Critical Expressive Individualism

Culture has changed. In America, we think very differently as a society than we did 50+ years ago. The popular way of thinking today combines Critical Theory and Expressive Individualism. I am going to call it, “Critical Expressive Individualism” or CEI. Critical Theory views the world in terms of oppressive social structures that support the reigning oppressors and allow for continued oppression of various people groups. Expressive Individualism allows individuals to identify themselves in ways that express their inner “authentic self”. We will take a look at Critical Expressive Individualism and compare it to Christianity by asking a few basic but big questions. (Note there is a spectrum of beliefs so this will be a broad overview of CEI and Christianity, and may not match individual beliefs.)

Where did we come from?

The Christian Faith believes that God created the world. He created human beings in his own image. We are valuable to God. We were made to be in a relationship with him. CEI believes that humankind evolved by random chance. There was no intentional design. Humans just exist.

Who has the authority?

In the Christian Faith, God, the Creator, has the authority. Out of love, he has set up good and healthy moral laws for us to live by. We are to trust in him and live the good life by obeying his commands. The CEI worldview has each and every one acting as their own authority. They look inside themselves at their feelings and desires and decide who they are (usually sexually) and how they will behave. They are then free to express their individual authentic selves.

What is our problem?

Just about everyone agrees that there is a problem with life. Things are not as we expect them to be. We seek a utopia where the problem is fixed. The Christian Faith sees the problem existing in each one of us. We are broken, selfish and self-centered. We disobey the good and healthy standards that God has for us and in doing so we hurt ourselves and others. CEI sees humankind as naturally good and the problem is that there are these societal structures that allow oppression to occur and restrict the expressive freedom of each individual.

What is the solution?

CEI believes that each person has total authority and the right to express themselves as they see fit. Even though there is technically no right or wrong, CEI attempts to influence society in order to dismantle oppressive societal structures and bring about positive change. This is a reason for the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) officers in companies and organizations. They are there to move people to help dismantle oppressive structures and to promote those considered to be oppressed. They believe that the people of this world will solve the problem once they have been trained to think correctly.

Christians realize there is no human solution because everyone is corrupt and broken. We are self-centered and selfish. Because of our broken nature, everything we try will be corrupted. Fortunately, God sent Jesus into the world to provide the solution. He went to the cross to pay for the price we could not pay. By trusting in Jesus we are changed. With the Holy Spirit, we can be enabled to overcome our broken nature. The Holy Spirit transforms the inner self and works to change us from the inside out. Christians, out of gratitude for what Jesus did, also work for the good of society and oppose oppression and wrong behaviors.

How will things end for us?

With CEI they believe they can create utopia on earth by training and guiding people. So through proper laws, training, destroying of oppressive structures, and the lifting up of the oppressed peoples, they believe utopia can come. Christians believe that God will at the right time end this world and make everything right for all those who believe in him. Then our brokenness will be fixed, and we will be restored to a harmonious loving relationship with God and each other.

These different ways to view the world have caused conflict in America. Because of the different worldviews, very different solutions end up being promoted, causing conflict and misunderstanding.

Dealing with DEI

Companies and government agencies have embraced the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) worldview. In order to advance in the organization you need to show you are supporting DEI. (The State Department recently said that you need to document that you are actively involved in DEI practices to be considered for a promotion.) Coming from a Christian worldview, how do you deal with DEI? How can you find some common ground when there is much you feel is wrong and harmful about DEI?

First, Christians are in favor of diversity. The body of Christ is made up of a diverse group of people with different gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4-27). Heaven will be filled with people from everywhere (Revelation 7:9-10). God loves everyone (Psalm 117:1-2) and calls us to do the same (Matthew 5:43-48). Note God loves us so very much that he is unwilling to leave us as we are but will change us for the better through the work of the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 3:16-17). So Christians are in favor of diversity, but out of love we stand against broken and harmful lifestyles and beliefs. Unfortunately the secular DEI worldview demands acceptance of the harmful lifestyles of LGBTQ+ community. As Christians we can not accept their wrong and harmful lifestyles, but we can accept and affirm the LGBTQ+ people as people loved by God.

Also, Christians are in favor of equity. God is fair, just, and impartial. He will judge with righteousness and equity (Psalm 98:9; Isaiah 11:3-4). All people have sinned and fall short of God’s standard (Romans 3:23). We stand equal before God, regardless of race, gender, or social status (Galatians 3:28). Unfortunately the secular DEI worldview distorts equity when it requires equal outcomes or the redistribution of resources without considering individual talents, individual effort, personal responsibility, and the stewardship of resources. Christians show equal dignity and respect for all people regardless of one’s status (James 2:1-4). It is only in Christ where we find true equity.

And Christians are in favor of inclusion. Inclusion is the intentional welcoming and acceptance of people. God loves all people and he desires that all would come to know him and be restored in relationship with him (1 Timothy 2:3-4). As Christians, we welcome all who follow Jesus as brothers and sisters (Romans 15:5-7) and we desire all people to come to faith in Jesus. Unfortunately the secular DEI worldview sees inclusion as the acceptance of all beliefs and of all practices, even beliefs and practices that are harmful. (However many times they will exclude people whose beliefs they consider to be intolerant.) God loved the world so very much that he gave Jesus as our substitute so that we could have life and a restored relationship with God (John 3:16; 1 Peter 2:24). God wants to include you. Do not reject him, but instead turn to him and follow him.

And yes, Christians also stand against inequality and oppression. We too are against societal structures that oppress people and cause inequality. We work for a better society through promoting love (1 Corinthians 16:14), forgiveness (Ephesians 4:32), and reconciliation (Matthew 5:24), first with God (2 Corinthians 5:18-21), but also with the people around us. Unfortunately the secular DEI worldview broadly divides the people into groups of people that oppress and groups of people that are oppressed without considering the individual circumstances of each person. The secular DEI divides. Christians seek to reconcile and unite.

So as Christians, we believe in the real biblical version of DEI, and not the distorted secular version. There is common ground with secular DEI in which we can start conversations, but it will not be easy in a secular DEI workplace. You can gently point out the problems with their version of DEI. I would do it by asking questions about their beliefs to get them thinking about what they do believe and what are the problems that the secular DEI creates. You need to realize that you may be labeled as a person who hates or an oppressor for opposing certain aspects of their DEI standard, but you need to stand firm on the truth. It is good to do so for you, for them, and for society.

This post was inspired by “Understanding DEI (From a Biblical Perspective)” by Cam Arminio.

Divisions

America is very divided politically. I believe this is different from the cultural divisions of worldviews. A version of the Christian worldview used to be the dominant worldview in America. Today, prevalent in America, there are several variations of the critical theory worldview (with expressive individualism mixed in). And today both political liberals and conservatives use the critical theory framework to promote their agendas.

Critical theory states that there are unfair oppressive structures in society, and thus there are people being oppressed or in other words victims. Critical theory states these various forms of oppression are what is wrong in the world and its goal is to liberate us from the oppression. Some of the more common variations of critical theory are critical race theory, feminism, queer theory, and postcolonialism. You can especially see critical theory in action with the agendas found in the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Movement. This has been part of a big push by the political liberals.

But the political conservatives use the same critical theory framework. The oppressive structures are instead the mainstream media, the deep state government, and other concerns, like voting. So the conservatives see different structures that are oppressing America and making us victims of the current power structures. Donald Trump is big in promoting the oppressive nature of these so-called liberal power structures, and in this current election cycle with his legal troubles he is especially promoting the idea that he is the victim and that he is taking the “attacks” for us. I believe this critical theory framework is one of the main reasons he has been able to resonate with so many voters because critical theory is already embedded in today’s culture.

“Wait, wait”, you say, “there is some truth in what they say”. Yes, there is some truth found in both the liberal and conservative statements. But note that every good lie has a kernel of truth. I believe the framework of critical theory twists the truth and makes it divisive. It ends up being less than the whole truth.

You need to be aware that critical theory’s way of thinking in terms of oppression is the dominant way of thinking in today’s culture. You still need to acknowledge the truth found in the twisted statements, but only the truth. You especially need to avoid using the critical theory framework. It is divisive. It is not an us versus them (the enemy and the oppressor) situation. There is really only one enemy. His name is Satan.

The Christian asks how I can help and make the situation better. The Christian realizes that it is not an us versus them situation, because we are all sinners in need of a Savior. We need to, as much as possible, work together and not be divisive. We are to be generous, kind, and gracious in our speech. We do not lie, but we speak the truth in love. We do everything from an attitude of love, wanting the best for the other person. The Christian Faith is about reconciliation and forgiveness, first with God, but also with our fellow human beings. Critical theory is about justice and fairness, whereas Christianity has justice with mercy. Relationships cannot be restored with only justice. Mercy and forgiveness is needed to end the divisions and restore healthy relationships.

I believe the political dysfunction in Congress and throughout American politics is due in part to critical theory thinking. Avoid it!

Be Intentional and Disciplined

Another year is coming to an end. People make resolutions this time of year. Last year I set up a “rule of life” for me to live by, instead of having New Year’s resolutions. I like the idea of creating a pattern of habits to live by, and I think it has worked out well for me this past year. I did fail this last month in the habit of “Limit the eating of sweets and fats”. I ate way too many cookies and now I have a couple pounds I need to lose. I was not intentional and disciplined in my eating this last month.

I think in today’s culture of comfort and convenience we need to be intentional and disciplined in how we live. The strong siren call of today’s culture is to live for oneself and to fulfill one’s desires. The goal of many people is to live a life of ease, one of comfort and convenience, where they can always be happy by having all their desires met. This last month I let my desire for sweet cookies rule my eating. It was not healthy. I was not intentional in my eating, and I was not at all disciplined. I gained a couple of pounds. Now I have to deal with the consequences of that lack of discipline.

God calls us to a life centered around him and not centered around us. That is very different from what today’s culture says. Culture today pulls us toward a self-centered life based on our desires. This is why we can not coast through life. If we do, we will not be living for God and we will have to deal with the consequences of the short term thinking of our desires. We need to be intentional and disciplined in life’s activities so that we can have that good and full life centered on God.

One good way of being intentional is to have a plan. We can not try to fit God into our lives. Instead we need to start with God and build our lives around him. That is why I created a “rule of life” document for myself, so that I would be consistent in how I live my life for God. I created the document by looking at what I was already doing and what I wanted to do. I did not get very specific (e.g. Every morning at 6:00am I will read the Bible), instead I kept my habits more general (e.g. Daily read Scripture). I am not that structured, but you may be. It does take some prayerful consideration to put together a plan or a “rule of life”. It is not something you should write up in a few hours. Spend some time praying about it while putting it together. Once it is done you will want to revisit it from time to time to see how well it still fits. For me this is the time of year when I think of such things. (I first started thinking about the idea of a “rule of life” around New Years 2022 and I put it into practice around New Years 2023 and now I am evaluating it around New Years 2024.)

Having a plan and wanting to be intentional is not enough. You need commitment and discipline to put your intentionality into action. This is the hard part but this is something we need to strive for. It is not easy and I have also many times failed to live up to the “habits” or “rules” that I have set (let alone God’s good standards), but fortunately, we have a God who is merciful and gracious. He desires that intimate relationship between us and him. I think my “rule of life” document helps me to pursue that relationship. Our focus should be centered on God, especially on Jesus. It is out of gratitude for God’s amazing love and for all Jesus has done for me that I want to live my life to his glory. He inspires and enables me to have the discipline to live life for him.

PS To find out some of what Gail and I did in 2022 and 2023, read our Christmas letter.