What Happened To All The Christians!?

[WinePusher]

Seems to me like the Christian Apologist demographic is shrinking. Many old time users, (which I realize from looking through the older threads) such as Achilles, Jester, ST_JB, scottlittlefield, olivasijo, Goose, otseng, etc......don't participate as much; while there are alot of veteran atheist/nonbeliever/agnostic users that still do.

Whats Happening!? Did I miss the rapture?

[Slopeshoulder]

...modern or post modern...both reject fundamentalism. Firstly because it flies in the face of modern advances in all the sciences, social sciences, and humanities, and secondly because it seems to flatten the richness of religion itself, especially the bible, turning it into magic tales or some kind of mechanistic rulebook rather than a endless font of meaning and maturation...Interestingly, every time a religious person tries to present evidence, they are buying into modernity, often with disastrous and embarassimg results. I refuse to do it. Instead, I always recommend that it's better to give up some childish beliefs for the sake of modernity, while building deeper beliefs in the context of post-modernity...

I like most of what you say here, but I'm not sure what you mean by "present evidence." In my mind, the more we know about the Bible--its origins and its original writers and audience and culture--the better off we are. So I don't mind people like Richard Bauckham and N.T. Wright "doing their homework," so to speak, and taking the (often very vocal) critics to task. If that counts as "presenting evidence," then I'm all for it.

For me, when I want to see the "big picture," I will read Breuggeman, Fretheim, Barbara Brown Taylor, Abraham Joshua Heschel, and the like. But when I want a "close-up picture," I will go to Bauckham and Wright and others like them. I particularly enjoy the back-and-forth-movement between the close-ups and the wide-angles.

Oh, I absolutely agree, although I'd include many other biblical scholars. I was referring to scientific evidence by and large.

[Slopeshoulder]

Thanks for the explanation Slopeshoulder. When I asked what you meant by modernity, I was literally asking what you meant by modernity

I refuse to give up any belief I consider to be true for the sake of anything.

Well, define true.
But I should have said modify or update or reappropriate, not give up.

I'm a foundationalist of sorts, and when I'm not, I go in a postmodern mystical direction.
But you may prefer this line of thought:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reformed_epistemology
This direction concerns me, but in some places it intersects with my own views. Both approaches are post-foundationalist.

[Slopeshoulder]

If I were trying to defend orthodox Christianity, I'd forget WL Craig and check out this!!


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reformed_epistemology

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantinga

Anyone?

[EduChris]

If I were trying to defend orthodox Christianity, I'd forget WL Craig and check out this!!


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reformed_epistemology

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plantinga

Anyone?

Here's a couple books that I've recently read and found useful:

The Resurrection of God Incarnate

Atonement, Christology, and the Trinity