The cruciform straw man

Patrick Hynes observes that author Kevin Phillips- who apparently knows next to nothing about Christianity, American or otherwise- rather embarasses himself by demonstrating such manifest ignorance in his new book, American Theocracy.

This seems to be a common phenomenon among the media, in the entertainment industry, and among our cultural elites generally. What Phillips attacks isn't Christianity at all. It's a stereotype born of a profound lack of information, and a vastly overinflated trust in the equally uninformed consensus of opinion among those in the circles in which he moves. The result is uninformed hostility toward a straw man in the shape of a cross- a demonized creature of the imagination who bears little or no resemblance to the phenomenon or belief system being so confidently and smugly attacked.

Hynes's own nomenclature isn't always the best, for that matter. For example, "predestination" probably isn't the word he should have used to describe Christianity's general and historic belief that God works His will through history, including in the selection of American presidents. But his critique is an important one, and might well be made of a great many people in modern America other than Phillips.

We've reached a point in our culture in which it's hard to find an unbeliever who is even vaguely literate on the subject of the Christian faith- and Christians themselves aren't that much better off. I wish I could say that it's only in the minimalistic liberal and mainline churches in which the laity seem to know increasingly little year by year about the Bible or the basics of what the Faith has historically taught, but regrettably, that's just not true; the atrophy is nearly as pronounced among conservative Christians who claim to hold to Scripture and the historic creeds as it is for those who attend liberal churches. Even Missouri Synod Lutherans- who used to at least know their catechisms by heart, be able to recite the books of the Bible in order (and as a result to navigate among them with reasonable efficiency), and to explain at least in general terms how their beliefs differed from those of, say, the Presbyterian or Baptist or Roman Catholic down the block are increasingly as at sea in matters of theological substance as everyone else. And it only promises to get worse: they see less and less value of their own kids being required to do their memory work or otherwise exert themselves in confirmation class, either, so as to attain once again the level of theological and biblical literacy their grandparents had.

Perhaps never in American history has Ephesians 4:11-16 been an ideal to which we less aspire. The loss of pastoral authority and the proliferation of shallow church growth nonsense,"purpose drivenness" and other such fashionable fads and theological drivel are but symptoms of this very phenomenon.

Thing is, Phillips- like the media, and lots of folks pushing odd ideas and agendas even in the Church- likely thinks he knows what he's talking about. And when ignorance is coupled with a publisher and an advertising budget-or, for that matter, amasses support in conventions and Voters' Assemblies- it's not wisdom that ends up being propogated.

HT: Rev. Mike Zamzow