I observed the attitude of our surrounding culture change, I was no longer so confident that the evangelistic framework I had gleaned from Keller would provide sufficient guidance for the cultural and political moment. Now we live in the “negative world,” in which, according to Renn, Christian morality is expressly repudiated and traditional Christian views are perceived as undermining the social good. Aaron Renn’s account represents well my thinking and the thinking of many: There was a “neutral world” roughly between 1994–2014 in which traditional Christianity was neither broadly supported nor opposed by the surrounding culture, but rather was viewed as an eccentric lifestyle option among many. I began to feel differently about our surrounding secular culture, and noticed that its attitude toward Christianity was not what it once had been. And after 2016 Wood evolved:Īt that point, I began to observe that our politics and culture had changed. Wood says that Tim recognizes “though the gospel is unavoidably offensive, we must work hard to make sure people are offended by the gospel itself rather than our personal, cultural, and political derivations.” In short, it’s because my friend Tim shuns political tribalism (emphasizing a “third way” between red and blue) and strives, in Wood’s words, to be “‘winsome,’ missional, and ‘gospel-centered’” in his approach.
Lewis for the postmodern world”), but he goes on to inform us that he has “turned elsewhere for guidance in our contemporary political moment.” Wood takes pains to compliment and note Keller’s immense and positive influence on him personally and on the church collectively (he calls him a “C.S. The piece is called “ How I Evolved on Tim Keller ,” and its author, First Things associate editor James Wood, makes all the familiar arguments, though more civilly than most.
Those who don’t understand the present crisis or the necessity of changed tactics are simply not men for the moment.Ī good example of the genre was published this week in First Things. If I had to put a name on this era of right-wing Christian politics, it would be “The Great Rationalization.” As the right has become more cruel, malicious, and dismissive of character, some Christian thinkers have been willing not just to excuse this transformation but to affirm it as deeply virtuous.ĭrill down into any of these rationalizations, and you’ll find the same theme repeated time and again: Desperate times call for desperate measures. (Photo by Frank Licorice via Wikimedia Commons.)
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