A Primer on Postmodernism

The intention of A Primer on Postmodernism is practical; to help those in the ministry to understand the Western world’s shift to postmodernism. While its intention is practical, it is not a how to book. Rather his intention is that ministry practitioners would have an understanding of the values and philosophical basis of postmodernism so that they would be able minister effectively in it.

To do this he must first describe postmodernism and contrast it with the Enlightenment or modernity. He desires to show those who are unfamiliar with postmodernism the signpost of postmodernism that surround them in everyday life. He lays out the foundational values and philosophical underpinning of the emerging worldview. Grenz shows us the philosophical foundations of postmodernity by highlighting three significant postmodern philosophers and their contribution to postmodern thought. He demonstrates the modern/enlightened philosophical basis of Evangelical Christianity which creates a cultural and philosophical conflict with the postmodern worldview in which it ministers. Finally Grenz intends to awaken the minister’s need to grapple with the questions that postmodernism raises about what we do, how we view our world and how we communicate our message and life. He does this by laying out the areas where we, as Christians, need to stand our ground and where we need to reassess some of our philosophical and theological sacred cows.

Chapter one gives a general outline for the philosophical underpinnings of the postmodern worldview shift. Specifically Grenz develops how the modern or enlightened mind views the world. He then contrasts this with the postmodern worldview; and finally outlines the philosophical stress points that postmodernity creates for Evangelical Christianity.
Chapter two outlines postmodern thought and the history of its development. It develops postmodernity as a cultural phenomenon in the arts outlining how it expresses itself in architecture, art, theater and literature. Finally, he gives us a view of postmodernity in popular culture, showing us its expressions in film, television and other media.

Chapter three deals with the postmodern view of knowledge and science; specifically it deals with the concept of the metanarrative and how postmodern thought challenges the modern hubris of being able to know with certainty. This particularly challenges the modern understanding of science and its ability to help us understand our world.

Chapter four lays out the historical development of the modern worldview by outlining the worldview shift from the ancient worldview to the Renaissance and finally the Enlightenment. He particularly focuses on the Enlightenment highlighting its anthropology, outlook, principals, and view of religion. He particularly outlines the contribution of Immanuel Kant.

Chapter five shows how postmodern thought challenges the modern worldview. First he shows how Friedrich Nietzsche challenged the Enlightenments view of self. Grenz shows how postmodernism deals with our understanding of text, in contrast to the enlightened view. Finally he deals with language itself, contrasting postmodern understanding of how language works compared to the modern understanding.

Chapter six outlines three foundational values of postmodern thought. He does this by highlighting three significant philosophers and their contribution to postmodern values. First he highlights Michel Foucault and how postmoderns view the use of power and the control of knowledge. Next he explains deconstruction and the nature of language through the development of Jacques Derrida’s philosophy. Finally he highlights postmodern pragmatism, the desire for what works, as opposed to what is true, through the work of Richard Rorty.
Chapter seven answers the question “So what?” for Evangelical practitioners. He encourages us to stand our ground on our validity of the concept of truth, but asks us to consider that we have common ground with the postmodern rejection of the enlightened understanding of the limits of knowledge. He also deals with how postmodernism rightly challenges our individualistic, dualistic and rationalistic understanding of the gospel.

Grenz does an outstanding job of outlining the philosophical underpinnings of the Enlightenment, postmodernism and the how Evangelicals need to grapple with both. However, as outstanding and accurate as it is, the book gives too much of a philosophical twist to postmodern ministry. The average person we meet today in the West is a postmodern. But, the average person we meet today has never heard of Derrida, doesn’t know what a metanarrative is, and could probably care less about Jean-Francois Lyotard, Michel Foucault or Richard Rorty.

Most of us deal with street postmoderns, not philosophical postmoderns. Nevertheless, we do need to understand how postmoderns think, what they value, and how they view their world. While this is heavy on philosophy, it does outline the underpinnings of postmodern thought, values and worldview. One just needs to be careful to not address most postmoderns as philosophers, but as people who have a specific worldview; one which they probably would struggle to put into a coherent philosophical framework.