This video is from a Yale University Literature 300 class taught by Dr Paul Fry. I sat through all 25+ hours of this presentation on YouTube and this session is about "Postmodernism". He begins discussing Postmodernism at twelve minutes into the video.
Postmodernism is presented by its proponents as the "present era" or time period in which we live. It is not that at all. Postmodernism is a lifestyle choice having to do with the rejection of "Modernism".
Postmodernism is a rejection of logic, rationalism and intellectual progress. It is a desire to return to a period in art, literature and religion BEFORE the "Moden" period. If you watch the whole Literature 300 course as I did, you will realize that Postmodernism was a hot topic in literature in the 1970s and 1980s. This was when Jacques Derrida was a professor at Yale University. As Postmodernism began to fade from its hot spot in literature, Derrida left Yale University for the University of California at Irvine. The hot topic in literature now is probably most likely "neo-pragmatism".
Unfortunately, many of the people now teaching in Christian Universities like our own Northwest Nazarene Universtiy went through schools teaching Postmodernism and Deconstruction which were being taught by Derrida at Yale Unvierstiy and then The Universtiy of California at Irvine. These professors, because this is what they were taught, are still promoting Postmodernism and Deconstruction at our Unviersities.
These professors, now in MOST Christian universities and other schools, still persist in teaching Postmodernism and Deconstruction and have thereby influenced MOST denominations by producing and promoting the "Emergent Church", a completely Postmodern penomenon which relies heavily on Deconstruction.
We are not stuck with Postmodernism. It is a style of doing things that is a CHOICE. Pastors who teach, preach and live in a Postmodern world do so as a choice. They are choosing to reject "Modernism" with its reliance on empiricism, advancements in technology and logical thought processes.
Hence, the Postmodern pastors are returning to more archaic modes of worship. They are leaning towards worship of the environment. They are leaning towards mysticism rather than reason. Many of them are going back to the idea that only the pastor should have a Bible. Many of them change the worship ambience to eliminat lighting in the worship place which eliminates the use of the Bible by the congregation during worship. This also promotes the rejection of the Hymnal from which we sing songs which re-enforce our knowledge and belief in sound doctrine. Postmodernism is a lifestyle and worship CHOICE which leads us away from all of the advances in church life of the last four hundred years.
MORE TO COME