Author Archives: Ryan Imel

Nathan’s Blog and 2 New Books

I wanted to take a (probably long overdue) moment to thank Nathan over at Nathan’s Blog for a gift card to Amazon. Nathan was running a feed subscription contest a little while back – and I won. If you haven’t checked out Nathan’s blog before, please do. He writes on some really interesting stuff, especially if science or politics interest you. Thank again Nathan.

“So, Ryan, what did you do with the money?”

I’m glad you asked. Continue reading →

Sexually Active Churches

FOXNews posted a news brief today that highlights a church in Detroit called Epic Church which is currently running a series on sexuality. This idea isn’t really brand new stuff as far as church news goes, but the interesting part is that the church is affiliated with The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod– for those that don’t have experience with that group, this is a pretty big step out there.
Continue reading →

Moral Relativity

Cover of The Moral Life (Amazon)For Ethics, PL260, I am reading selections from a book called The Moral Life: an introductory reader in ethics and literature.

Tonight’s essay was Ruth Benedict’s The Case for Moral Relativism. In it she argues for (duh) moral relativism, which is defined, by the book’s editor Louis P. Pojman, as:

…the theory that the validity of moral principles is dependant on cultural or subjective acceptance.

Louis P. Pojman, p. 151

Benedict in particular defends the idea that morals are determined by social systems and relies on what she calls “normal-abnormal categories” to do it. Normal categories would be the These are the distinctions made by societies that determine whether or not something is acceptable. Abnormal categories are the opposite.

In how far are such categories culturally determined, or in how far can we with assurance regard them as absolute? In how far can we regard inability to function socially as diagnostic of abnormality, or in how far is it necessary to regard this as a function of the culture?

Ruth Benedict, p. 152

This brings up the issue of absolute v. relative moral systems. I’m not yet convinced that these are the only two options.

No one civilization can possible utilize in its mores the whole potential range of human behavior. Just as there are great numbers of possible phonetic articulations, and the possibility of language depends on a selection and standardization of a few of those in order that speech communication may be possible at all, so the possibility of organized behavior of every sort…depends upon a similar selection among the possible behavior traits.

Ruth Benedict, p. 156

Obviously moral relativism throws a wrench into many modern interpretations of Christianity – or so they think. Most Christians don’t realize that their own faith is based on moral relativism, in essence. Think about it. What is right and wrong is not based on any absolute moral truth, but on whatever God says. That’s relativism.

Wild, right?

The very eyes with which we see the problem [of morality] are conditioned by the long traditional habits of our own society…

We recognize that morality differs in every society, and is a convenient term for socially approved habits. Mankind has always preferred to say, “It is morally good,” rather than “It is habitual,” and the fact of this preference is matter enough for a critical science of ethics. But historically the two phrases are synonymous.

Ruth Benedict, p. 157

Benedict shook me with that last line. Historically speaking, it probably is true. At the very least it rings true, in some sense. Doesn’t it?

Ruth Benedict was an American anthropologist who taught at Columbia University. She is best known for her book Patterns of Culture.

Christian Radio

 I was wondering earlier today whether or not Christian radio is a good or a bad thing.

Seems odd, right? I’ve never been the biggest fan of stations like Star 88.3 or WBCL, but I’ve never been hostile toward them either. There’s just a part of me that says worship music shouldn’t be lowered to the level of music we listen to on a regular basis.

Here’s the quandry. It seems that there is something spiritual which is inherent to all music. Think about it. Where did music come from? Who invented it? The answer is it wasn’t invented. It was discovered. There is something natural and phenomenal and powerful about music, no matter the kind. Then again I would be eager to say there is a difference between the music we listen to on a regular basis and the music we use specifically to worship God.

But what if there isn’t a difference between the two kinds of music? What if there is no separation between the music we listen to everyday and the music we worship to? Is this a good or a bad thing?

Case in point: Granger Community Church. They regularly open their worship services with music from bands such as Green Day and the All American Rejects. Maybe I’m more conservative than I think (which could be very true) but there seems to be something wrong with that.

At the Tomlin/Redman Concert  Tonight I enjoyed a Chris Tomlin / Matt Redman concert at the Grand Wayne Center in Fort Wayne. It was an excellent performance. It wasn’t until a few minutes into the concert that I remembered some of what I had been thinking throughout the day. So then I thought: What do I think of this? Do I like this?

Clearly there is something foundationally wrong with asking those questions during a worship experience. But in relation to my earlier thoughts I think they have some relevance now. It appears to me that the very fact that people know Redman’s and Tomlin’s music is due to their being played on the radio regularly. If it wasn’t for worship music being a regular occasion a gathering like this would be near impossible – or at least more difficult. So the concert itself – which I was a part of, mind you – seems to support the the worship-radio world that I’m questioning.

But there’s still a part of me that says worship music should be reverent. It should be holy. I think of the treatment of worship in the Old Testament – was it treated with more reverence, more holiness? Was David treated the way Tomlin is treated now? Did the Hebrew people walk around humming Psalms all day?

Once again, I don’t have an answer, only thoughts.