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Biblical Critical Theory: How the Bible's Unfolding Story Makes Sense of Modern Life and Culture
*With a foreword from Tim Keller*
A bold vision for Christians who want to engage the world in a way that is biblically faithful and culturally sensitive.
In Biblical Critical Theory, Christopher Watkin shows how the Bible and its unfolding story help us make sense of modern life and culture.
Critical theories exist to critique what we think we know about reality and the social, political, and cultural structures in which we live. In doing so, they make visible the values and beliefs of a culture in order to scrutinize and change them.
Biblical Critical Theory exposes and evaluates the often-hidden assumptions and concepts that shape late-modern society, examining them through the lens of the biblical story running from Genesis to Revelation, and asking urgent questions
How does the Bible's storyline help us understand our society, our culture, and ourselves?How do specific doctrines help us engage thoughtfully in the philosophical, political, and social questions of our day?How can we analyze and critique culture and its alternative critical theories through Scripture?
Informed by the biblical-theological structure of Saint Augustine's magisterial work The City of God (and with extensive diagrams and practical tools), Biblical Critical Theory shows how the patterns of the Bible's storyline can provide incisive, fresh, and nuanced ways of intervening in today's debates on everything from science, the arts, and politics to dignity, multiculturalism, and equality. You'll learn the moves to make and the tools to use in analyzing and engaging with all sorts of cultural artifacts and events in a way that is both biblically faithful and culturally relevant.
It is not enough for Christians to explain the Bible to the culture or cultures in which we live. We must also explain the culture in which we live within the framework and categories of the Bible, revealing how the whole of the Bible sheds light on the whole of life.
If Christians want to speak with a fresh, engaging, and dynamic voice in the marketplace of ideas today, we need to mine the unique treasures of the distinctive biblical storyline.
A bold vision for Christians who want to engage the world in a way that is biblically faithful and culturally sensitive.
In Biblical Critical Theory, Christopher Watkin shows how the Bible and its unfolding story help us make sense of modern life and culture.
Critical theories exist to critique what we think we know about reality and the social, political, and cultural structures in which we live. In doing so, they make visible the values and beliefs of a culture in order to scrutinize and change them.
Biblical Critical Theory exposes and evaluates the often-hidden assumptions and concepts that shape late-modern society, examining them through the lens of the biblical story running from Genesis to Revelation, and asking urgent questions
How does the Bible's storyline help us understand our society, our culture, and ourselves?How do specific doctrines help us engage thoughtfully in the philosophical, political, and social questions of our day?How can we analyze and critique culture and its alternative critical theories through Scripture?
Informed by the biblical-theological structure of Saint Augustine's magisterial work The City of God (and with extensive diagrams and practical tools), Biblical Critical Theory shows how the patterns of the Bible's storyline can provide incisive, fresh, and nuanced ways of intervening in today's debates on everything from science, the arts, and politics to dignity, multiculturalism, and equality. You'll learn the moves to make and the tools to use in analyzing and engaging with all sorts of cultural artifacts and events in a way that is both biblically faithful and culturally relevant.
It is not enough for Christians to explain the Bible to the culture or cultures in which we live. We must also explain the culture in which we live within the framework and categories of the Bible, revealing how the whole of the Bible sheds light on the whole of life.
If Christians want to speak with a fresh, engaging, and dynamic voice in the marketplace of ideas today, we need to mine the unique treasures of the distinctive biblical storyline.
656 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 8, 2022
975 people are currently reading
5587 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 281 reviews
February 7, 2023
One of the most important books I’ve ever read—and likely will ever read. It didn’t just enrich my cultural awareness; it deepened my love for God and the breathtaking beauty of his Word.
October 15, 2022
One of the best books I’ve ever read.
December 13, 2022
This work requires a longer review than I have the time to give here. Yet, I shall proceed briefly by stating that this is a necessary work for those seeking to engage the culture with the gospel. This work beautifully illustrates how Christians are able to walk in obedience to the Scriptures in a world antagonistic to the teachings of Christ. Pulling from an array of thinkers from Nietzsche to C. S. Lewis, Watkin beautiful illustrates that Christ is for all ages, and he tears down all banal ways of thinking.
May 25, 2023
4.75, kind of feels like I spent the last four months having Christopher Watkin read me a bedtime story. Only this bedtime story was on Christian social & culture theory.
It is surreal finishing this as Tim Keller has recently passed. TK wrote the forward for this book, and it is certainly a TK-esque project if there ever was one. The title could well have been something like “A Third Way: Making Sense of Culture.” This is no knock on the book, I find the “third way” framing as Keller championed or “diagonalizing” as Watkin presents it quite compelling in most instances for cultural engagement and evangelism. In many cases I find this method also intuitive with the both/and nature of certain biblical realities (ie love & justice, God & Man, 3 & 1, etc.). That said I think some areas of the book I was less compelled by the application of the method to certain areas of culture (I think he oversimplifies).
The book is organized as a biblical theology of culture, progressing through in order of the canon of scripture. Watkin pulls from individuals throughout history from the church fathers, to the reformers, to present day commentators, to philosophers and other influential historical figures, with the scriptures leading the way. Even though the bibliography is thick, I appreciate Watkin’s acknowledgment that this volume is by no means comprehensive. He acknowledges gaps in the current volume and need for some continual development, which is a refreshing posture in the cultural commentating category.
In the conclusion of the book Watkin brings to the forefront two important reminders for Christian cultural engagement and theology. (1) Christians theology ought lead to doxology and the worship of God and the two are not at odds (another both/and reality if you ask me) (2) “People do not differ according to whether they are guided by a cultural and social theory but by whether they realize it or not.”
Both points I’d use to suggest reading this book. Whether you agree with the all the arguments or not, the manner in which Watkin brings the Bible to bear on culture analysis is helpful for all to think more deeply on the intersection of Bible and culture that all Christians find themselves interacting with.
If a 600 page junior/senior undergraduate level read on Christian culture theory seems a little daunting or you are not convinced by the necessity of it, I think a nice shorter stop would be with James KA Smith’s “You Are What You Love.” Smith’s book I find to be helpful primer on Christian formation and the cultures formative power for all.
Anyways, that’s long. I write these really as a sort of diary of what I was thinking at the time I finished a book. If someone read this, power to you. I say to you, you probably have time to read a 600 page book on Christian culture theory.
Lastly, shoutout Tim Keller. I’ve been formed quite a bit from his writings and ministry and see his fingerprints over this project. He helped me understanding suffering as a high school kid with no dad, and he made books cool to me as a college kid that mostly spark noted his way through school. Thanks TK.
It is surreal finishing this as Tim Keller has recently passed. TK wrote the forward for this book, and it is certainly a TK-esque project if there ever was one. The title could well have been something like “A Third Way: Making Sense of Culture.” This is no knock on the book, I find the “third way” framing as Keller championed or “diagonalizing” as Watkin presents it quite compelling in most instances for cultural engagement and evangelism. In many cases I find this method also intuitive with the both/and nature of certain biblical realities (ie love & justice, God & Man, 3 & 1, etc.). That said I think some areas of the book I was less compelled by the application of the method to certain areas of culture (I think he oversimplifies).
The book is organized as a biblical theology of culture, progressing through in order of the canon of scripture. Watkin pulls from individuals throughout history from the church fathers, to the reformers, to present day commentators, to philosophers and other influential historical figures, with the scriptures leading the way. Even though the bibliography is thick, I appreciate Watkin’s acknowledgment that this volume is by no means comprehensive. He acknowledges gaps in the current volume and need for some continual development, which is a refreshing posture in the cultural commentating category.
In the conclusion of the book Watkin brings to the forefront two important reminders for Christian cultural engagement and theology. (1) Christians theology ought lead to doxology and the worship of God and the two are not at odds (another both/and reality if you ask me) (2) “People do not differ according to whether they are guided by a cultural and social theory but by whether they realize it or not.”
Both points I’d use to suggest reading this book. Whether you agree with the all the arguments or not, the manner in which Watkin brings the Bible to bear on culture analysis is helpful for all to think more deeply on the intersection of Bible and culture that all Christians find themselves interacting with.
If a 600 page junior/senior undergraduate level read on Christian culture theory seems a little daunting or you are not convinced by the necessity of it, I think a nice shorter stop would be with James KA Smith’s “You Are What You Love.” Smith’s book I find to be helpful primer on Christian formation and the cultures formative power for all.
Anyways, that’s long. I write these really as a sort of diary of what I was thinking at the time I finished a book. If someone read this, power to you. I say to you, you probably have time to read a 600 page book on Christian culture theory.
Lastly, shoutout Tim Keller. I’ve been formed quite a bit from his writings and ministry and see his fingerprints over this project. He helped me understanding suffering as a high school kid with no dad, and he made books cool to me as a college kid that mostly spark noted his way through school. Thanks TK.
June 26, 2025
Won’t do a full review but 100% recommend, even if it’s read chapter by chapter (they can stand alone as essays but fit nicely into the overarching thesis). Very helpful primer on theory and criticism from a biblical perspective. Huge fan of this guy and, to his credit, left each chapter with the urge to praise God (and to write poetry). And I learned a lot. I love the Bible more for the hope it brings of our SURE redemption. Mission accomplished?
February 25, 2025
While attending a funeral last year, an individual asked if I had read this book. I had heard about it, I informed them, but was not really interested in reading it. I had a pretty good idea of what Watkin was trying to do; besides, it clocks in at just under 700 pages, and free time put toward reading has become increasingly limited. But upon further prodding, I told them I’d take the plunge.
A year later, I’ve finally finished it.
I want to make just a few comments on why I think Watkin fails, and does so on several fronts. But before doing that, it’s important to recognize the central strength of this study. Watkin is an astute interpreter of French and German social theory. Leagues superior, in fact, to Carl Trueman. Watkin *knows* what they’re saying, and renders it accessible for the uninitiated. This is where young evangelicals and evangelical pastors will benefit from reading Watkin’s study. You need helpful cartographers to map out Deleuze, Foucault, Latour, and Ricœur, among a whole host of others. Watkin meets this need from a Christian perspective. His so-called biblical critical theory, on the other hand, remains empty and, from a practical standpoint, useless.
First, Watkin’s biblical critical analysis never employs critical analysis. At no point does Watkin unmask the institutional, technological, or social practices borne of (post)modernity. He names a lot of happenings, but without fail retreats into abstractions.
This is the second major problem of Watkin’s study. It just showcases a contest of ideals. On one side, we have the biblical ideal, and on the other, we have the Western ideal. Who do you think wins that fight? Its constant default to abstract propositions ironically reflects the lack of materialism at heart throughout Watkin’s analysis–a considerable omission considering this is an attempt at social theory. Such a project falls in line with, once again, another evangelical apologetic’s program. And “diagonalization” ensures victory after victory after victory after victory for the biblical ideal.
Watkin’s display of an array of false binaries introduces a third problem. The careful reader will recognize the failure of Watkin to attend to the complexities of the countless cultural ideal types he pits against one another. Polarization is a popular concept that Third-Wayers like Tim Keller like to use, but such analyses are so clumsy that they hide behind caricatures. Seldom does Watkin’s diagonalizing between two–and only two (!)–polarizing sides actually account for the whole range of complex practices at play from any and all sides. Again, as a program for social theory, this is quite a shortcoming. Moreover, Watkin’s supposed diagonalizing, which continually hovers in the air of abstractions, never actually provides an on-the-ground ethic. No reader gains anything close to guidance, or direction, or how to take practical action in the face of culturally challenging circumstances and fragmentation. The reader is simply left with thoroughly diagonalized biblical ideals as the obvious right choice.
A fourth and major problem is Watkin’s “biblical” qualifier for critical theory. The Bible, as it is by itself, standing on its own in abstraction, independently, somehow diagonalizes false binaries. The Bible does no such thing in Watkin’s book, however. It’s Watkin’s own analysis, based on many years of a well-informed education, that repeatedly resolves tension after tension. I want to make a sharp and potentially provocative point here: the Bible cannot do everything. In fact, the Bible cannot be everything for the Christian. If there is to be a critical theory that is Christian, it cannot hinge on the Bible because that’s a burden the Bible cannot bear. It’s what the Bible gives us that is everything for the Christian; namely, the gospel of Christ. This latter is mediated to the Christian in and through an ecclesial and sacramental community called the Church. Oddly enough, this omission would find Augustine–who Watkin is purportedly following–greatly confused by Watkin’s project of “out-narration.” A critical theory that is Christian must rely on the whole counsel of God–all of it!–a feat on display in Augustine’s CoG.
For the curious reader who recognizes that what Watkin presents is too easy, there are alternatives (MacIntyre, Taylor, Milbank, Jennings, DBH). Christian philosophers and theologians have offered compelling accounts that follow closely something like Augustine’s out-narration of Rome. To be sure, they’re also not without their own faults, but they do provide a Christian social theory that is at once critical and theological, and they manage to do so without falling into biblicist apologetics.
A year later, I’ve finally finished it.
I want to make just a few comments on why I think Watkin fails, and does so on several fronts. But before doing that, it’s important to recognize the central strength of this study. Watkin is an astute interpreter of French and German social theory. Leagues superior, in fact, to Carl Trueman. Watkin *knows* what they’re saying, and renders it accessible for the uninitiated. This is where young evangelicals and evangelical pastors will benefit from reading Watkin’s study. You need helpful cartographers to map out Deleuze, Foucault, Latour, and Ricœur, among a whole host of others. Watkin meets this need from a Christian perspective. His so-called biblical critical theory, on the other hand, remains empty and, from a practical standpoint, useless.
First, Watkin’s biblical critical analysis never employs critical analysis. At no point does Watkin unmask the institutional, technological, or social practices borne of (post)modernity. He names a lot of happenings, but without fail retreats into abstractions.
This is the second major problem of Watkin’s study. It just showcases a contest of ideals. On one side, we have the biblical ideal, and on the other, we have the Western ideal. Who do you think wins that fight? Its constant default to abstract propositions ironically reflects the lack of materialism at heart throughout Watkin’s analysis–a considerable omission considering this is an attempt at social theory. Such a project falls in line with, once again, another evangelical apologetic’s program. And “diagonalization” ensures victory after victory after victory after victory for the biblical ideal.
Watkin’s display of an array of false binaries introduces a third problem. The careful reader will recognize the failure of Watkin to attend to the complexities of the countless cultural ideal types he pits against one another. Polarization is a popular concept that Third-Wayers like Tim Keller like to use, but such analyses are so clumsy that they hide behind caricatures. Seldom does Watkin’s diagonalizing between two–and only two (!)–polarizing sides actually account for the whole range of complex practices at play from any and all sides. Again, as a program for social theory, this is quite a shortcoming. Moreover, Watkin’s supposed diagonalizing, which continually hovers in the air of abstractions, never actually provides an on-the-ground ethic. No reader gains anything close to guidance, or direction, or how to take practical action in the face of culturally challenging circumstances and fragmentation. The reader is simply left with thoroughly diagonalized biblical ideals as the obvious right choice.
A fourth and major problem is Watkin’s “biblical” qualifier for critical theory. The Bible, as it is by itself, standing on its own in abstraction, independently, somehow diagonalizes false binaries. The Bible does no such thing in Watkin’s book, however. It’s Watkin’s own analysis, based on many years of a well-informed education, that repeatedly resolves tension after tension. I want to make a sharp and potentially provocative point here: the Bible cannot do everything. In fact, the Bible cannot be everything for the Christian. If there is to be a critical theory that is Christian, it cannot hinge on the Bible because that’s a burden the Bible cannot bear. It’s what the Bible gives us that is everything for the Christian; namely, the gospel of Christ. This latter is mediated to the Christian in and through an ecclesial and sacramental community called the Church. Oddly enough, this omission would find Augustine–who Watkin is purportedly following–greatly confused by Watkin’s project of “out-narration.” A critical theory that is Christian must rely on the whole counsel of God–all of it!–a feat on display in Augustine’s CoG.
For the curious reader who recognizes that what Watkin presents is too easy, there are alternatives (MacIntyre, Taylor, Milbank, Jennings, DBH). Christian philosophers and theologians have offered compelling accounts that follow closely something like Augustine’s out-narration of Rome. To be sure, they’re also not without their own faults, but they do provide a Christian social theory that is at once critical and theological, and they manage to do so without falling into biblicist apologetics.
December 30, 2022
You should read this book! It’s a little long, but I think the accessibility to richness ratio might be some of the best I’ve read. Which is impressive considering the breadth of topics the book covers: creation, sin, autonomy, covenant, exodus, prophecy, incarnation, the cross, eschatology. A true biblical theology, and written with the whit and charm of a professor who seems to spend a lot of time interacting with students!
In addition to making complex issues both accessible and rich, the way it connects Christian cultural critique to Scripture and biblical theology is akin to Augustine’s City of God, even if it inevitably can’t overcome the original. Beyond that it is a wonderful bibliography of Christian cultural critique throughout the ages, and in the pages I found at least 10 other books I would like to read. This is a really great one.
One complaint, the wisdom literature chapter is not well done, and I know that I say that as someone particularly likely to make a critical comment like that, but the chapter seems unaware generally of the various biblical issues going on and even uses the paradigm of diagonalization to put Job across Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. I understand the idea, but it’s a problematic thing to pit scripture against scripture that way, and it also misses the canonical awareness and complexity within Proverbs and Ecclesiastes.
In addition to making complex issues both accessible and rich, the way it connects Christian cultural critique to Scripture and biblical theology is akin to Augustine’s City of God, even if it inevitably can’t overcome the original. Beyond that it is a wonderful bibliography of Christian cultural critique throughout the ages, and in the pages I found at least 10 other books I would like to read. This is a really great one.
One complaint, the wisdom literature chapter is not well done, and I know that I say that as someone particularly likely to make a critical comment like that, but the chapter seems unaware generally of the various biblical issues going on and even uses the paradigm of diagonalization to put Job across Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. I understand the idea, but it’s a problematic thing to pit scripture against scripture that way, and it also misses the canonical awareness and complexity within Proverbs and Ecclesiastes.
June 29, 2023
A great resource that moves through the story of the Bible and engages Western cultural ideas, identifying not only the key theologies that address them, but showing why the theologies are superior and more desirable. The opening chapter on Trinity, for example, far from being a meandering doctrinal exercise was uplifting: the "absolute personality theism" of the triune and relational Godhead, who is eternally covenantly faithful yet deeply relationally intimate, bridges and surpasses the cultural teleologies of science (rigid impersonal constancy) and arts (experience and expression). A dense but rewarding read dipping into a wealth of ideas; although some chapters or explanations weren't quite as fresh, I was always intrigued and often surprised by the cutting insights and connections arising from the Biblical narratives. It was always fun to identify a pop reference too haha
August 15, 2023
They say you shouldn’t judge a book by it’s cover.
But with its eye catching front and 17 commendations from leading theologians and philosophers, how could I not?
To Watkin’s credit, even he says in his conclusion that this book is woefully lacking. I want to honour that admission with an honest review. This book tries to do too much with too few pages. The ideas in the book are either too lofty, or too obvious. The book tries to answer the ‘so what’ of the bible, but honestly I’m still asking ‘so what’ at the end of reading this.
I loved Truman’s Rise and Triumph. If reading that was like watching a Christopher Nolan film, this book felt like watching three hours worth of movie trailers.
I do believe this book is groundbreaking. But like any new technology or genre, the first of its kind is often in much need of refinement. It’s worth having on the bookshelf- but only as a reference. I wouldn’t recommend reading this cover to cover.
But with its eye catching front and 17 commendations from leading theologians and philosophers, how could I not?
To Watkin’s credit, even he says in his conclusion that this book is woefully lacking. I want to honour that admission with an honest review. This book tries to do too much with too few pages. The ideas in the book are either too lofty, or too obvious. The book tries to answer the ‘so what’ of the bible, but honestly I’m still asking ‘so what’ at the end of reading this.
I loved Truman’s Rise and Triumph. If reading that was like watching a Christopher Nolan film, this book felt like watching three hours worth of movie trailers.
I do believe this book is groundbreaking. But like any new technology or genre, the first of its kind is often in much need of refinement. It’s worth having on the bookshelf- but only as a reference. I wouldn’t recommend reading this cover to cover.
December 5, 2022
A massively-ambitious book. Too many thoughts to write down, so I'm working on a video review, which I will post here soon....
November 11, 2023
Truly excellent. Insightful over and over. The rare book I think I simply must reread.
June 12, 2023
Lives up to the hype!
June 11, 2024
One of the most important books I've read. Watkin's does a magnificent job ad defining and defending what he calls "diagonalization". In an attempt to modernize Augustine's "City of God", Watkins shows us how the Bible gives Christian the tools for cultural critique. This books helped me understand why I love TIm Keller's "third-wayism" of engaging culture. Christianity is never at the end of two extremes but finds a way to transcend them both.
Take up and read.
Take up and read.
March 17, 2025
This is an excellent treatment of Christian cultural engagement. Consciously standing in the tradition of Augustine, Tim Keller, and many in between, Christopher Watkin uses the Bible to critique many of the prevailing Western ideologies - democracy, capitalism, socialism, rationalism, negative freedom, expressive and possessive individualism, and so much more - while constructively building a Christian social theory.
Similar to Biblical Theology, the book begins with Genesis and ends in Revelation, tracing the storyline of scripture at a high level. Unlike Biblical Theology, the purpose is not primarily to exposit each stop in the Biblical narrative but rather to apply them to 21st century Western society. Because of this, I recommend readers posses a working understanding of scripture’s metanarrative before starting. Otherwise, I loved this approach!
The book’s main method of cultural critique is third wayism, what Watkin calls “diagonalization”. He avoids some of the major pitfalls of this approach - such as finding some middle ground between competing alternatives or discarding both positions altogether - and instead aims to find the biblical truth captured in each alternative, expose them as sub-biblical and reductionistic, and show how the Bible offers the best of both. This approach is not only an effective critique of late modernity but also an instructive method for Christian’s on how to analyze any cultural moment. However, I fear his constant use of diagonalization gives the impression that biblical truth always operates this way when presented with competing possibilities. Sometimes a culture happens to align with God on a specific topic, such as protecting the unborn or caring for the poor. In cases such as these, there is no third way.
Personally, this was an eye-opening exposure to late modernity. I was particularly struck by how markets act as totalizing forces, brands seek to sell an identity and not primarily products, and the modern view of technology buttresses plausibility structures that make belief in the divine seem less reasonable. Furthermore, as stated above, the book seeks to not just critique but also positively craft a biblically informed cultural theory. The asymmetrical nature of God’s love as seen in the death of Jesus for undeserving sinners like myself - in contrast to the logic of equivalence - was especially encouraging to me.
I leave the reader with my favorite quote because of its creativity, wit, and accuracy: “With our historical mirror in place, an Areopagus-inspired genealogy of contemporary society might start something like this: ‘People of modernity! I see that in every way you think yourselves very irreligious, but your irreligion is very Christian.’” (509)
Similar to Biblical Theology, the book begins with Genesis and ends in Revelation, tracing the storyline of scripture at a high level. Unlike Biblical Theology, the purpose is not primarily to exposit each stop in the Biblical narrative but rather to apply them to 21st century Western society. Because of this, I recommend readers posses a working understanding of scripture’s metanarrative before starting. Otherwise, I loved this approach!
The book’s main method of cultural critique is third wayism, what Watkin calls “diagonalization”. He avoids some of the major pitfalls of this approach - such as finding some middle ground between competing alternatives or discarding both positions altogether - and instead aims to find the biblical truth captured in each alternative, expose them as sub-biblical and reductionistic, and show how the Bible offers the best of both. This approach is not only an effective critique of late modernity but also an instructive method for Christian’s on how to analyze any cultural moment. However, I fear his constant use of diagonalization gives the impression that biblical truth always operates this way when presented with competing possibilities. Sometimes a culture happens to align with God on a specific topic, such as protecting the unborn or caring for the poor. In cases such as these, there is no third way.
Personally, this was an eye-opening exposure to late modernity. I was particularly struck by how markets act as totalizing forces, brands seek to sell an identity and not primarily products, and the modern view of technology buttresses plausibility structures that make belief in the divine seem less reasonable. Furthermore, as stated above, the book seeks to not just critique but also positively craft a biblically informed cultural theory. The asymmetrical nature of God’s love as seen in the death of Jesus for undeserving sinners like myself - in contrast to the logic of equivalence - was especially encouraging to me.
I leave the reader with my favorite quote because of its creativity, wit, and accuracy: “With our historical mirror in place, an Areopagus-inspired genealogy of contemporary society might start something like this: ‘People of modernity! I see that in every way you think yourselves very irreligious, but your irreligion is very Christian.’” (509)
February 15, 2025
4.9 Stars
"Biblical Critical Theory" by Christopher Watkin is a remarkable work of theological and Biblical critique of late modern culture. Its genre defies easy categorization, much like Augustine's "City of God." Watkin argues that Christianity offers our modern culture a superior narrative that balances our bifurcated view of reality. He does this by exploring the entire Biblical narrative, from Genesis to Revelation, highlighting how it critiques modern secular culture while offering a richer way of worship and submission to God.
Watkin's deductions and applications frequently left me in awe and deepened my worship of God. The book is filled with profound critiques and truths, addressing topics such as modern commercialism, democracy, and expressive individualism. Over 600 expansive pages, Watkin dismantles the gods of our age one by one. The main takeaway for me was that God's created order and truth are far superior and more glorious than the disordered world of modern secularism.
This is not an easy read for the layman, as it contains numerous references to Christian and secular thinkers and theories that can be challenging to track. However, it is a delight for Bible students or pastors with an interest in worldview and culture. Its greatest value may be as a reference book for pastors or Bible teachers when preaching through Scripture, providing numerous modern applications for their teachings. I highly recommend this book to anyone willing to dive in and explore its depths.
"Biblical Critical Theory" by Christopher Watkin is a remarkable work of theological and Biblical critique of late modern culture. Its genre defies easy categorization, much like Augustine's "City of God." Watkin argues that Christianity offers our modern culture a superior narrative that balances our bifurcated view of reality. He does this by exploring the entire Biblical narrative, from Genesis to Revelation, highlighting how it critiques modern secular culture while offering a richer way of worship and submission to God.
Watkin's deductions and applications frequently left me in awe and deepened my worship of God. The book is filled with profound critiques and truths, addressing topics such as modern commercialism, democracy, and expressive individualism. Over 600 expansive pages, Watkin dismantles the gods of our age one by one. The main takeaway for me was that God's created order and truth are far superior and more glorious than the disordered world of modern secularism.
This is not an easy read for the layman, as it contains numerous references to Christian and secular thinkers and theories that can be challenging to track. However, it is a delight for Bible students or pastors with an interest in worldview and culture. Its greatest value may be as a reference book for pastors or Bible teachers when preaching through Scripture, providing numerous modern applications for their teachings. I highly recommend this book to anyone willing to dive in and explore its depths.
November 27, 2024
This is a book for a certain audience. At over 650 pages of engagement with culture, theology, biblical texts, and philosophy, this is a serious read. Using Augustine’s City of God as a model, Watkin offers a framework for Christians to navigate the tensions we face in being part of the City of God in the presence of the City of Man. Watkin uses a model that he calls ‘diagonalization’ where the Bible offers a way out of the various binary traps given. For example, do the people of God Assimilate to Culture or Isolate from Culture? Watkin shows that by embracing the biblical identity of Exile we can live in but not of the world.
Throughout the 28 chapters, he offers 2-4 different diagonalization on topics like justice, love, progress, and history.
He draws from many who have wrestled with cultural engagement for the faithful Christian. Many footnotes come from Augustine, G.K. Chesterton, C. S. Lewis, Bonhoeffer, and Tim Keller. As well several 20th and 21st-century theologians (Van Til, James K. A. Smith, and Richard Bauckham) and Christian philosophers (Charles Taylor, Jacques Ellul, and Paul Ricoeur) surface in several sections. If these authors interest you, Watkin’s book will benefit your journey.
One critique which is commonplace among evangelical theology is that Watkin largely jumps from Augustine to the Protestant Reformers in his analysis. The book draws significantly from Augustine, especially City of God and On Christine Doctrine. However, Christians throughout the Medieval world wrestled with the challenge of living as the people of God in the present world, e.g John of Damascus. I remember only a few references to Aquinas.
Throughout the 28 chapters, he offers 2-4 different diagonalization on topics like justice, love, progress, and history.
He draws from many who have wrestled with cultural engagement for the faithful Christian. Many footnotes come from Augustine, G.K. Chesterton, C. S. Lewis, Bonhoeffer, and Tim Keller. As well several 20th and 21st-century theologians (Van Til, James K. A. Smith, and Richard Bauckham) and Christian philosophers (Charles Taylor, Jacques Ellul, and Paul Ricoeur) surface in several sections. If these authors interest you, Watkin’s book will benefit your journey.
One critique which is commonplace among evangelical theology is that Watkin largely jumps from Augustine to the Protestant Reformers in his analysis. The book draws significantly from Augustine, especially City of God and On Christine Doctrine. However, Christians throughout the Medieval world wrestled with the challenge of living as the people of God in the present world, e.g John of Damascus. I remember only a few references to Aquinas.
October 28, 2025
Wow! It really does sadden me to mark this book as read. I began this book in the summer of 2024. Thinking that I would complete it by the start of the fall semester, I made a study guide and everything; I quickly realized that I had bit off more than I could chew. My new goal was to read the first half of the volume that summer and the next half over the summer of 2025, which I mostly accomplished (yes, I know it is now October). Despite my long break between reads, this book was truly wonderful.
Maybe I will write a longer review/summary of my thoughts that dives deeper into the larger narrative of the book and some more specific takeaways on a later date, but for now here are a few thoughts that are presently on my mind as I have just finished the book.
While most all critical theorists are merely revolutionary, seeking to tear down, and, for lack of a better word, “critique” society, Christopher Watkin critiques while also providing a positive narrative to adopt. His method for what he calls biblical critical theory (to my limited knowledge) is to thoroughly engage with the visions of reality that have permeated late modern culture in order to ultimately show how they fall short of capturing/making sense of all of our human experience and reality. His method is to use what he calls biblical “figures” to (borrowing a term from John Milbank) “out-narrate” the reductive heresies of more complex biblical realities. Quite often, this was achieved through his use of diagonalization. I have heard several people critique this book suggesting that Christopher Watkin is a sort of one-trick pony; he simply forms a dichotomy between two narrow views of the world and draws a diagonal line between the two showcasing how a Biblical worldview out-narrates the two. However, I found this to be continuously applicable and good, though my long reading hiatus over the schoolyear may have helped.
Apparently, the book essentially tackles what Augustine did in the fifth century in his work The City of God, but with two main differences. (1.) Watkin obviously writes on issues concerning late modernity and not the Roman Empire and (2.), while Augustine dedicates the first half of his work to subverting Rome’s story and the second half to showing how its deepest aspirations are fulfilled in the gospel, Watkin follows the biblical storyline doing this very same thing all along the way.
The book is quite strong in the subjects surrounding creation and eschatology. If you glance at the table of contents, you quickly see that over 50% of the book makes up discussion on the first three chapters of Genesis and the last days.
He really does touch such a wide range of social/political theorists and philosophers, such as Marx, Descartes, Locke, Derrida, Foucault, Freud, Heidegger, Hobbes, Kant, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Pascal, Plato, Ricoeur, Rousseau, Charles Taylor, etc. (as well as a bunch of French guys I have never heard of). He also makes great use of Christian apologists and theologians across the centuries such as Jacques Ellul, Chesterton, David Bentley Hart, Bavinck, Keller, Lewis, John Milbank, William Cavanaugh, Lesslie Newbigin, Richard Bauckham, Bonhoeffer, Holland, Oliver O’Donovan, etc., and of course, Augustine. The research behind this book is incredible; Watkin knows his modern literature. If you do not wish to read such a long volume, simply reading the bibliography would likely do anyone some good.
Unfortunately, I cannot say that this book’s value came mostly from the content that it covered. I wish I could retain the wide breadth of knowledge that this author brushed over. However, I don’t think it is really meant to do that necessarily. Don’t get me wrong, I think there is much benefit in studying the content of this book and I will certainly use it as a launching pad and guide to further reading, but I do think the real value of this book is found in the methods that he uses and the approach that he takes with engaging the world. This, I believe, is of even greater value than simply understanding a series of arguments for specific competing worldviews (or maybe I just say that to make me feel better about my bad memory).
In his summary Watkin discusses how Christian cultural theory has a doxological center of gravity, which he says is his hope in writing this book; I believe that he accomplished his goal. This book has certainly produced in me a heart of worship to a God that has painted reality with truth, goodness, and beauty and invites us to forsake the broken cisterns of our immature “worldvisions” (as J. H. Bavinck would put it) and to embrace the reality of a triune God.
Maybe I will write a longer review/summary of my thoughts that dives deeper into the larger narrative of the book and some more specific takeaways on a later date, but for now here are a few thoughts that are presently on my mind as I have just finished the book.
While most all critical theorists are merely revolutionary, seeking to tear down, and, for lack of a better word, “critique” society, Christopher Watkin critiques while also providing a positive narrative to adopt. His method for what he calls biblical critical theory (to my limited knowledge) is to thoroughly engage with the visions of reality that have permeated late modern culture in order to ultimately show how they fall short of capturing/making sense of all of our human experience and reality. His method is to use what he calls biblical “figures” to (borrowing a term from John Milbank) “out-narrate” the reductive heresies of more complex biblical realities. Quite often, this was achieved through his use of diagonalization. I have heard several people critique this book suggesting that Christopher Watkin is a sort of one-trick pony; he simply forms a dichotomy between two narrow views of the world and draws a diagonal line between the two showcasing how a Biblical worldview out-narrates the two. However, I found this to be continuously applicable and good, though my long reading hiatus over the schoolyear may have helped.
Apparently, the book essentially tackles what Augustine did in the fifth century in his work The City of God, but with two main differences. (1.) Watkin obviously writes on issues concerning late modernity and not the Roman Empire and (2.), while Augustine dedicates the first half of his work to subverting Rome’s story and the second half to showing how its deepest aspirations are fulfilled in the gospel, Watkin follows the biblical storyline doing this very same thing all along the way.
The book is quite strong in the subjects surrounding creation and eschatology. If you glance at the table of contents, you quickly see that over 50% of the book makes up discussion on the first three chapters of Genesis and the last days.
He really does touch such a wide range of social/political theorists and philosophers, such as Marx, Descartes, Locke, Derrida, Foucault, Freud, Heidegger, Hobbes, Kant, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Pascal, Plato, Ricoeur, Rousseau, Charles Taylor, etc. (as well as a bunch of French guys I have never heard of). He also makes great use of Christian apologists and theologians across the centuries such as Jacques Ellul, Chesterton, David Bentley Hart, Bavinck, Keller, Lewis, John Milbank, William Cavanaugh, Lesslie Newbigin, Richard Bauckham, Bonhoeffer, Holland, Oliver O’Donovan, etc., and of course, Augustine. The research behind this book is incredible; Watkin knows his modern literature. If you do not wish to read such a long volume, simply reading the bibliography would likely do anyone some good.
Unfortunately, I cannot say that this book’s value came mostly from the content that it covered. I wish I could retain the wide breadth of knowledge that this author brushed over. However, I don’t think it is really meant to do that necessarily. Don’t get me wrong, I think there is much benefit in studying the content of this book and I will certainly use it as a launching pad and guide to further reading, but I do think the real value of this book is found in the methods that he uses and the approach that he takes with engaging the world. This, I believe, is of even greater value than simply understanding a series of arguments for specific competing worldviews (or maybe I just say that to make me feel better about my bad memory).
In his summary Watkin discusses how Christian cultural theory has a doxological center of gravity, which he says is his hope in writing this book; I believe that he accomplished his goal. This book has certainly produced in me a heart of worship to a God that has painted reality with truth, goodness, and beauty and invites us to forsake the broken cisterns of our immature “worldvisions” (as J. H. Bavinck would put it) and to embrace the reality of a triune God.
December 21, 2024
Given all of the effusive advance praise for this book, one would think it is the best treatment of Christian cultural engagement since Augustine's "City of God." The book doesn't quite meet that standard, but it is definitely worth the extended time necessary to read it if you are interested in how Christianity provides an alternative and superior way of looking at the world as compared to competing secular approaches to reality.
The book begins with Genesis and continues through Revelation, following the course of biblical redemptive history (creation > sin > Babel > Abraham > Moses > wisdom > incarnation > cross > resurrection > last days ) to draw out implications for how the Bible shapes our view of reality. "One way of evaluating a view of the world is to examine whether it can integrate multiple realities effectively or whether it has one umbilical mold into which it attempts to pour all other perspectives." (328).
For instance, the fact that God has created the world means the universe is personal, which makes sense of human dignity; if we are not made in the image of God, then we are made in the image of something less than God, which will necessarily be dehumanizing; the doctrine of sin means no one is inherently superior to any other, because we all stand before God guilty, whether a beggar or a king; since the fall comes after creation, this means evil is not essential or intrinsic to the universe; the Christian view of linear time gives meaning to the flow of world history; Christianity is not tied to any one culture but is truly multicultural, while also refusing to affirm every culture as equally good.
There are places where this book is not an easy read. Watkin interacts with many ancient and contemporary thinkers and philosophers, so some paragraphs will require repeated readings. But Watkin brings a humble posture to the material, never sounding condescending or pretentious. He obviously possesses a brilliant intellect, but seems like a guy you'd be comfortable having lunch with.
However challenging the book might be in places, there is no doubt that it is of essential importance for Christians to examine the world through the lens of a biblical critical theory, which of course presumes thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. As Watkin puts it: "People do not differ according to whether they are guided by a cultural and social theory but by whether they realize it or not, and to go through life not realizing the theoretical assumptions and commitments that are shaping you is like letting a stranger decorate your house, choose your clothes, select your children's school, and drive your car without having to ask your permission."
The book begins with Genesis and continues through Revelation, following the course of biblical redemptive history (creation > sin > Babel > Abraham > Moses > wisdom > incarnation > cross > resurrection > last days ) to draw out implications for how the Bible shapes our view of reality. "One way of evaluating a view of the world is to examine whether it can integrate multiple realities effectively or whether it has one umbilical mold into which it attempts to pour all other perspectives." (328).
For instance, the fact that God has created the world means the universe is personal, which makes sense of human dignity; if we are not made in the image of God, then we are made in the image of something less than God, which will necessarily be dehumanizing; the doctrine of sin means no one is inherently superior to any other, because we all stand before God guilty, whether a beggar or a king; since the fall comes after creation, this means evil is not essential or intrinsic to the universe; the Christian view of linear time gives meaning to the flow of world history; Christianity is not tied to any one culture but is truly multicultural, while also refusing to affirm every culture as equally good.
There are places where this book is not an easy read. Watkin interacts with many ancient and contemporary thinkers and philosophers, so some paragraphs will require repeated readings. But Watkin brings a humble posture to the material, never sounding condescending or pretentious. He obviously possesses a brilliant intellect, but seems like a guy you'd be comfortable having lunch with.
However challenging the book might be in places, there is no doubt that it is of essential importance for Christians to examine the world through the lens of a biblical critical theory, which of course presumes thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. As Watkin puts it: "People do not differ according to whether they are guided by a cultural and social theory but by whether they realize it or not, and to go through life not realizing the theoretical assumptions and commitments that are shaping you is like letting a stranger decorate your house, choose your clothes, select your children's school, and drive your car without having to ask your permission."
March 24, 2025
YALL. What a journey. It took me 15 months to get through this beast, but of course I’m so glad I did!
Watkin frames a lot of this book through Augustine’s The City of God, and he says this about his first experience reading it—
“I readily confess that many of the references and names went straight over my head, but running right through this long book with its litany of characters was an unmistakable, glittering, compelling architecture”
And that is basically how I felt reading Watkin.
Summing up my thoughts is proving really difficult, but my prayer is that by reading this book I will have grown into a more “deep and sympathetic, but also sharp and clear-minded engagement” with the world around me.
BCT challenged me in more ways than one, but I am finishing it with a grander view of God and His world, which is really all I could hope for!
“Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” Rev. 22:20
Watkin frames a lot of this book through Augustine’s The City of God, and he says this about his first experience reading it—
“I readily confess that many of the references and names went straight over my head, but running right through this long book with its litany of characters was an unmistakable, glittering, compelling architecture”
And that is basically how I felt reading Watkin.
Summing up my thoughts is proving really difficult, but my prayer is that by reading this book I will have grown into a more “deep and sympathetic, but also sharp and clear-minded engagement” with the world around me.
BCT challenged me in more ways than one, but I am finishing it with a grander view of God and His world, which is really all I could hope for!
“Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” Rev. 22:20
October 18, 2024
A tall rich draft of subversive fulfillment.
October 5, 2023
This book was magnificent. Best book I’ve read all year.
October 14, 2024
This is a book worth reading.
It is long, but it is extremely helpful. It was much more anthropological than I was expecting and has a lot to say about humanity.
It is a dense theological book, but well worth going on Watkin's journey. I was not disappointed!
It is long, but it is extremely helpful. It was much more anthropological than I was expecting and has a lot to say about humanity.
It is a dense theological book, but well worth going on Watkin's journey. I was not disappointed!
July 15, 2025
Doxological disposession dub, but if I read a variation of the word diagonal one more time I’ll lose it
February 21, 2023
Is it as good as it's been made out to be? Yes, absolutely.
March 24, 2025
I’ve heard a surprising number of people (more qualified and better read than me) say, “That book is a bit heavy going…” I was mid-stream on another read so I decided to listen to the audiobook (despite having purchased a physical copy of “Biblical Critical Theory”.) So perhaps that format coloured how I encountered this book.
But let me say how much I enjoyed and appreciated Watkin’s work. This book speaks to the moment in Western culture with insight, academic rigour, philosophical integrity, historical thoroughness and, most wonderfully, an immersive biblical faithfulness.
That doesn’t solve the problem of being heavy going. Except I don’t think it was particularly heavy going. Watkin is a gifted author and communicator. His grasp of contenting worldviews is respectful and vital. His thesis is that biblical truth “diagonalises” the generally dichotomous, polemcial disharmony of rival worldviews. Watkins doesn’t try to “balance the books” by resolving the bible with contrary positions. Rather, he cleverly uses the rivals to amplify and construct a truly biblical framework that can robustly stand in the marketplace of ideas.
And he’s clearly having fun. He loves ideas and their interplay and their origins and the characters who play in their creation. He is a formidable bible scholar. The breadth of his reading and research is remarkable. And he wants us all to join him on his quest to travel through the bible and let God’s word speak into the wide world of alternative views.
If you could describe a book of ideas as a romp, I think “Biblical Critical Theory” would come close. Don’t get me wrong, you gotta put in some work. But there’s lots of payoff along the way. And in the end Watkins isn’t about building an edifice. He lands it all on the personal nature of the God who speaks. Personality lies at the heart of the quest for truth. SomeOne. I love that.
If I’d read it, I’d say it was a cracking read. As an audiobook, sure I must have missed a bit, but I loved it. Sometimes I needed a rest to let my brain get back to its normal size, but along the way Watkins (a Yorkshireman!) is playful, whimsical and - something I love in any book - he is a true lover language. It all makes for an infectiously enjoyable read.
If you find it hard going, try the audiobook. Jump on your bike or take a few long drives, like I did. It really is a remarkable book. And one I think says important things for our moment in history in the west. I’d love some of my unbelieving chums to read it. And I’d love to hear more of Watkin’s insights find their way into the minds and hearts and sermons of our Christian leaders.
But I’m just a hacker in the peanut gallery, so you can take all this with a grain of salt.
But to Watkin I say, “Good on you, Prof! More please!”
PS
But…Oh no! I need to add a missing addendum to my review - that the book so helpfully (and deliciously!) throws the light of the truth of scripture onto so many ideas and worldviews and philosophies which, thus illuminated, reveal themselves to contain so many biblical figures. That’s a really helpful, practical and broadly applicable part of what I found so beneficial in the book. I should have said that in my extensive and barely-to-be-read Goodreads review.
But I guess now it’s too late….
But let me say how much I enjoyed and appreciated Watkin’s work. This book speaks to the moment in Western culture with insight, academic rigour, philosophical integrity, historical thoroughness and, most wonderfully, an immersive biblical faithfulness.
That doesn’t solve the problem of being heavy going. Except I don’t think it was particularly heavy going. Watkin is a gifted author and communicator. His grasp of contenting worldviews is respectful and vital. His thesis is that biblical truth “diagonalises” the generally dichotomous, polemcial disharmony of rival worldviews. Watkins doesn’t try to “balance the books” by resolving the bible with contrary positions. Rather, he cleverly uses the rivals to amplify and construct a truly biblical framework that can robustly stand in the marketplace of ideas.
And he’s clearly having fun. He loves ideas and their interplay and their origins and the characters who play in their creation. He is a formidable bible scholar. The breadth of his reading and research is remarkable. And he wants us all to join him on his quest to travel through the bible and let God’s word speak into the wide world of alternative views.
If you could describe a book of ideas as a romp, I think “Biblical Critical Theory” would come close. Don’t get me wrong, you gotta put in some work. But there’s lots of payoff along the way. And in the end Watkins isn’t about building an edifice. He lands it all on the personal nature of the God who speaks. Personality lies at the heart of the quest for truth. SomeOne. I love that.
If I’d read it, I’d say it was a cracking read. As an audiobook, sure I must have missed a bit, but I loved it. Sometimes I needed a rest to let my brain get back to its normal size, but along the way Watkins (a Yorkshireman!) is playful, whimsical and - something I love in any book - he is a true lover language. It all makes for an infectiously enjoyable read.
If you find it hard going, try the audiobook. Jump on your bike or take a few long drives, like I did. It really is a remarkable book. And one I think says important things for our moment in history in the west. I’d love some of my unbelieving chums to read it. And I’d love to hear more of Watkin’s insights find their way into the minds and hearts and sermons of our Christian leaders.
But I’m just a hacker in the peanut gallery, so you can take all this with a grain of salt.
But to Watkin I say, “Good on you, Prof! More please!”
PS
But…Oh no! I need to add a missing addendum to my review - that the book so helpfully (and deliciously!) throws the light of the truth of scripture onto so many ideas and worldviews and philosophies which, thus illuminated, reveal themselves to contain so many biblical figures. That’s a really helpful, practical and broadly applicable part of what I found so beneficial in the book. I should have said that in my extensive and barely-to-be-read Goodreads review.
But I guess now it’s too late….
March 31, 2024
Wow, what a feast!
I think this book jumps by default to my "top X books I ever read", and for no small reason. Watkin combines biblical theology with cultural analysis in a way that made Keller proud.
For me, it was the philosophical part that shone best: he moved at ease through the modern period up until what he calls "the late modernity" (the postmodern thinkers and their forefathers) and let the reader see their are not the Devil himself, but rather folks that tried to understand and change the world, for good or for ill. After reading this book, you've already read an introduction to their thought and why our world looks as it does. When he shows how the Christian Gospel "diagonalizes" (his word) their/our tendency to binaries, Watkin enables a charitable reading of culture that is not at all accomodationist - it only highlights common grace.
On the other hand, I would've liked to see Watkin a bit more diligent in doing his theological homework. You can see easily he's a philosopher and not a theologian when he jumps quickly to conclusions, sometimes unwarranted. But the book is anyways long enough. Also, he quotes a lot, man. Too much. Sometimes he just copy-pastes 3 blockquotes on the page and the poor reader that I am has to make the best out of them. That's not the easy task outsiders think it to be.
But such trivial matters are too unimportant to steal any star. It's a full 5.
I think this book jumps by default to my "top X books I ever read", and for no small reason. Watkin combines biblical theology with cultural analysis in a way that made Keller proud.
For me, it was the philosophical part that shone best: he moved at ease through the modern period up until what he calls "the late modernity" (the postmodern thinkers and their forefathers) and let the reader see their are not the Devil himself, but rather folks that tried to understand and change the world, for good or for ill. After reading this book, you've already read an introduction to their thought and why our world looks as it does. When he shows how the Christian Gospel "diagonalizes" (his word) their/our tendency to binaries, Watkin enables a charitable reading of culture that is not at all accomodationist - it only highlights common grace.
On the other hand, I would've liked to see Watkin a bit more diligent in doing his theological homework. You can see easily he's a philosopher and not a theologian when he jumps quickly to conclusions, sometimes unwarranted. But the book is anyways long enough. Also, he quotes a lot, man. Too much. Sometimes he just copy-pastes 3 blockquotes on the page and the poor reader that I am has to make the best out of them. That's not the easy task outsiders think it to be.
But such trivial matters are too unimportant to steal any star. It's a full 5.
October 4, 2025
This was excellent! Watkin has created a new genre of theology with this book. It’s built somewhat like a biblical theology, exploring more of revealed truth as it was given through Scripture historically - but it’s not a theology per se. It’s more of a philosophy. So Watkin here, I believe, has created a new genre of ‘Biblical Philosophy.’
And what a philosophy he has given here! This book has such a wealth of ideas and thinkers (both historic, and iconic)! - More than I have ever encountered in a single book! He interacts with ideas both ancient and modern, both medieval and culturally in vogue.
A fantastic read!
And what a philosophy he has given here! This book has such a wealth of ideas and thinkers (both historic, and iconic)! - More than I have ever encountered in a single book! He interacts with ideas both ancient and modern, both medieval and culturally in vogue.
A fantastic read!
September 25, 2025
Impressive and lucid.
I could say a lot about this book but I’ll just say this is a must-read if you like to think about the way the gospel encounters and critiques culture.
I could say a lot about this book but I’ll just say this is a must-read if you like to think about the way the gospel encounters and critiques culture.
September 11, 2023
Watkin illustrates through "figures" how the true gospel diagonalizes false dichotomies in our world (the philosophical problem of the one and the many all the way down to the values of the current political left and political right).
This took me a while to get through, not because it wasn't engaging, but because I wanted more time to think through each of these diagonalizations and work towards a better understanding of how these truths could affect my living and teaching.
"A biblical critical theory... must first expose the main flaws in the dominant culture's narratives, showing how they fit neither human nature nor our most profound intuitions about life--let alone the culture's moral ideals and aspirations... then [it] must point to the beauty and truth of the gospel as the source of numerous fulfilling counternarratives." -Tim Keller (xvi)
"Any statements by those who are called philosophers, especially the Platonists, which happen to be true and consistent with our faith should not cause alarm, but be claimed for our own use, as it were from owners who have no right to them." -Augustine, "On Christian Doctrine" (17)
"We want not an amalgam or compromise, but both things at the top of their energy; love and wrath both burning... I need not remind the reader that the idea of this combination is indeed central in orthodox theology. For orthodox theology has specially insisted that Christ was not a being apart from God and man, like an elf, nor yet a being half human and half not, like a centaur, but both things at once and both things thoroughly, very man and very God." -G. K. Chesterton, "Orthodoxy" (19)
This took me a while to get through, not because it wasn't engaging, but because I wanted more time to think through each of these diagonalizations and work towards a better understanding of how these truths could affect my living and teaching.
"A biblical critical theory... must first expose the main flaws in the dominant culture's narratives, showing how they fit neither human nature nor our most profound intuitions about life--let alone the culture's moral ideals and aspirations... then [it] must point to the beauty and truth of the gospel as the source of numerous fulfilling counternarratives." -Tim Keller (xvi)
"Any statements by those who are called philosophers, especially the Platonists, which happen to be true and consistent with our faith should not cause alarm, but be claimed for our own use, as it were from owners who have no right to them." -Augustine, "On Christian Doctrine" (17)
"We want not an amalgam or compromise, but both things at the top of their energy; love and wrath both burning... I need not remind the reader that the idea of this combination is indeed central in orthodox theology. For orthodox theology has specially insisted that Christ was not a being apart from God and man, like an elf, nor yet a being half human and half not, like a centaur, but both things at once and both things thoroughly, very man and very God." -G. K. Chesterton, "Orthodoxy" (19)
May 30, 2023
Okay so I tried picking this up in February and it was simply too similar to the academic-y, philosophical, dense kinda books I read for class that my mid-semester mushy grad school brain simply couldn’t handle it…
I picked it back up at the end of April and despite taking so long the first time that my loan expired and I had to wait for it back from the library, I finally got through it and I’m so glad I did. While I think this was a 10/10 great read and very worth reading straight through, I think it’s probably equally useful as a reference book and I am hoping to get my hands on a non-library owned, non-kindle edition to keep on my bookshelf. I suspect this will be one I go back to time and again, and I’m thankful to have spent so much time reading, digesting, and taking notes!
I picked it back up at the end of April and despite taking so long the first time that my loan expired and I had to wait for it back from the library, I finally got through it and I’m so glad I did. While I think this was a 10/10 great read and very worth reading straight through, I think it’s probably equally useful as a reference book and I am hoping to get my hands on a non-library owned, non-kindle edition to keep on my bookshelf. I suspect this will be one I go back to time and again, and I’m thankful to have spent so much time reading, digesting, and taking notes!
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