Two-Story Universe...

[steve95054]

I just read this blog post by Fr. Stephen Freeman, a favorite author of mine.

He mentions Christian fundamentalists (in the broad sense) directly, so I thought it would be good to post it here and see what y'all think.

I recommend following the link in the article to his past posts about the two-storey vs. one-storey universe. They provide plenty of context.

Then, once you've read all that...what do you think? Do you agree with his assertion that fundamentalism and atheism are two sides of the same coin? Why or why not?

[Donb123]

Much of evangelicalism is influenced by a kind of Hellenistic dualism- which sounds like what he's describing.

Sacramental theology see everything as God's Kingdom and the divine often intrudes into natural order of things. Christ comes to us through the sacraments. This kind of world view is no more clearly seen than in your own Orthodox tradition with icons.

[steve95054]

(05-07-2012 04:00 PM)Donb123 Wrote:  Much of evangelicalism is influenced by a kind of Hellenistic dualism- which sounds like what he's describing.

Sacramental theology see everything as God's Kingdom and the divine often intrudes into natural order of things. Christ comes to us through the sacraments. This kind of world view is no more clearly seen than in your own Orthodox tradition with icons.

Haha...pretty much. Except I think that even speaking of it as "the divine order intrud[ing] into [the] natural order" still leaves a distinctly two-storey feel to it.

Re: icons -- nailed it. Fr. Stephen has quite a bit to say about them as well.

I highly recommend his book: Everywhere Present: Christianity in a One-Storey Universe.

[Donb123]

(05-07-2012 04:24 PM)steve95054 Wrote:  

(05-07-2012 04:00 PM)Donb123 Wrote:  Much of evangelicalism is influenced by a kind of Hellenistic dualism- which sounds like what he's describing.

Sacramental theology see everything as God's Kingdom and the divine often intrudes into natural order of things. Christ comes to us through the sacraments. This kind of world view is no more clearly seen than in your own Orthodox tradition with icons.

Haha...pretty much. Except I think that even speaking of it as "the divine order intrud[ing] into [the] natural order" still leaves a distinctly two-storey feel to it.

Yes, I realize this after typing it but it's just the Western way my brain's wired