In 1987 Dr. Allen Blume, Professor at Yale, Cornell and Chicago, wrote a book by the above name, and in this book Dr. Blume asserts “There is one thing we can know concerning students entering the universities which professors can assume – everyone of them believes that truth is relative, meaning of course, that there is no such thing as objective truth. This view, which now dominates western thought, is the most revolutionary culture changer in history.
A study of western civilization reveals that the concept of truth has molded culture through the centuries. Let us note significant philosophies concerning the source and nature of truth:
- 1 AD – 1300 AD- the source of truth was divine revelation in the main, the Holy Scripture. However, during this time, 591-1500, the church, viewing itself as the Magisterium of God, taught doctrines not found on the pages of the Holy Scriptures, such as Mariolatry, Purgatory, etc.
- 1300 AD – 1700 AD – came the Renaissance, meaning the “secular rebirth of culture,” based on Greek culture. At the same time in the spiritual realm, there was the “Reformation,” which replaced the authority of the church with the Holy Scriptures in their original languages. This movement changed the face of Europe and much of the world, including the USA and England.
- 1700AD – 1815AD – was the Enlightment , which centered in France. The Enlightment was based on reason, not revelation. Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris was turned into the “Temple of Reason.” The French Revolution rocked the foundation of France with the repudiation of all religion and the worship of the mind.
- At the same time Higher Biblical Criticism arose in Germany, which sought to prove that the Bible was not true or had been redacted from the original writings. For Example: The Pentateuch was not one book written by Moses, but a collection from several writers and none was based on the “Documentary Hypothesis.”
- 1900AD-1920Ad – Higher biblical criticism invaded America until the main seminaries were approaching the Scriptures through the lens of German influence.
- 1920- ??- Liberalism arose which denied revealed truth, insisting that the only truth came from scientific investigation.
- 1917-1950 – Neo-Orthodox made its debut from the teaching of Karl Barth who went back to the Scriptures for authority but denied the inerrancy of all Scriptures and opted for subjective understanding.
- 1950-2012 – Post-Modernism came on the scene which teaches there is no such thing as objective truth, that truth is what one perceives to be truth for himself, and that no one can say one system of truth is superior to another. Out of this thinking has arisen Pluralism (many ways to God) and the “new morality,” which is just a high falutin name for the “old morality.”
The Status of Christianity at the present time: One word would best describe both Protestantism and Catholicism – CONFUSION. Fifty years ago all evangelical churches taught that there wan only way to God; today an increasing number of denominations teach there are other ways. Ex.; one major denomination, so I read, studied the question for five years only to conclude “Jesus is the best way to God, but not the only.” Of course, you can see how “Post Modernism” has played havoc with Christian morality based on the 10 Commandments, the Sermon on the Mount. Also made foreign missions virtually irrelevant or not needed, since one can get to heaven through Buddha, etc., as well as Christ.
IS THERE HOPE FOR A RETURN TO BIBLICAL CHRISTIANITY?