Our Secular Age
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Probably no book published in the last decade has been so ambitious as Charles Taylor's A Secular Age. He seeks nothing less than to account for the spread of secularism and decline of faith in the last 500 years. Now a remarkable roster of writers-including Carl Trueman, Michael Horton, and Jen Pollock Michel-considers Taylor's insights for the church's life and mission, covering everything from healthcare to liturgy to pop culture and politics. Nothing is easy about faith today. But endurance produces character, and character produces hope, even in our secular age.
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Short Review: At some point I will actually read the original Secular Age book. But 900 pages is daunting. Although at this point I have now read four books largely about A Secular Age and I think those add up to more pages than the actual book.
Part of the problem with my reading of this is that I haven't read the original, although I think I basically understand the argument. Some of the chapters are arguing for or against minor points and I don't know how to evaluate those chapters because I don't have the background. Other Chapters are more implications of a Secular Age and those are easier to think about. Starke's chapter on preaching and McCrakken's chapter on church shopping were helpful, although especially McCrakken's chapter I am not sure I agreed with most of the time. But it was still helpful to work through the ideas.
This was put together The Gospel Coalition, although not everyone that contributed would line up with all of TGC's positions. But this is mostly conservative and reformed authors (and all white and all but one male). The essays are not universally affirming or condemning of Taylor. There are disagreements, but I would be interested in a slightly more diverse opinion.
My only slightly longer review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/our-secular-age/
