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{"id":3821,"date":"2008-02-01T00:30:53","date_gmt":"2008-02-01T05:30:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/community\/jesuscreed\/2008\/02\/01\/surprised-by-hope-5\/"},"modified":"2008-02-01T00:30:53","modified_gmt":"2008-02-01T05:30:53","slug":"surprised-by-hope-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/jesuscreed\/2008\/02\/01\/surprised-by-hope-5\/","title":{"rendered":"Surprised by Hope 5"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Before Tom Wright discusses the future for the individual he goes where the Bible goes: first the corporate and then the individual. In chp 5 of Surprised by Hope<\/a> $\"\"$ <\/em> he examines two ideas that shape how even many Christians think of the future. He\u2019s not afraid to say that these are not in fact Christian hopes; they are myths.
\nToo many Christians have packaged Enlightenment individualism and theories of progress with Platonic dualism and soul-ishness to form a theory of heaven that is far from what the NT teaches. This, so I think, is the heart of Tom\u2019s appeal.
\nThe first myth is \u201cevolutionary optimism.\u201d The myth of progress. He digresses into political rhetoric and affirms me in my crankiness about the eschatology of politics (heard on this blog but even more frequently in my home!): \u201c\u2026 the politicians are still trying to whip up enthusiasm for their versions of this myth \u2014 it\u2019s the only discourse they know, poor things \u2014 while the rest of us have moved on\u201d (81). This utopian dream is parody of the Christian hope. This myth of progress is instead a \u201cgoal that will emerge from within rather than being a new gift from elsewhere\u201d (82). He sees Christian mutations in social Darwinianism and the social gospel, and I fear far too many in the emerging movement have opted for the latter.
\nWhat\u2019s the problem: Wright says \u201cThe real problem with the myth of progress is \u2026 that it cannot deal with evil\u201d (85). \u201cThe world is in fact still a sad and wicked place, not a happy upward progress toward the light\u201d (86). This myth doesn\u2019t work; it can\u2019t solve evil\u2019s problems retrospectively; it underestimates the nature and power of evil and thus \u201cfails to see the vital importance of the cross\u201d (87). Let the reader hear me out: without an atonement there is no Jesus kingdom and no Christian hope.
\nThe solution to evil in this world \u2014 and here I\u2019m summarizing Wright \u2014 is not to try harder or to work at education more; the solution is otherwise. (Only then does education make sense.)
\nThe second myth is \u201csouls in transit\u201d. Here Wright connects the spiritual soul-ishness with Induism<\/strike> Hinduism, Platonism, Gnostics, etc. The goal is to get rid of this body. For these \u201ccreation itself is the fall\u201d (89). \u201cBasically, if you move away from materialistic optimism but without embracing Judaism or Christianity, you are quite likely to end up with some kind of Gnosticism\u201d (89).
\nComplete nonmateriality is not a Christian hope.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"