From the Editor

In this month’s issue of BreakPoint WorldView, Tullian Tchividjian, pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian and author, reminds us of what the sociologist Peter Berger once called “a world without windows.”

In previous times and cultures, most people recognized the existence of the supernatural. They acknowledged mystery and life outside of the closed box of what science can see, measure, and probe.

Today, naturalistic philosophy has closed minds tightly shut. The temporal and the tangible is all that is tolerated and embraced. But there’s a hunger for more, a hunger that reveals what the Church uniquely has to offer. Thankfully, that’s a subject Tchividjian plows in the excerpt from Unfashionable included in this edition.

Also this month, novelist Mary DeMuth examines “Why We Read Fiction.” In reading her piece, I was reminded that fiction also has a way of opening the windows in our windowless world. There’s a reason that it was through the wormhole of imagination that the once-atheist C. S. Lewis encountered God.  Through reading George MacDonald’s Phantastes, Lewis found a “bright shadow”; one which he later equated with the mystery of holiness. He referred to this time as the “baptism of the imagination.” In Surprised by Joy, he warns, "Really, a young Atheist cannot guard his faith too carefully. Dangers lie in wait for him on every side."  And perhaps most especially, I’d add, those dangers await in fiction.

Exploding the box of the closed world for young minds, John Stonestreet of Summit Ministries, writes this month about the need to consider ultimate questions as well as the dominate cultural mindset that keeps such questions at bay. In “Our Adolescent Culture,” Stonestreet examines the rise of the term “adolescent” as well as the consequences for a society that has embraced the delaying of adulthood.

Finally, Chuck Colson turns his attention this month to the silver lining in the current economic crisis, not the least of which, is a reminder that the predominant materialistic pursuits of this world are not ultimate or lasting. It’s a good time to reflect on the recession’s lessons and opportunities. Perhaps, the downturn will help to open a few more windows on the eternal.

In closing, let me mention that coming this July, the same great content you’ve come to expect from BreakPoint WorldView is going to be delivered to your inbox on a weekly, rather than monthly basis, as the magazine and online forces of BreakPoint join together to deliver to you BreakPoint This Week. While the format may change, we hope that you’ll continue to be delighted, challenged, and encouraged by the engaging content you’ve come to expect from BreakPoint WorldView.

This article originally appeared in BreakPoint WorldView Magazine, June 2009.

Catherine Larson is a senior writer and editor for BreakPoint. She is the editor of WorldView online magazine and The Point radio. As We Forgive: Stories of Reconciliation from Rwanda is her first book. She regularly shares her thoughts on topics related to forgiveness and reconciliation at AsWeForgiveBook.com.