Innovation

“In the past, people could feel secure within a religious tradition because there was little that ordinarily competed with it. Modernity is different because modern people—he means those who live in advanced industrial societies—are faced with a plethora of competing “plausibility structures…The tradition of Christian humanism always held that the secular forms and innovations of a particular time can be assimilated into the larger vision of faith.” (Vigen Guroian, Gregory Wolfe)

“…great deal of our modern confusion results from detaching the New Testament from the constellation of elements—scripture (the Old Testament), canon, tradition, and succession—in which it came to be. Yet this framework is no more than just that—a framework within which one can come to know Christ and to respond in a meaningful way to the question that he poses: “Who do you say that I am?” (Mt 16.15). Christ remains the “coming one,” who opens the scriptures to his disciples so that they can come to know Him as Lord. This demands, of those who would be His disciples, a continuing engagement with the scriptures, in the context of tradition and following the rule of truth, an engagement in which the student of the Word is also “interpreted” by the Word as he or she puts on the identity of Christ.” (Fr. John Behr)

“…our modern culture markets changeable products in a constant cascade of “newness” and “innovation” (literally, “making things new”), all in a massive pursuit of wealth (which is itself something that passes away – Matt. 6:19). Addicted to the promises of modernity we ignore the true substance of what has been given to us (“handed down”) while we chase an ever-disappearing wind. There is little virtue (or grace) in that manner of life. It is exhausting, riddled with anxiety, always measured by what we have (or wish we had), and never by what we are.” (Father Stephen Freeman)

“…our society is obsessed with novelty and innovation and lacks a sense of history. One of the results of disregarding the past is that we forget what we owe to those who have gone before us. Instead, each of our modern generations considers itself superior to the previous one. And most contemporary people would rather break tradition than follow it.” (Fr. Basil)

“We know that economic exchange does not coordinate for the benefit of humankind but can be just as oppressive and divisive as religion. And few people would still view commercialism in such a positive light. Yet this basic narrative of Enlightenment secularism has not only achieved widespread acceptance but has also come to define the self-understanding of most Christians. Believers have willingly ceded the entire realm of creation to the secular, including art, education, media, law, agriculture, food, psychology, business, technology, and innovation. Christians have not withdrawn from involvement in these arenas, but the assumptions of secularism have largely defined the terms of their engagement.” (Robin Phillips)

#VigenGuroian #GregoryWolfe #FrJohnBehr #FatherStephenFreeman #FrBasil #RobinPhillips