Rethinking a Reformed Christian View of Culture

Dare to Think | Mere Liberty Podcast

Rethinking a Reformed Christian View of Culture | Show Notes

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Summary

Culture is important since it’s the second most important thing we can do as humans: love our neighbor. But how exactly does this play out. Evangelicalism has tried to create a “moral majority” through various political activities. But this politicization of our cultural activity has led to unending “culture wars.” This hyperbolic metaphor has caused divisions among political lines.

What if Evangelicals got it wrong? What if norms for culture are written into the fabric of reality itself? How does Adam and Eve’s fall into sin affect these norms? And what if the conventional wisdom from leading evangelical figures – on both the left and right – have complicated the question? How should we think of culture and our activity in it? How might we challenge prevailing paradigms of culture toward a free and prosperous society?

In this episode, I discuss these questions and more with Gregory Baus, my co-collaborating on the statement of principles, What is Reformed Anarchism?

Featured Guest Bio | Gregory Baus

Gregory Baus is a student of the Reformational/neocalvinist philosophy of Herman Dooyeweerd. A former international English teacher; he’s currently living in the US and writing a Master’s thesis on the topic of self-knowledge. (There’s a link to his profile in the show notes). Gregory became a libertarian anarchist in 2008 and we collaborated together on the statement, “What is Reformed Anarchism?” written in 2020

See Gregory Baus' full profile here: https://sites.google.com/site/ideolog/

Follow Gregory Baus on Academia, Facebook, and YouTube https://independentscholar.academia.edu/GregoryBaus https://www.facebook.com/gregory.baus https://www.youtube.com/c/reformational

Main Points of Discussion

1:47 Introduction to the Reformed Anarchism statement, what is meant by ‘anarchism’? 7:24 What is ‘culture’? 11:48 Why is it important to have a proper understanding of culture? 15:02 What is a Reformed Christian view of culture? 19:07 What is subjective sanctification? 23:51 Does, “be fruitful and multiply,” only refer to procreation and the family?

Next episode: Common mistaken views: Scholasticism and Theonomy. And what about neocalvinism and transformationalism?

Resource Links

What is Reformed Anarchism? https://www.academia.edu/44884160/What_is_Reformed_anarchism

Dialogue with PCA Pastor Nate Xanders on Reformed Anarchism https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLwrDNUO5MDu-56FIiArhzVisvc1TayOFS