Worldview Integration and Reflection - Essay Example

?Worldview Integration and Reflection Essay Table of Contents Explain The Fact/Value Dichotomy And The Secular/Sacred Dichotomy. How Do These Figure Into Your Life Experience? What Are Some Things You Might Do To Eliminate These Personally? 3 2.How Would You Make The Case That Christianity Alone Gives A Complete And Consistent Account Of Reality? 4 3.What Characteristics Of Evangelicalism Are Described In The Text? What Influences Do You Recognize In Your Own Background? What Are The Positives And Negatives Of This Influence For You Personally? 5 4.Explain The Idea Of "Idols Of The Heart." What Are Some Of The “Idols” That Prevent You From Applying A Christian Worldview? 6 5.Describe Your Personal Learning And Application From Your Study And Application Of Total Truth. 7 Works Cited 9 1. Explain The Fact/Value Dichotomy And The Secular/Sacred Dichotomy. How Do These Figure Into Your Life Experience? What Are Some Things You Might Do To Eliminate These Personally? The fact/ value dichotomy is considered to be a principle which evolved out of supreme attempts concerning the ‘concept control’. During the initiation of the eighteenth century, it was noted that a handful of the Enlightenment thinkers mentioned the actuality that it was difficult to derive value from facts. According to the views of the positivists, the facts which generally originated from experiments as well as clarifications could be regarded as the actual truth and hence rejected all the discussions related to values as being worthless or non-cognitive chats (Harris, “A Summary Critique of the Fact/ Value Dichotomy”). Modern society is basically characterized by a sharp disintegration between the sacred and secular fields where both the aspects of work as well as business has been identified to be strictly secular. It is because of this fact, Christians are often found to exist in two separate worlds varying in terms of the private world of family and church as well as the public world. This dichotomy tends to pose a profound impact upon the personal lives of the people. It is to be mentioned in this regard that by identifying a universal perspective that combines the secular as well as sacred aspects into a single framework, it becomes easier to break free from dichotomies thereby limiting God’s power in the lives of people. It is quite significant to reject the division of life into a sacred sphere which has been restricted to worship and personal morality against the secular realm that comprises politics and other general aspects related to the public (Pearcey 20). 2. How Would You Make The Case That Christianity Alone Gives A Complete And Consistent Account Of Reality? The statement that Christianity relates to total reality implies that this religion provides a comprehensive perception of the world. This further implies that Christianity tends to offer the view of the world. It further signifies a biblical conversant view over reality. A worldview is almost similar to the mental map which guides human beings regarding the ways of living an effective and meaningful life. It is assumed that with the help of these views Christians are capable of comprehending and pursuing their faith in the world thereby, fulfilling the cultural consent (Pearcey 20). Nancy Pearcey states the fact that most of the Western cultures have been monitored by a dualism that tends to separate the public sphere from that of the private one. Such dualism has been known to demote the Christian worldview to the sphere of private values and holds no stake with regard to the public aspects where general strategies are made. Hence, it can be observed that Christianity has been incapable to spread over a wider arena. The chief reasons behind this have been the fact that Christianity in the public sphere has been evaluated in terms of rationality. Christianity usually depend more upon facts instead of focusing upon the related values. Christianity has also been threatened in the private sphere as people fail to strictly follow the doctrines of Christianity. Hence, Pearcey has been successful in demonstrating the way Christians can support themselves in the cultural war between secular humanism as well as Christian theism by implementing the basic tenants of the Christian worldview on life. By doing so, Pearcey emphasizes that Christians will be capable of overcoming the segregation of lives led by the fact/value split (Lorenzini, “Total Truth A Book Review”). 3. What Characteristics Of Evangelicalism Are Described In The Text? What Influences Do You Recognize In Your Own Background? What Are The Positives And Negatives Of This Influence For You Personally? Evangelicalism brings down the degree of emphasis upon rituals and places greater emphasis upon the goodness of the individuals which guides him/her to adhere to few active commitments that entails the requirement of personal conversion, greater regard to biblical power, greater emphasis upon teachings that declare preventing death as well as renaissance of the Son of God i.e., Jesus Christ. Additionally individuals are also required to actively express his/her views and hence share the gospel (Pearcey 20). The text further describes the fact that the Evangelical Christians are most likely to acquire power and thus concentrate upon the total truthfulness of the Bible or might as well surrender to the secular worldview. The text further demonstrates that there are both positive as well as negative views regarding evangelicalism in the context of American culture. The positive influences of evangelicalism can be deciphered from the related evangelical movement which has been quite effective in Christianizing the overall American society. It was additionally noted that greater adherence to the religion escalated in the United States (US). However, the bad news related to evangelicalism generally exists within the various factors that have been responsible for its success. Importance related to intense emotional conversion experience helped in getting people to believe, however the focus on religion as an emotional experience resulted to ignore religion and principles along with the whole component of belief (Pearcey 20). 4. Explain The Idea Of "Idols Of The Heart." What Are Some Of The “Idols” That Prevent You From Applying A Christian Worldview? One of the most pervasive themes mentioned in the New Testament was that the death and resurrection were not just objective events however, they were considered to be such according to the early perception. It is not considered to be the appropriate decision for individuals to give up their conviction about the objective truth relating to Christ’s death along with resurrection which is known to be the groundwork for individual. However, it is prudent for the individuals to consider Christ as an idol in their lives. According to the medieval spiritual writers, individuals are required to imitate Christ. It is quite a well known fact that the individuals are incapable of sharing resurrection until and unless they share His death. Individuals are further required not to practice sin and hence say no to worldly motivations as well as material gains. In the culture that evaluates each thing or factor in terms of size, influence as well as success, it is important for the individuals to say no to the worldly values. The culture that related to material affluence required individuals to say no to the desire for luxury and a culture evaluating people in terms of reputation and attainment made it necessary for individuals to resist the attraction of living for professional recognition as well as advancement. The rule of dying according to the system of the world is believed to be applicable outside obvious sins. The individuals are required to say no to the worldly values because such values tend to fill an individual’s heart and define his/her motivation. It further tends to become a barrier in the course of their association with God which further implies that they become a sin for the human beings. Such barriers are generally referred as Idols of the heart and they might as well comprise genuine needs that are likely to be completely correct and adequate (Pearcey 20). 5. Describe Your Personal Learning And Application From Your Study And Application Of Total Truth. The book has been helpful in comprehending the Fact/value as well as secular / sacred dichotomy and the detrimental impact of the dichotomies upon the western culture. Furthermore, the book has helped to identify the worldview of God and the significance of living consistently with the worldview as a measure to test its authenticity and the need for evangelicalism to accept life of the mind. The study recognized the fact that individuals needs to consider Christ as Idol of their lives. They must not be influenced by the material gains as it acts as serious hindrances with regard to their link with God. Anything that makes an individual get disconnected with God needs to be avoided. By considering God as a model, the lives of the individuals could be improved to a greater degree. It is further important to consider each aspect in relation to the individual’s association with God. The worldview related to Christianity as well as the Christians offers an understanding of the complete reality as required by the modern world (Pearcey 20). Works Cited Harris, Robert, A. A Summary Critique of The Fact/Value Dichotomy. Abstract, 2005. Web. 27 September. 2012. Lorenzini, Massimo, L. Total Truth A Book Review. Print, 2004. Web. 27 September. 2012. Pearcey, Nancy. Total Truth: Liberating Christianity from Its Cultural Captivity. US: Crossway, 2008. Print. Read More