Postmodernism and Its Effect on Church and Culture
Postmodernism is a philosophy that posits that we can choose whatever meaning we want to ascribe to reality. Postmodern philosophers argue that "Just as a text will be read differently by each reader...so reality will be 'read' differently by each knowing self that encounters it" (Grenz, 1996, p. 6). Thus, according to postmodern thinking, "there is no one meaning of the world, no transcendent center to reality as a whole" (Grenz, 1996, p. 6). Postmodernism is at the heart of moral relativism and situation ethics, and as such it exerts a deleterious effect on the church and on society.
The church is predicated on a belief that there are absolute values of right and wrong. In Christianity, the moral standards detailed in the Bible make a clear distinction between what is right and what is wrong, and in many place in the Bible, the reader is even told exactly what to do and what not to do. For the Bible-reading Christian, there is little angst or confusion over where the line between right and wrong is drawn, only at times over the Christian's willingness to adhere to what he knows is right. Postmodernism, however, introduces a vast new gray area in which right can be wrong and wrong can be right depending upon the situation. The postmodernist's approach is to examine every situation as though it were unique and unconnected to any other, so he must reinvent the wheel every time he encounters a new situation and must decide the right response to it. Whereas the traditional Christian's approach is to practice the scriptures in everyday life, the postmodernist's approach is to choose the path he wants to take and then justify it based on the circumstances. He can justify virtually any act, since he is not obligated to adhere to standards of absolute right and wrong, so the limits of morality expand alarmingly and become inclusive.
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