I had the opportunity recently to spend the weekend at my alma mater, Baylor University.  It was great to see old friends and professors, and to make new friends.  The setting was Baylor's Institute for Faith and Learning conference, "Secularization and Revival."  My thanks to the Institute for Faith and Learning for a great conference.  I gave a paper titled, "Modernity, the Heart and Getting Things Right: Modernity as More Than Simply Getting the Ideas Wrong."  I essentially argued that when we think of "modernity," we should not simply think in terms of this or that intellectual move or step (or misstep)--the one I singled out was nominalism, as seen in Richard Weaver, Michael Allen Gillespie, and--in a unique way--Colin Gunton. . .

 Rather, we should give attention to the ways in which our hearts or wills shape our intellectual work, or ability to "see" things.  Here I gave attention--briefly--to Scripture (particularly Proverbs), Augustine, Hugh of St. Victor, John Calvin, and Pascal.  I have posted many of these Scriptures elsewhere on my site.  But in reading Alexander Schmeman, For the Life of the World, I discovered that he said something similar: secularism (surely a key mark of modernity) is ultimately the failure to worship God.  Now that has potential to shape a Christian understanding of modernity.  He argues that this lack of worship is ultimately heretical, in that "choosing" (the etymological root of "heresy") to not worship God we are making a heretical move.  Colin Gunton was fond of quoting William Morris, "Modernity began and continues wherever civilisation began and continues to deny Christ."  Schmeman is saying something similar.  If Christ is Lord, and if man has the moral obligation to honor Christ as such (Romans 1), then certainly to fail to do so is moral rebellion--and is that not a key mark of the modern age?  I may or may not post my paper soon.  The "guts" of the paper are essentially captured in two forthcoming book chapters--my chapter on "Colin Gunton and the Origin of Modernity" (not on the site yet) and "Richard Weaver, the Gospel and the Restoration of Culture" (elsewhere on this web site).

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