In his book Gagging of God, D.A. Carson argues that Jesus Christ is still the one and only valid means of reaching salvation and being reunited with God. Far from the antiquated concepts of traditionalism, Carson presents his ideas from a very modern context by introducing the concept of pluralism. As he introduces it, pluralism is a natural outgrowth of the modern confusion of the postmodern world that is based on illusionary fallacies. In pointing out what these fallacies are, Carson begins to help his readers trace their way back to Christianity within the modern context. Throughout his book, D.A. Carson examines the philosophical issues of our day through a contemporary pluralist approach, finding Christianity as the answer to each of the fallacies that are revealed.
One of the elements of pluralism that has served to confuse today’s secular culture is the various approaches that have been taken to the ‘true faith.’ According to Carson, a great deal of the confusion felt by would-be Christians today is brought about as a result of the thousands of ‘Christian’ interpretations of the Bible they are given from numerous, equally valid sources. As various evangelists focus their attention more upon growing their ‘church body’ in the form of growing in physical size of the buildings and metaphysical reach of the pulpit, the original message of the Bible has been lost and seems impossible to find for the average layperson.
In pointing out how these various conflicting messages have served to confuse the congregation, Carson insists evangelists must return to the text of the Bible and its obvious intentions as a means of finding clarity of message. However, this presents a problem as the Bible itself presents a number of contradictions and ambiguous passages, forcing a degree of interpretation no matter how careful the interpreter and thus introducing the possibility of numerous possibilities, all valid and within a potential ‘intention’ of the original writer.
Although it would seem like a self-defining term in many cases, the truth is that pluralism itself has created confusion in many fields, including Christianity. “The only absolute creed is the creed of pluralism. No religion has the right to pronounce itself right or true, and the others false, or even (in the majority view) relatively inferior … In particular it is bound up with the new hermeneutic and with its stepchild, deconstruction. The outlook that it spawns is often labeled postmodernism” (19).
The three general categories of pluralism Carson identifies are classified as empirical pluralism, cherished pluralism and philosophical pluralism. Empirical pluralism refers to the central physical realities of American society. This form of pluralism refers to the level of protected diversity within the modern culture. Cherished pluralism refers to the cultural sense of pride Americans take in this sort of diversity. They truly believe themselves to be the only ‘free’ nation on earth that permits such individualism and take a great deal of pride in this idea.
Carson identifies philosophical pluralism as the parent of deconstructionism. This philosophy insists that there are no right or wrong answers, only different ways of looking at things. The flip side of this concept, though, is that there is no security or meaning to be found, leaving individuals free-floating and with no direction. The simplest understanding of pluralism, then, is that meaning is only based on the interpreter’s understanding and there is no meaning beyond this.
However, Carson argues against this idea. He points out that a strict interpretation of this theory would refute any intended meaning on the part of the author or any shared general understanding of cultural concepts and ideas. Because people in a given society do have certain shared concepts, at least in general terms, and authors use familiar terms of expression and communication to share their ideas, Carson suggests that original intention can be ‘inferred’ to a great degree.
As this is true, pluralism must also be relative. This means that it has different validity to a given situation or may have no validity at all and can therefore be dismissed from consideration. Using the techniques of pluralism itself, then, Carson illustrates how the central idea is flawed forcing confusion where only clarity should be found.
To illustrate his conception of the ability to determine author intention, including God’s intention in writing the Bible, Carson insists one must take a long view rather than allowing oneself to become lost in the analysis of minute parts to the point of abstraction and meaningless. Through this discussion, he reveals that even the Bible presents a strong plot-line, through which one can accurately interpret its various subplots and stories. By including in this discussion the various ways in which pluralism has been used to create political ‘spin’ and confuse issues to the point where Americans no longer understand what they are voting for and in other aspects of ‘real’ life, such as in the legal and business worlds, Carson ensures he touches on some nerve for most of his readers.
By breaking down meaning into its component parts of meaningless sounds, pluralism has effectively removed any sense of solidity in the world, whether one is discussing politics, law, business or religion. However, examining pluralism as it is manifested provides the sought-for escape from madness. Carson continues to point out how a Christian perspective and response, based on information presented in the Bible itself as it was intended to be read, are the most effective means of dealing with these issues.
References
Carson, D.A. (1996). Gagging of God: Christianity Confronts Pluralism. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House.