Evangelism and postmodernism

Ours is a time of tremendous social change, of course, a mission field that is calling many formerly effective approaches to evangelism in question. Many contemporary writers, both secular and Christian, alert us to the new epoch of human history often called the postmodern age. The implication is that the world has moved on from the modern era which had its beginning with the Enlightenment and the subsequent industrial, scientific and technological age. The modern era sought rational explanations for all reality which left decreasing room for God and the supernatural. But with the cataclysmic world wars of the last century, the apparent downside to rampant materialism and secularism, along with the collapse of many social norms, the postmodern perspective is growing more prevalent all the time.

Honestly, there is confusion and disagreement as to a definition of postmodernism, but essentially it has to do with a skepticism about universal truth. For the postmodern mind-set, everything is relative. What’s truth for you may not be truth for me, according to this worldview. Looking at it that way, we could say that Pontius Pilate was expressing a postmodern question when he asked Jesus, ‘What is truth?’ Sometimes postmodernism is typified by a sense of disillusionment with authoritative standards, a rejection of dogmatic views. Since Christians hold that the Bible is God’s Word, ‘the only infallible rule of faith and practice,’ it is easy to see why many postmoderns resist the claims of Christianity. This does not mean they have no belief in God, but it does suggest that they are uncomfortable with what they perceive to be someone else “imposing” their ideas on them, nor are they apt to regard their religious faith – even if it is Christian – to be normative and essential for all people. Lots of Christian leaders today lament this trend toward postmodernity. But I personally think there are some positives associated with it, particularly with its emphasis on relationships, and the new openness to a grand divine design for the universe, and an impatience with what does not appear to be a genuine living-out of one's faith convictions. Whether we like it or not, postmodernism is part of our mission field today, and we must find ways to communicate the timeless gospel of Christ in this developing era.