Christian worldview
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Christian worldview refers to a collection of distinctively Christian philosophical and religious beliefs. The term is typically used in one of three ways:
- A set of worldviews voiced by those identifying themselves as Christian;
- Common elements of worldviews predominant among those identifying themselves as Christian;
- The concept of a single "Christian worldview" on a range of issues.
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[edit] Background
[edit] The Multiplicity of Biblical Worldviews
Just as there are various versions of the Bible accepted as canon, there are varieties of Christian worldviews and even disputes of the meaning of the concept of a Christian worldview. This worldview definition and concept has changed with the canons: for example, the concept of a "three-story" universe is in several versions of the Bible - the heavens above, the earth beneath, and the underworld - what Northrop Frye indicated as the central clusters of the system of metaphors in the Bible - mountain, garden, and cave. Later Bibles include the notion of Hell to accommodate the emergence of this concept in Christian belief.
In other respects than the "three-story" universe, there are great differences among the biblical worldviews, including pre-Christian changes in the Torah. The Sadducean community to which most Temple priests belonged in the time of Jesus accepted only the first five books of the Torah as canon. The various schools of Pharisees accepted different sets of books.
The Evangelical Worldview is built upon the outline: Creation --> Fall --> Redemption --> Consummation.
[edit] Worldviews Are A Universal of Human Existence
Worldviews embrace the world as it exists in one's time, but only in relation to how the world is pictured by this or that person, this or that community or institution, tainted by possible agenda. A religious worldview can not only describe the beliefs and agenda of a group, but the style and tone of that worldview can reflect a general emotional state of those who speak for that group. For example, Christian worldviews reflected in British 19th Century Imperialist doctrine can strike the contemporary reader as patronizing and magnanimous in tone, reflecting both the need to reinforce the higher moral purpose of British hegemony but the largesse that the British Empire received from implementing this worldview.
[edit] Language Factors in Worldviews: the Case of Palestine in Jesus' Day
Another worldview factor has to do with language. It is the Greek Septuagint that is quoted by Paul in his Letters in the New Testament, not the Torah in any of its differing canonizations. Aramaic by this time was spoken mostly among the poor of Palestine. The Greek-speaking synogogues of Jerusalem and other large cities were well attended by Christians like Stephen the Martyr, Jews native to Jerusalem and other parts of Palestine and pilgrims and converts who spoke mostly Greek.
[edit] U.S. Protestant Conservative "Worldview" vs. "Doctrine"
The U.S. use of the term "worldview" in Christian rhetoric can be traced to the evangelical Reformed philosopher H. Evan Runner of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Runner used the term in his evangelical Reformed community in North America, promoting the worldview concept from a philosophical concept to a synonym for "doctrine."
[edit] Key People and Literary Works
[edit] Original Worldview Thinkers in Protestant Evangelicalism [1]
- Gordon H. Clark. A Christian View of Men and Things: An Introduction to Philosophy. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans (1951); reprint, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker (1981).
- Herman Dooyeweerd. A New Critique of Theoretical Thought. Jordan Station, Ont.: Paideia Press (1984) online summary with excerpts
- Carl F. H. Henry. God, Revelation, and Authority. Waco, TX: Word (1976).
- Abraham Kuyper. Lectures on Calvinism. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans (1931) online version
- James Orr. The Christian View of God and the World. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons (1893) online version
- Francis Schaeffer. The Complete Works of Francis A. Schaeffer: A Christian Worldview. Wheaton, IL: Crossway (1982).
[edit] Notes
- ^ *Naugle, David, Worldview: A History of the Concept. Grand Rapids, MI:Eerdmans (2002), pp. 4-32.
[edit] Other Relevant Sources
- Jürgen Habermas, The Theory of Communicative Action, Volume II (1981) - see sections on Worldviews and Worldpictures
- Arthur F. Holmes, All Truth Is God's Truth. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans (1977).
- David Naugle, Worldview: A History of the Concept. Grand Rapids, MI:Eerdmans (2002) on line table of contents
- Nancy Pearcey, Total Truth: Liberating Christianity from its Cultural Captivity. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books (2004) on line table of contents
- James Sire, The Universe Next Door: A Basic Worldview Catalog. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press (1997) on line table of contents
- Ninian Smart, Worldviews: Crosscultural Explorations of Human Belief (New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2000)
- Albert M. Wolters, Creation Regained: Biblical Basics For A Reformational Worldview. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans (1985).
[edit] External links
- McKendree R. Langley, "Abraham Kuyper: A Christian Worldview." From the Orthodox Presbyterian Church web site, retrieved September 16, 2006.
