Week Eight: The Age of Fragmentation

The Age of Fragmentation (pardon the punny graphic) was and is characterized by a lack of unity. That is, there is no overriding purpose for life or meaning for the elements of our world and existence. So, reality is purely subjective, the transcendent is denied and the mundane is elevated. Though in many ways this carries on elements from the previous Age of Non-Reason, Schaeffer looks specifically at music, art, movies and general culture.

The movies Schaeffer looks at are primarily older movies (though less so at the time the video was done) by Fellini, Bergman, etc. Though they may be largely unfamiliar to many now, they demonstrated the notion of "cruelty equals non-cruelty" and, Fellini in particular, demonstrated the madness of cultures simply pursuing pleasure with no higher calling. Though Fellini's Satyricon was made about ancient Rome, the modern parallels are strong and serve as a warning.

Artists such as VanGogh, Monet and Picasso are also addressed, and though they did beautiful art, as acknowledged by Schaeffer, the impressionist and abstract styles were a move away from dealing with individuals as meaningful entities and a move towards individuals being just another element in nature. Interestingly, Schaeffer points out that though they often reduced their models to mere cubes, they all violated their own personal styles when painting loved ones. For lovers and children, they preferred a realistic portrayal that captured who they really were and not as symbols.

Perhaps the most interesting character discussed was the "musician" John Cage and his "works." I use quotations here, because it is debatable whether Cage's creations are truly art or simply a philosophical statement or "anti-art" as Schaeffer puts it. Though we heard both Cage's noisy, chaotic works and his ambient noise pieces like "4'33"" (or Four minutes and thirty three seconds), none of us considered his efforts worthy of anything more than a laugh or a cringe.

Next week, on the 29th, we'll be looking at the Age of Personal Peace & Affluence. We will not meet this week, the day before Thanksgiving.

Cross-Pollination

Nothing like having multiple blogs and linking to yourself. Apologies for the lack of fresh content on all my sites, but there are a couple of posts that may be of interest on my Another Inkling blog. One's just funny. The other's about homosexuality, a topic that came up briefly last week. Please take a moment to read the latter when you have the time.

While you wait for a recap of this week's group, take a moment to enjoy this work by John Cage. Are you ready? Find a clock. In 4 minutes and 33 seconds, come back here...

...wasn't that great?! John Cage, what a guy.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, you'll just have to wait till this weekend to find out when we recap the Age of Fragmentation (and Noise).

Week Seven: The Age of Non-Reason

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, Huxley, Gauguin and Rousseau all got coverage this past week as we looked at existentialism and the move away from reason in both philosophy and theology. Individual, subjective experience took precedence over reason in the search for meaning and purpose to life. I won't re-cap completely here but do have some thoughts and randoms.

As we discussed the "hippie movement" of the 1960s, I mentioned that the Jesus People movement was a lesser-known counterculture of young people coming to Christ in the late '60s. Though this movement did not have the same impact on Western culture as the drugs and Eastern religion of the hippies, it did impact the church.

Jesus People USA, right here in Chicago, has its roots in that movement and is still around and doing God's work. See their website here. If you're not aware, they're the folks who put on Cornerstone Festival every summer. If you've never been, go. I've been twice and loved it. You may even borrow my camping gear! Though JPUSA's excellent Cornerstone Magazine is no longer in print, you can find links to several of their writers here. Jon Trott is particularly interesting. His Blue Christian on a Red Background blog is good food for thought. He's one of those people who I disagree with on many things, but he's a real Believer with a great mind, one that often makes me think twice about my own presuppositions.

This is week seven of this ten-week series, and I'm curious to hear what you think about Schaeffer's teaching. I feel like I've learned a lot. Having a historical perspective on the flow of Western thought has been eye-opening for me and helps me understand the roots of some trends in our present society. I will say, though, that I wish he'd incorporate more Scripture. I suspect he's assuming an audience of "churched" folks who know the Bible but have done little about it. Any thoughts?

As we go into the final weeks of this series, I've been mulling over and discussing some possibilities for further study. The attendance has varied quite a bit over the course, but there seems to be a steady core that's hungry for some meat. Please be in prayer for me and the group as we consider where God would have us journey next.

In the meantime, we will be looking at the Age of Fragmentation this week. We will not be meeting the day before Thanksgiving, the 22nd. We will, however, meet on the 29th and December 6th. On December 13th, you are invited to dinner at my place.

Week Six: The Scientific Age

Big thanks to Michael and Roger for pinch-hitting for me this past week as I was out sick. Thanks to science and modern medicine, I'm coursing with antibiotics at the moment and feeling improved. Speaking of science...well, since I wasn't there, I'll let Michael sum up from his email dated November 2nd:

I was not aware (as I'm sure the rest of America too) that many of the scientists and teachers of the 17th century were Christians or acknowledged Biblical principles in their respective fields. Here's a golden nugget that I constantly remind people about regarding evolution: The earth is not old enough for evolution to have reached its course in its present state. Another excellent point is the lack of integrity in Western science and experiments today. If science in America and Europe is not corrupt it is certainly subjective and manipulative. Last but not least are the ethical issues in science today that have not been fully addressed and resolved: Artifical insemination, cloning, population control. Yet science continues to move forward in these areas rather unwisely, all in the name of progress. (Funny, science has yet to treat the common cold and other viruses yet they are moving forward in other areas where "angels may fear to tread".) How our society must be informed!

Thanks, Michael!

Science vs. theology, medical ethics, evolution vs. creation...these topics could each take up a course all their own. Ultimately, though, they involve the conflict between those who use science as a way to study God's creation and those who would elevate science to a religion all its own, consciously or not. Coincidentally, this week's cover story in Time magazine is "God vs. science: Can religion pass the test?" (sorry, the link's only a brief summary for non-subscribers).

You know what the great thing is about looking at this conflict? True science supports Biblical truth. We may hear some very convincing arguments that run counter to God's Word, but in the end God created all that is and allows us to study and enjoy it. We'll never understand it all completely but no alternate explanation will ever be without holes large enough to float an Ark through. Incidentally, if you're interested in some scholarly but "faithful" analysis of space, evolution, creation...even UFOs...check out some of Hugh Ross' works.

As we apply the findings of science, we must be careful to make science subject to our faith. Without it, we have no moral basis, as Dr. Schaeffer describes. The expedient, utilitarian route becomes the "moral" choice. One tragic example of this is the dramatic reduction in cases of Down syndrome around the world. No, that's not quite correct--it's the dramatic reduction in babies born with Down syndrome. In the U.S., more than 80% of babies prenatally testing positive for Down syndrome are aborted. Even more tragic is the fact that the tests used have a 3-8% false positive rate. Not only are people aborting unborn children who have Down syndrome but they're taking out so-called "normal" children, too, just to be safe.

For the sake of discussion, what are your thoughts on artificial insemination, donating eggs and sperms, etc.? This fast-growing (and lucrative) area of medicine seems to have gotten little critical thought in the public sphere. We debate stem cell research, but the practice of getting pregnant through extraordinary means, the practice that gives us all those confounding embryos, has largely gotten a pass. Thoughts?

Tune in next week for The Age of Non-Reason. In the meantime, don't forget to vote on Tuesday!