After Postmodernism

Sunday afternoons may not be the best time to hold an Agora forum.

People have just enjoyed (or endured!) an hour's worth of expository preaching...
wondering where to do lunch or catch up on afternoon naps...

So I decided to experiment with a Saturday afternoon for the Postmodernism discussion.

Glad that we did it cos' it was nice to meet up again with Alexa (CBC), Gordon (ACTS), Jee Seng (Impact), John and Mandy etc. Jonathan gave an insightful sharing abt his experience in a background where questions and feedbacks to leaders are not highly valued.

After my presentation loosely based on RZIM notes, discussions pick up after we got 'exiled' by Awana kids to the backroom and get to sit in a circle. (best practice for the future?)

We talked about challenges and opportunities in mission presented by modern and postmodern times.

A pastor described how some churches in post-christian europe are now trying out 'free flow of beer', hip music, non-preachy story-telling etc to regain their generation.

Someone expressed concern that there is a thin line between accomodation to the culture and adaptation of forms.

Whatever we think of these new ways of 'doing church', I'm reminded of Machen's words

"False ideas are the greatest obstacles to the reception of the gospel. We may preach with all the fervor of a reformer and yet succeed only in winning a straggler here and there, if we permit the while collective thought of the nation or of the world to be controlled by ideas which, by the resistless force of logic, prevent Christianity from being regarded as anything more than a harmless delusion...

... What is today matter of academic speculation begins tomorrow to move armies and pull down empires.

In that second stage, it has gone too far to be combated; the time to stop is was when it was still a matter of impassionate debate. So as Christians we should try to mold the thought of the world in such a way as to make the acceptance of Christianity something more than a logical absurdity ..."

Mandy asked a nice question: "What's Post-Postmodern?"

Maybe it's up to what we make of it, by the grace of God.