World Views

Two thoughts about the way I see the world.

First--
Over the past weekend I listened to a summary, on National Public Radio, of the House of Representatives debate on the non-binding resolution regarding the troop build up in Iraq. The part of the summary that I found most fascinating were the recurrent discussions in the debate about Vietnam. Vietnam Vets named their experiences and as I listened I heard them debating not the current war in Iraq, but the Vietnam War of 30+ years ago.
I was born in 1974 and have no personal memories of the war; but I have been surprised how often stories from Vietnam are cited by slightly older people around me as they try to make sense of the War in Iraq. There is no doubt in my mind that America's current world view has been shaped by the experiences of Vietnam: both those of the veterans who were men and women in Vietnam and the experiences of those who were home protesting (or not) against the war. The old views on Vietnam are still there beneath the surface of the current congress and the contemporary cultural debate about war in Iraq.

Second--
We as Christians have no unified stand on the war, or for that matter, anything else these days. Even the nature of Jesus and the goals of his ministry and our ministry in his name is up for discussion. Inviting our brothers and sisters in Christ into conversation is all the more important these days. We can in one sense try to see ourselves in neat rows of ideologies or we can see ourselves as part of a common church that needs to have many voices come forward to help make sense of the great issues of our days.
For those who are interested in trying to find their place in the labels. I found a link to nifty theological world view inventory at QuizFarm. Some might say these kinds of inventories are specious but I thought the questions to piqued my curiosity and have got me think http://quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=43870. Please remember that this is just for your own edification.

The Unlikely Conversationalist has a Neo orthodox world view according to this quiz. That means, "You reject the human-centredness and scepticism of liberal theology, but neither do you go to the other extreme and make the Bible the central issue for faith. You believe that Christ is God's most important revelation to humanity, and the Trinity is hugely important in your theology. The Bible is also important because it points us to the revelation of Christ. You are influenced by Karl Barth and P T Forsyth. Neo orthodox 96% Reformed Evangelical 79% Roman Catholic 68% Emergent/Postmodern 68% Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan 50% Charismatic/Pentecostal 46% Fundamentalist 25% Modern Liberal 18% Classical Liberal 14% What's your theological worldview? created with QuizFarm.com