The Western Church and the Challenge of Modernity

Transcription

1 The Western Church and the Challenge of Modernity

2 The Industrial Revolution Foundations of industrialization The factory system The spread and growth Characteristics of industrial societies Values of industrial societies Industrialization began in Britain in the late 18 th century, spread to France and Belgium by 1810, to the U.S. by the 1820s, and to Germany by the 1830s Source: Western Civilization (Norton, 2008)

3 A Continuum of Christian Responses to Modernity Dogmatism and Fideism Liberalism Atheistic Humanism Authority = Bible, confessions Established state church Faith above reason Uninterested in social reform Critical approach to the Bible and tradition Individualized, privatized faith Faith as historically conditioned Social reform Authority = science, philosophy Secular state No supernatural revelation Social revolution

4 The Socialist Critique Source: German philosopher Karl Marx ( ) developed the socio-political theory known as Marxism Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the sentiment of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people. The abolition of religion as the illusory happiness of the people, is a demand for their real happiness Contribution to the Critique of Hegel s Philosophy of Right (1843)

5 The Conservatism the Roman Catholic Church A lack of unity The pontificate of Pius IX ( ) Efforts toward institutional centralization The dogma of the Immaculate Conception of Mary (1854) The Syllabus of Errors (1864) Vatican I ( ) and papal infallibility Pope Pius IX ( ) positioned the Roman Catholic Church against modernity Source:

6 Varieties of Protestant Liberalism Source: Schleiermacher is often called the father of modern liberal theology Foundational work of Immanuel Kant ( ) The contribution of F. D. E. Schleiermacher ( ) Higher critical study of the Bible Albrecht Ritschl ( ) and the Kingdom of God The Social Gospel Movement

7 Western Imperialism Foundation: early modern trade Motives of imperialism The tools of empire Growing empires in India and China Europe s Scramble for Africa (1880s and 1890s) Russian imperialism and the Great Game U. S. imperialism in the Caribbean and Oceania Cecil Rhodes ( ) epitomized Britain s imperial ambitions in Africa Source:

8 Western Imperialism in 1914 Source: European powers slowly built their colonial holdings in Asia throughout the 19 th century and rapidly in the Scramble for Africa in the 1880s and 90s. The United States established protectorates in both the Caribbean and Oceania in the years leading up to World War I.

9 Modern Protestant Missions Source: Christian converts usually were required to adhere to Western standards of dress and conduct The origins of Protestant missions (cf. William Carey) 19 th -century growth and expansion The influence of social Darwinism The civilizing mission Strategies of missions: Evangelism and church planting Education Medical and social services

10 The Modern Paradigm of Missions Purpose Assumptions Strategies Measurement of Success Salvation of the individual; educational and medical services; civilization (defined by Euro-American values) Euro-American religious and cultural superiority; child-like native Christians need supervision; empathetic love of neighbor motivates missions Voluntary, denominational mission societies; uneasy cooperation with colonizing authorities; educational and medical work Sheer numbers of converts; success of mission institutions (churches, hospitals, schools); civilization of indigenous people Adapted from David Bosch, Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission (Orbis, 1991), esp