Customer Reviews

Partly Right: Learning from the Critics of Christianity

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"We will do well to use the valid aspects of [the criticism] of bourgeois Christianity to purge ourselves of those accretions to our faith that are alien to the essence of the biblical message and only serve our middle-class interests. . . If we do not learn [from these criticisms], we will fail to avail ourselves of the insights of our most honest critics." pg 136

Middle-class, bourgeois, proletarian--Campolo's commitment to the language of social caste labels is obviously important to his thesis here, but the language is also distracting, especially the excessive use of "middle class" (the aristocratic/ bourgeois/ proletariat descriptors are less ambiguous).

Campolo exposits and critiques the teachings of Hegel, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Freud, Marx, and Dostoevsky. Three of these challenging thinkers were Christians, three were not, but they all presented Christians with serious cause for critical self-examination, that is, to stop congratulating themselves and start thinking more deeply, and with challenges that beg thoughtful responses. Unfortunately, most American Christians (including the aristocratic and the bourgeois) have not distinguished themselves in terms of honoring God with the use of their minds (Matt 22.37, Mark 12.30, Luke 10.27). Most "bourgeois Christians" are too unfamiliar with philosophical matters (as are people generally) to address those legitimate detractions that have been leveled against their religious ideas. In exploring these challenges, Campolo takes his reader to places the typical American churchman cannot eruditely go. In this regard, Campolo's book should have been welcomed within "Middle Class Christianity."

But Campolo's positions are too church-centered, that is, given to defending "churches, liturgies, and creeds" (institutions of religious tradition), the very instruments that have lead to the problems exposed by five of the six philosophers considered in this volume. In doing this, he somewhat misdirects the impact of a very important thesis. Rather than conceiving the responses of `churches, liturgies, and creeds,' `bourgeois' Christians should be pointed toward the antipathy of religious and creedal doctrines toward the plain teaching of Jesus. America's "Middle Class Christians" claim Jesus as Savior, but like the parable's tenants of the vineyard, systematically reject Jesus as Teacher. This, above all, is why the thoughtful critics of Christian religiosity continue to be "partly right" (a major understatement in many cases). It's an interesting book, and "bourgeois Christians" would greatly benefit from it.

Campolo says "A religious group matures and improves only by correcting its flaws, and usually the enemies of that group can help it to see those flaws better than its friends can." This idea is the force behind the whole flow of "Partly Right" and since I am in up-front agreement with Campolo's premise, I found his entire argument to be quite compelling, and very educational.

Christians can be notorious for their offhand dismissal of those who criticize their religion, while never really taking the time to study or understand the belief systems of their detractors. Campolo wants to address this problem, and while admitting that his book is not meant to be an exhaustive treatment, he selects several significant critics of "bourgeois" or "middle-class" Christianity and seeks to fill us in on where they are coming from.
He considers the worldviews of Hegel, Nietzsche, Kierkegaard, Freud (and the Neo-Freudians), Marx, and Dostoevsky.
The author presents (what I consider to be) a very fair summary of the philosophies of these great intellectuals, and clearly explains the main issues upon which their criticisms of the middle-class church were focused.
And wherever possible, the author adds that little dash of Campolo humor that his readers have come to expect from him.

Dr. Campolo, a world-class scholar, is professor of sociology at Eastern College in St. David's, Pennsylvania. He is the author of so many great books, all of which seem to appropriately challenge some aspect of traditional Christianity. Some readers tend to get offended at his "say-it-like-it-is" style. Campolo does not mind stepping on the choir's toes, and sometimes maybe goes out of his way to do so. But I, for one, am always grateful for his brutal honesty, and controversial, thought-provoking insights.

I highly reccommend Partly Right to thoughtful Christians, or would-be-Christians. Great summaries of philosophies that challange the faith, and a great challenge to Christians.