In my last two posts (read them here and here), I laid out the danger of those that seek a middle ground between biblical fidelity (biblical fundamentalism) while also chasing acceptance by the liberal/modernist/progressive church and academy.
In my last post, I laid out an abbreviated history of the fundamentalist/modernist controversy and a working definition of what I mean by fundamentalism. You can read my first part here. In part 2, I will give two historical examples of why this middle ground is a dangerous compromise for those that desire to stay true to the biblical doctrines. My final post will address some considerations for what this means in the Church today.
In the 2017 World War II movie, The Darkest Hour, Winston Churchill cries out in frustration, “You cannot reason with a tiger when your head is in its mouth!” Although these words are more than likely an artistic embellishment for cinema, they do fairly sum up Churchill’s frustration with the policies of Neville Chamberlain that sought to appease Adolph Hitler by ignoring his aggressions in Europe. Chamberlain truly believed that by signing the Munich Agreement and giving the Sudetenland to Germany along with Hitler’s promise not to continue invading other nations, that Europe would be saved.
Read the series.
What do you think of when you hear the word “supernatural”? For many, I suspect it’s a novel, movie, or TV series—or more than one. In the West, we have for a long time now associated “supernatural” with terms like unexplained, unusual, and paranormal.
“What most people don’t know is that liberal theology is a tradition; it is not just any type of theology that a person disagrees with because it seems too revisionist.” - Roger Olson
“The historic five fundamentals remain an important aspect of fundamentalism’s history and heritage, though they are not exclusive identifying marks of the movement.” - P&D
“Ligonier’s one-hundredth anniversary edition of [J. Gresham Machen’s] classic book, Christianity and Liberalism, shows a new generation that God’s message of salvation is timeless.” - Ligonier
Read the first installment.
Harry Fosick continues his 1922 sermon against fundamentalism.1 For clarity, headings have been added to the text.
In this landmark 1922 sermon, Harry E. Fosdick, Pastor of First Presbyterian Church in New York, called for an open-minded, “tolerant” view of Christian fellowship. He delivered this address in the midst of the Fundamentalist-Modernist controversy. As is plain from his sermon, he did not want the fundamentalists to win!1
“Since its initial publication seventy-five years ago, The Abolition of Man has served as one of the finest non-reactionary bulwarks against the faddish ideologies and various subjectivisms and other nihilistic nonsense of the political and cultural Left.” - Intellectual Takeout
