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Redeeming and Creating Culture

In a recent article, Westminster professor William Edgar reminds us that one of Paul's lessons was how culture can be redeemed: "It is never enough simply to decry the evils of the world, and then to offer salvation either as a way of warring against culture or as an escape from the world. In his Mars Hill speech, Paul reminds his listeners of the original purpose of history. God is the maker of the world and everything in it. He is to be worshiped as such." Edgar suggests that we employ Dick Keyes’ concept of "near and far idols." The near idol surrenders God-given cultural dominion to worship at the altar of another god, like power, money, or success. The far idol is our actual trust in the near idol, a belief that power, money, or success is reliable or will bring us happiness.

Identifying near and far idols is redemptive engagement with culture (or applying the gospel to everyday life). Edgar says also that redemptive engagement happens through redirecting or redefining cultural patterns affected by the Fall, such as Paul's interaction with Greek philosophy, and contemporary efforts, such as Prospect 1, to use art to rebuild New Orleans. We could say that there is external and internal redemptive engagement. The external redeems visible culture; the internal redeems our invisible relationship with culture.

Credemption

In Culture Making, Andy Crouch has advocated not only the redemption of culture, but also the making of culture—good culture for an infinitely good Creator. Instead of simply condemning, critiquing, consuming, and copying culture, the way forward is to create a good alternative. Otherwise, we are simply left at square one, with very little Christian progress in various cultures. So, instead of bemoaning bad movies, make better ones. Instead of copying contemporary music and inserting Christian lyrics, create new music and contribute to cultural change through innovation and creativity. Draw attention to your Creator through superior or innovative cultural action.

I suggest that we engage culture redemptively and creatively (“credemptively”?). Instead of choosing between the two, what would it look like for you to bring a redemptive worldview into your workplace, where you bring a gospel perspective upon a problem or person, while also working well to generate new solutions and answers? When you gain success, redemptive engagement calls you to make much of God, not of yourself. Instead of bemoaning the failing copier, you take the time to fix it and then use it to make copies of your new ideas to better your company! Instead of bragging that you fixed the seemingly unfixable copier, you remain humble and rejoice in the fact that it is working! Instead of just making new innovative music, make music that gives proceeds to relieve poverty and rest in Christ for your significance, not in your notoriety. Be credemptive!

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