Truth Tribe with Douglas Groothuis

Liberty cannot be established without morality, nor morality without faith— Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America. I. What is Christianity? A. Ultimate reality: an infinite-personal, triune, eternal God (Exodus 3:16) B. The universe is created by God out of nothing (Genesis 1; John 1) C. Humans made in God’s image, but fallen (Genesis 1-3)      Have unique and incomparable value in God’s world; basis for objective human rights (Genesis 1:26; Psalm 8)      Need redemption from a source beyond and above them (Romans 1-8) D. God has revealed himself in nature, Scripture, and Christ so that we might be redeemed, honor God, and be salt and light in the world (Romans 1:18-21; Hebrews 1:1-4) E. State and society are not identical (Matthew 22:16-23) F. Civil government is ordained by God, but not the ultimate authority      State has “the power of the sword” (Romans 13:1-7)      The danger of the sword (1 Samuel 8: Ezekiel 28:1-10; ; Isaiah 14:1-12; Revelation 13) G. The Kingdom of God is not fully realized through politics or human efforts and achievements II. What is Conservatism? A. Key figures: Edmund Burke, John Locke, Founding Fathers, Federalist Papers, F. Hayek, Russell Kirk, William F. Buckley, Richard Weaver, Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, Roger Scruton, Thomas Sowell B. Adopts the constrained vision of man not an unconstrained vision (Thomas Sowell, A Conflict of Visions)      American Revolution: inspired by theism through John Locke, Samuel Rutherford (Lex Rex) and others. Constrained vision      French revolution: inspired by Rousseau; irreligious and totalitarian. Unconstrained vision. C. Conservativism denies utopianism; the state cannot regenerate human beings or create a perfect world. See Thomas Sowell, The Vision of the Anointed D. Advances human rights as extended to property rights, which curtain the incursions of the state into private matters E. Advocates a limited state as one form of government that does not have jurisdiction to regular, control, and tax everything F. State as insuring natural negative rights: not be murdered or plundered G. Separation of powers as a safeguard against the consolidation of power Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely—Lord Acton. H. The state is under a higher authority and may lose its legitimation Declaration of Independence When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. American Constitution: First amendment as restraining state power Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. Teaches the rule of law, not the whim of man; Democratic Republic (under a Constitution), not democracy or democratic socialism Free market is the best engine of wealth, best antidote to poverty, and gives freedom to individuals (Jeremiah 29:7) III. Conservatism and Christianity A. Christianity gives the best philosophical foundation for Conservatism      Authority of God over the state (and all else); basis for a limited state      Religious perspective (prophetic) can call the state to account for its abuses. Martin Luther King, “I Have a Dream”     The greatness and limits of human beings: the constrained vision             Human rights based on humans bearing the image of God (Genesis 1:26)             Humans cannot be saved or redeemed through politics.             Christians are given liberty in their salvation and through the wisdom and power of Holy Spirit; they must not worship the state, making it an idol Incentive to empowering the poor and philanthropy (Matthew 25:31-46) B. Qualifications 1. One does not have to be a conservative to be a Christian! 2. But, if one is a conservative there is good reason to be a Christian. 3. Non-conservative Christians are not intentionally spurning the biblical worldview implications for politics Resources On Christianity as true, rational, and relevant to all of life Douglas Groothuis, Christian Apologetics: A Comprehensive Case for Biblical Faith, 2nd ed (InterVarsity Press, 2022). Os Guinness, Impossible People (InterVarsity, 2016). On a Christian view of politics Os Guinness, The Case for Civility (2005). Francis Schaeffer, A Christian Manifesto (Crossway, 1981). Richard John Neuhaus, The Naked Public Square (Eerdmans, 1985). Historic Conservative Thought Edmund Burke, Reflections on the Revolution in France John Locke, A Letter Concerning Toleration. Two Treatises of Government The Federalist Papers Recent American Conservatism William F. Buckley, Up From Liberalism. Richard Weaver, Ideas Have Consequences. Russell Kirk, The Conservative Mind. J. Rushdoony, The Politics of Guilt and Pity. Thomas Sowell, The Vision of the Anointed. Thomas Sowell, A Conflict of Visions. Douglas Groothuis, Ph.D., is Professor of Philosophy at Denver Seminary and the author of nineteen books, including Fire in the Streets (a critique of critical race theory or wokeness) and Christian Apologetics: A Comprehensive Case for Biblical Faith. Find more from Dr. Groothuis at www.DouglasGroothuis.com. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Given the strike of Hollywood actors and writers, it is an apt time to reflect on our use of media and entertainment. A quote from Neil Postman’s class book, Amusing Ourselves to Death, can guide us. "Our politics, religion, news, athletics, education and commerce have been transformed into congenial adjuncts of show business, largely without protest or even much popular notice. The result is that we are a people on the verge of amusing ourselves to death." [Postman, Neil. Amusing Ourselves to Death (pp. 3-4). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.] We may want to pull away from entertainment, especially focusing on the moving image, and immerse ourselves in reading unelectrified books in pursuit of a more Christian mind and way of taking in the world. As Paul exhorts us: "Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." (Romans 12:1-2). Consider the biblical warnings about images, as discussed by Postman.  "In studying the Bible as a young man, I found intimations of the idea that forms of media favor particular kinds of content and therefore are capable of taking command of a culture. I refer specifically to the Decalogue [Exodus 20:1-18], the Second Commandment of which prohibits the Israelites from making concrete images of anything. “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water beneath the earth.” I wondered then, as so many others have, as to why the God of these people would have included instructions on how they were to symbolize, or not symbolize, their experience. It is a strange injunction to include as part of an ethical system unless its author assumed a connection between forms of human communication and the quality of a culture. We may hazard a guess that a people who are being asked to embrace an abstract, universal deity would be rendered unfit to do so by the habit of drawing pictures or making statues or depicting their ideas in any concrete, iconographic forms. The God of the Jews was to exist in the Word and through the Word, an unprecedented conception requiring the highest order of abstract thinking. Iconography thus became blasphemy so that a new kind of God could enter a culture. People like ourselves who are in the process of converting their culture from word-centered to image-centered might profit by reflecting on this Mosaic injunction. But even if I am wrong in these conjectures, it is, I believe, a wise and particularly relevant supposition that the media of communication available to a culture are a dominant influence on the formation of the culture’s intellectual and social preoccupations." [Postman, Neil. Amusing Ourselves to Death (p. 9). Penguin Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.] Recommended reading1.    Douglas Groothuis, “Television: Agent of Truth Decay,” Truth Decay (InterVarsity, 2000).2.    Jacques Ellul, The Humiliation of the Word (Eerdmans, 1985).3.    Herman Melville, Moby Dick.4.    Kenneth Myers, All God’s Children and Blue Suede Shoes: Christians and Popular Culture (Crossway, 1989).5.    Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death (Penguin, 1985)6.    Francis Schaeffer, The God Who is There (InterVarsity, 1968). Douglas Groothuis, Ph.D., is Professor of Philosophy at Denver Seminary and the author of nineteen books, including Fire in the Streets (a critique of critical race theory or wokeness) and Christian Apologetics: A Comprehensive Case for Biblical Faith. Find more from Dr. Groothuis at www.DouglasGroothuis.com. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

The evangelical world today suffers from apologetic anemia. Despite the fact that holy Scripture calls believers to give a reason for the hope we have in Christ (1 Peter 3:15; see also Jude 3), we sadly lack a public voice for truth and reason in the marketplace of ideas. We do not have a strong intellectual presence in popular or academic culture (although some areas, such as philosophy, are more influenced by evangelicals than others). The reasons for this anemia are multidimensional and complex. These are the six enemies, which the podcast addressed biblically. Indifference Irrationalism Ignorance Cowardice Arrogance or intellectual vanity Superficial techniques Recommended Reading Harry Blamires, The Christian Mind Douglas Groothuis, Christian Apologetics, 2nd (InterVarsity-Academic, 2022). Douglas Groothuis web page: DouglasGroothuis.com Os Guinness, Fit Bodies, Fat Minds (Baker, 1994). Alan Jacobs, How to Think (Currency, 2017). P. Moreland, Love Your God with All Your Mind, 2nd ed. (NavPress, 1997; 2013). Both editions are worth having, since the second edition left out good material contained in the first. Mark Noll, The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind (Eerdmans, 1994). John Piper, Think (Crossway, 2010). Douglas Groothuis, Ph.D., is Professor of Philosophy at Denver Seminary and the author of nineteen books, including Fire in the Streets (a critique of critical race theory or wokeness) and Christian Apologetics: A Comprehensive Case for Biblical Faith. Find more from Dr. Groothuis at www.DouglasGroothuis.com. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

The following is not meant as a nuanced treatment of the subject. Notice the title "Cheat Sheet." I originally wrote it for a friend who is just getting interested in politics. So, please don't howl in disgust that I misstated your liberal or conservative view. This charts the territory from a pretty high level of abstraction and in light of recent developments in liberal or leftist thinking. A. Preserve vs Transform Conservatives want to preserve American ideals found in the Declaration and the Constitution. Liberals want to “fundamentally transform America” (Barack Obama) through politics. They will subvert the principles of the American system to attain their ends. B.  Basically Good vs Deeply Flawed Conservatives believe that America is flawed, but basically good, and self-reforming. Abraham Lincoln: America is “the almost chosen nation.” Conservatives are not afraid of American exceptionalism or putting their national interest ahead of other nations. As such, they are patriotic. Liberals believe America is deeply flawed and must be discredited and transformed since its origins lie in black slavery and other evils. Appeals to patriotism are typically taken as jingoism and noxious nationalism. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

So justice is driven back, and righteousness stands at a distance; truth has stumbled in the streets, honesty cannot enter. (Isaiah 59:14)   I am a sixty-six-year-old philosophy professor who has logged thousands of hours in the classroom and elsewhere discussing some of the great issues of the ages. Consider an approach to teaching and writing that I have practiced ever since I went to college and especially since I received my degrees in philosophy and began to teach and write strenuously and prolifically. This approach is not unique to me, but part of the great Western intellectual tradition—until recently. If we lose it, we lose much of value—even truth itself. If we lose it, the culprit will be sensitivity. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of death will not overcome it—Jesus Christ (Matthew 16:9). This is a manifesto to ignite the holy fire of apologetic passion and action. As did Jeremiah, we should have "fire in our bones" to communicate and commend Christian truth today (Jeremiah 20:9). This manifesto is not a sustained argument or a detailed development of themes. Rather, as a manifesto, it proclaims a short series of interrelated propositions crying out for both immediate and protracted reflection, prayer, and action. These challenges issue from convictions formed through my nearly thirty years of apologetic teaching, preaching, debating, writing, and Christian witness. Because of (1) the waning influence of the Christian worldview in public and private life in America today, (2) the pandemic of anti-intellectualism in the contemporary church, and (3) the very command of God himself to declare, explain, and defend divine truth, I strongly advise that the following statements be wrestled with and responded to by all followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

1. On Phobias A phobia is an irrational fear such as the fear of heights, spiders, or water. However, we should fear that which poses real dangers to us. We should fear God, which is the beginning of wisdom. This is because God is our Maker and our Judge. He is totally good and we are not. We should also fear things like disease and crime. Because we fear disease, we consult physicians. Because we fear crime, we lock our doors and watch where we go. Perhaps we carry a firearm or have one at home for self-defense. A conservative view on sexual ethics is sometimes rejected as homophobic or transphobic. However, if the biblical view of sexuality is true and rational (as I have argued), then Christian will fear the expansion of LGBTQ perspectives in society, including the teaching of this ideology to children. This is not irrational, but rational, given the biblical worldview. Simply labeling something as “phobic” does nothing to invalidate the biblical perspective. 2. On Banning Books Those who do not want LGBTQ-affirming books in public schools are not authoritarian book banners. Rather, they believe these kinds of books should not be there. The First Amendment forbids the civil government from restricting free speech. It does not mean that excluding some books from some places in unconstitutional. But if a law restricted the publication of atheist books or Islam books or Christian books, then that law would be a case of book banning and would violate the First Amendment. Not wanting pro-LGBTQ books in public schools or public libraries is not a case of book banning, but of prudent moral judgment. 3. On Boycotts It is right to boycott a company that opposes one’s deepest convictions. Recently, I turned around and left a restaurant after I saw the Pride colors displayed. I was already boycotting Budweiser (not hard; I hate their beer) and Target because of their LGBTQ-affirming practices. On my Facebook, I was criticized for cherry-picking and being self-righteous. My response is that I cannot possibly monitor all the businesses I support, but when I find out that one is supporting Pride, I boycott it. Better something than nothing. Simply because I cannot apply my boycotting across the board does not invalidate boycotting where I can. I don’t see my boycott as self-righteous, but as right moral behavior, since money is vital for cultural formation, deformation, and transformation. I was also criticized for not associating with non-Christians, since I would not go into the establishment. That doesn’t follow since I try to share the gospel or otherwise comment the Christian worldview in all kinds of settings. One could boycott many companies and still interact with people who work there in other settings.  For more from Dr. Groothuis, visit  DouglasGroothuis.com Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Matt Walsh, What is a Woman? One Man’s Search to Answer the Question of a Generation (Nashville, TN: DW Books, 2022) and the film, “What is a Woman?” produced by The Daily Wire (2022). How could a popular podcaster and author produce a feature film and write a book with the title “What is a Woman?” Does not everyone know the answer to that? After all, humanity is a dimorphic species, consisting of males and females, each with its own distinctive DNA (XY or XX) and gametes (sperm or egg). God created humans as male and female (Genesis 1:27). But now, the known has become the unknown and the true has become the false—that is, if transgender ideology has is right. How did it happen? Consider the legal and philosophical story. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

What comes to mind when you think of the word “maid?” You probably think of a paid helper, one who does dirty work you would rather not do. However, you do not think of your maid killing someone. If that happens, an unexpected homicide has occurred. Since 2016, over 30,000 homicides have occurred in Canada, at the hands of another MAID. Given secular trends, MAID (or something like it) may be coming to America as well. Meet the New MAID Meet the new maid, who is a murderer. It is called MAID (sometimes rendered as MAiD). It stands for Medical Assistance in Dying and it allows physicians to euthanize people, thousands of people made in the image of God. This is a Canadian medical protocol, which went into effect in June of 2016 when the Parliament of Canada passed federal legislation allowing eligible Canadian adults to request medical assistance in dying. I heard much about this program and its horrendous results when I was in Toronto, Canada, to speak at the Christian Medical and Dental Association (CMDA) annual conference, held at Wycliffe College on the historic and beautiful University of Toronto campus. But there is nothing beautiful about MAID; it is ugly and evil. However, it can be explained by historical developments. What happened? Resources   Kathyryn Butler, Between Life and Death: A Gospel-Centered Guide to End-of-Life Medical Care (Crossway, 2019). This is on the back cover: “Dr. Butler has written a remarkable, unique, and timely book―Douglas Groothuis,Professor of Philosophy, Denver Seminary; author, Walking Through Twilight: A Wife’s Illness―A Philosopher’s Lament Gilbert Meilaender, Bioethics, 3nd Eerdmans, 2013. “Always to Care, Never to Kill: A Declaration on Euthanasia,” First Things, February 1992, online at firstthings.com. Francis Schaeffer and C. Everett Koop, Whatever Happened to the Human Race? (Revel, 1979). An early warning about the dehumanizing effects of embracing a secular ethic of life in the areas of abortion, infanticide, and euthanasia. See also the six-part film series, which is on YouTube. Alexander Raikin, “No Other Options,” The New Atlantis (Winter, 2023), https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/no-other-options. Westminster Larger Catechism, Questions 135-136 on the value of human life and killing humans. Film “Solent Green” (1972) starring Charlton Heston (1923-2008) about a dystopic New York City in 2022 in which euthanasia is embraced to deal with overpopulation and food shortages. I won’t spoil the ending. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

Today I'm reading a collection of verses that my first wife, Rebecca, put together over many years. She went to be with the Lord in 2018. This collection of verses is online and has been used by many to find encouragement in their faith.  For more from Dr. Groothuis, visit  DouglasGroothuis.com. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.