Postmodernism and the Church

As another assignment for the Worship Arts class I am a part of, we were tasked with asking a professor about postmodernism. So, after my morning class with, I went up to my professor and asked them what they thought about postmodernism affecting their field of work but also the Church. While the professor I talked to does not teach a specifically ministry related subject, she felt that her field of expertise related to the Church. She primarily teaches communications, and other courses that stem from that. She noted how the postmodernism era and culture has affected how we communicate with others. She mentioned the role of mediated communication, communication relating to gender, race, and sexuality; she also highlighted the general fact that communication has become less of common skill but rather something we need teaching in. She did not mention these things, however, with a negative connotation but rather with a tone of reality and opportunity. She said there is the tendency to think that postmodernism has created a lot of conflict and hinderances in communication, but rather she focuses on the positives and sees how we are developing as a society.

In relation to the Church, she seemed to relate postmodernism with the evangelical movement in America. She highlighted how because of mediated communication like television and social media, the Church has many more outlets for reaching out and preaching the Gospel. She did mention that this can then result in a more "pleasing to the ear" or watered-down Gospel. This also relates to a reading we did for class, chapter five of the Divine Embrace, where author Robert E. Webber describes the many ways Christianity has been molded and influence by our culture around us. Whether it be western secularization, eastern new age ideas, or simply just American culture, postmodernism with its new ideas have affected the Church and how they approach different topics. In general, both my professor and Webber found pros and cons that have been a result of postmodernism. Ultimately, postmodernism is how our world is developing and we need to find the benefits from it, but also not be too influenced and consumed by it as well.