THE NEW YORKER’s Christianity

Posted on by beautybeyondbones

It was entirely too late at night – midnight on a Tuesday. I was eyeballs deep in the Instagram Twilight Zone, caught somewhere between cat memes and Bachelor finale spoiler theories. But I’m scrolling, scrolling, and what comes across my newsfeed? But the big bold typeface used only by The New Yorker, “IF GOD IS DEAD, YOUR TIME IS EVERYTHING.”

Obviously, it stopped me in my tracks.

The New Yorker was writing about God.

Reading that headline, I could feel my pulse rise a little bit, I’ll be honest. And so I took the bait, and read the article.

Here’s the thing: The New Yorker is just about as liberal of a publication as you can get. Quite honestly, I wouldn’t even deem it worthy of being used as toilet paper, nevermind a legitimate source for news or information. But that’s neither here nor there.

So with that mindset, I set off to see what the elitist wannabes had to say about God being dead.

The article was arrogantly long, I might add — it took me nearly 30 minutes to read. Like, bro — slow your roll.

But the entire article, at first, left me feeling incredibly cold. And sad.

The author, James Wood, was breaking down Martin Hägglund’s book, This Life: Secular Faith and Spiritual Freedom, which argues that the Christian “idea” of eternity destroys the meaning and value of this life.

It spent thousands of words tearing down Christianity, saying that when Christians “worship God, [they] are simply worshipping what they themselves value, and are projecting those values onto the figment of objectivity they choose to call God.”

Bleak, huh?

I don’t know about you, but I pictured Mr. Wood angrily writing this from an overpriced Brooklyn coffee shop where they don’t have straws, the cups are compostable, and he’s wearing the latest made-to-look-vintage band-tee from Urban Outfitters.

That was mean, I’m sorry.

But I took offense to the fact that he said that the only thing Christians were after was Heaven. “Heaven is the real God of man: it is Heaven [they] are really after.” Claiming that by viewing “life [as] just an antechamber to an everlasting realm that is far more wondrous than anything on earth,” we are missing the point of enjoying life right now. Enjoying the flowers. Loving people and cherishing time we have with them in this life.

Which then spun off into an intricately messy campaign for democratic socialism, because…of course.

But here’s the thing. Sure, this guy made some highly intellectual arguments that he spun with pompously crafted sentences, proving his Ivy League education.

But he completely missed the boat on what Christianity actually is.

It is not a means to a selfish end (immortality). And it is certainly isn’t just a self-indulgent “devotion to the [Christian] community itself.”

Christianity is a relationship with Christ.

But more on that later.

Why did this Wood character feel so inclined to write this article? And I’m not simply talking about it being a side entrance into fringe politics and Marxist theories.

Wood could imperiously headline this article with “God is Dead” — because he knew the voice of opposition has faded into a silent minority.

He titled it that, because he could.

Maybe I’ve become jaded, living in Manhattan — the godless epicenter of the world — but unless I seek Christ out at church on Sundays and during the week, God is nowhere to be found in our society. In our culture. In our schools. In the media.

Christianity is on a rapid, rapid decline. In 2019, only 65% of adults identified as Christians. That’s down a whopping 12% in just the last decade. And those who identify as atheist, agnostic, or “nothing” — have risen 17%.

Those statistics are gut-wrenching, yet sadly, not surprising.

And what are we to do? Yes, evangelization obviously. But in the spirit of this article, I want to offer something else.

We can’t let someone else write the narrative for us.

We can’t just sit back and let someone else define us, or speak for us. We can’t simply accept the stereotypes, like Wood: claiming that Christians are merely concerned with living forever. Or SNL depicting Christians as orthopedic shoe, ankle length skirt and cardigan wearing church ladies. Or the media mocking us as socially awkward weirdos; or bigoted backcountry hillbillies; or better yet: judgmental, holy rollers that reek of self-righteousness.

That is not the Christianity founded by Christ.

And it’s ironic, becuase in actuality, Wood’s not entirely wrong. Yes, Jesus was concerned about eternity — but He was also concerned about this life too. He was concerned with serving the poor, and caring for those in need. He touched the lepars. He loved the children. He cherished time with people, and made sure to break bread with His loved ones.

It was a both/and.

And that’s what was missing from the article.

And it makes sense. The author missed the entire point of Christianity, because He doesn’t actually know Christ — which is a shame, and I pray that he does come to know the Lord.

The point of Christianity is not just to get to Heaven. The point is to live as Christ lived, and follow His example.

And as we see most quintessentially depicted on the Cross, Jesus lived and died for both the here and now, and eternity in Heaven.

He wouldn’t have come down to earth, if it wasn’t important — if we weren’t important. Yes — you, me, our relationship with Him — that mattered. It matters here in this life, and it matters in the next.

The cross is the link between the two.

It is the welded connection that brings the two together, and makes it all make sense.

Sure, The New Yorker may be able to explain away a myriad of topics with their highfalutin, intellectual jargon — but faith is something that cannot be proven by reason. For its very nature is an act of trust in things unknown. Things unseen.

And that’s a risk I’m willing to bet my eternity on.

***Disclaimer: I fully support taking efforts to preserve the environment. The straw comment was for dramatic effect 😉 Peace.

“This is what the Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life.” Ez 37:5

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311 thoughts on “THE NEW YORKER’s Christianity”

  2. “If you love salvation, don’t you think your neighbor would too?”

    This is a quote our pastor says frequently because he teaches the same thing! Getting to Heaven is not our purpose as Christians, it is getting as many people to join us there as we can! Thanks for your writing. It is rarely easy to read a writing of someone you so staunchly disagree with, and know is simply bitter, but I appreciate you taking the time to read that New Yorker article, and then to counter it with some hope! Thanks!

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  4. I love the way you describe the true meaning of being a Christian! The last portion of your article is so right on target.
    And yet when you get angry at “liberals” make fun of them, say mean things about them etc I always feel very uncomfortable. I’m like, where is all this anger coming from? It’s like watching Fox news.
    The magazine article I’m sure was awful…..that’s why I don’t read it.
    Yes your posts are wonderful here, it is your blog and you can write whatever you like.
    But how do we reach a group of people when we write about them this way?

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    1. Thank you so much. Yeah I should probably watch how I speak – I think passion can sometimes be taken as anger – especially when I’m trying to make a joke. Lesson learned. Thank you so much for this feedback – I truly do appreciate it. Hugs and love xox

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  6. Agree to disagree with these people but I would caution you from using the same language to do it.
    We’re better than that.
    (not better than them)
    All the best and thanks for dropping in on my blog. Glad you liked it.
    John Ormsby

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    1. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this John! Yeah I def tried to take the high road – but i hope my passion didn’t get the best of me! Hugs and love xox

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      1. Let’s not give them anything to use against us because we’re terribly outgunned in the media at the moment.
        Keep up the great work on your blog, kiddo.
        Your Canadian Cousin,
        Johnny O

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  7. Eloquently written. Interesting perspective. Many make Christianity out to be something it is not. Thank you for allowing God to use you to set the record straight.

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  10. Thank you for writing this! It is sad what the unbelievers have to say about Christ. I know you get a lot of first-hand experience living where you do. I live in the South, and I get a lot of experience living in a very “Christian” area. Sadly, these negative stereotypes exist for a reason. It’s not mere slander — there is a lot of truth to it. Yet. if we really know Christ, as you wrote, we know what Christian life should be like (or we work towards that goal). The best way, I think I’ve learned, to deal with this is to fight the stereotypes by striving to be examples ourselves of trust in Jesus, patience, compassion, and not letting this world get into us and corrupt us. So hard. The North has its issues. The South its issues. Christians of all stripes can unite in the Spirit. Stop fighting ourselves. Stop fighting the world. Be the Light and the Salt. Wait for Jesus to come and set it all in order. God bless you for taking a stand. Sorry for my long (probably arrogant) comment 🙂

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  11. I think you make some very good points. However, I would caution against using the beginning of an artical defending christianity to tear someone down, even if just for dramatic effect. The thing about the dwindling numbers in people who identify as Christians is that it is actually not a bad thing. There are so many people who identified as Christian’s who were just showing up on sunday to make face. We are in this beautiful time where we are witnessing, quite seriously, the chaff being separated from the grain. While other people are worried about the falling numbers, I am excited that we are in a season where what may seem like numbers are falling, faith is building. Dont worry about the people who would attack our faith, they do not have any power to silence our Lord.

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      1. Hopefully its accepted as positive criticism. You’re a very talented writer, and I’d be hard pressed to criticize you on any level. I am just on a strong mission to find ways to combat hatred with love.

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  12. An Opinion of an Old Man.
    One who follows the teachings of Christ will find a need for answers by noticing a place for a solution and offer the path to gets results.
    One who worships Socialist will offer solutions to needs, offer solutions and offer repeated results to accept their assistance. That may be why there are Socialists Christian and not many Christian Socialists. Great post with much for all the consider. You seem to touch all the Hot Buttons. Great!!!

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  13. Girl, this: “We can’t let someone else write the narrative for us. We can’t just sit back and let someone else define us, or speak for us. We can’t simply accept the stereotypes, like Wood…”
    You are SO right! This really lights a fire under me to show the true colors of our faith.

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  14. Very well said. If more people were did in this life what Jesus came here to do, the “here and now” would be full of beauty and light, instead of sin and darkness!

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  15. Mental note… don’t ever pick up The New Yorker 🙂 Ha

    It’s a Saturday morning in Au, and fortunately, there are no copies here. We have our own garden varieties, but that’s another story. In fact weeding, that’s a better way of ‘thinking’ about it…

    Gardening… outdoors, daydreaming with a fresh breeze, and music on… and then whoop, out comes a weed

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      1. I find it frustrating to read that kind of material. It is so polar-opposite to where I am in my thinking! 🙂

        You have done so well, to engage with it

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      3. 🤔
        ‘We can’t let someone else write the narrative for us’. Amen…:
        ‘If God is dead’, vs. the Apostles Creed… he was crucified, buried and on the third day he rose again. So, he has skipped the creed…

        And, much else…

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  16. Profound post Sis… Love it!

    “………but unless I seek Christ out at church on Sundays and during the week, God is nowhere to be found in our society. In our culture. In our schools. In the media.”

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  17. I had to read the article in question because, as someone who’s studied religion, I was curious as to how Wood made that transition to “socialism.” Honestly, your review is a bit disingenuous because Wood makes it clear that he’s reviewing Hägglund’s book – the whole point of the article. This isn’t Wood trashing Christianity, here, but him laying out what SOMEONE ELSE wrote in the book he (Wood) is reviewing. Is Hägglund’s book worth reading? I don’t know; I hadn’t heard of it until now, and had I the room to add one more text to an already overwhelmed ‘to-do’ list, I’d consider it. I can’t vouch for the validity of his argument, either. But you’ve suggested that Wood perpetuated this attack on Christianity, when in fact, he didn’t.

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    1. Thanks for this clarification. I appreciate you taking the time to read both articles! Always good to get another sounding board! Hugs and love xox

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  18. This is a really interesting post for me fo read, as my husband and I are currently sitting at a YWAM base in Kona Hawaii getting ready to start a week of serving the teams here. To an extent, I can understand what the author is saying, regarding Heaven being the selfish desire for Christians. My husband and I were just talking about this, and I think, for some, this may be a true statement. I think, especially for Christians who haven’t radically experienced Christ’s grace and the power of the Gospel, Heaven feels like a powerful motivator. I know that’s not true for all, but I think that there may be some Christians, life long ones too, who love the eternity of Heaven, and are learning to love Christ more.

    Also, I don’t think Christianity is dying, though I do think people are leaving the churches. I think Christians are leaving churches in search of churches that better reflect the Church, or the New Testament description of the Church. And I think the world is seeing this and running with it. But I argue that Christianity is more on fire than ever before. Perhaps that’s just my corner of the world, and in that, I rejoice. But there is a huge under current of Christians my age that are on blazing fire for Christ, and its wildly contagious. I think we may be on the edge of a powerful Christian revival, which is really really exciting! And you’re right; it must start with relationships.

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    1. Thank you so much for sharing your powerful perspective on this! Oh wow what a beautiful mission you guys are doing. That is incredible. Yes! Let’s rejoice in that! Glad you stopped by! Hugs and love xox

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    1. Oh my gosh thank you Gail! That seriously means so much!! I am touched!!! And wow!! What an honor! Thank you!!! I will definitely pass along your hello! 💛

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  20. Love this, Caralyn ❤️. We can’t let others write the narrative for us. May we have the courage to share the things that draw us to Christ and our relationship with Him.

    And that eye roll meme 🤣

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  21. The human race is aimlessly wandering in the “desert” of life just like the Israelites did for 40 years, Caralyn. There is a reason why that story is prominent in the Old Testament. I was just thinking about this earlier for something I wrote in my blog. As Christians, we just have to keep our purpose clear, walk in the footsteps of Jesus, and keep asking the Spirit for empowerment. By our actions we need to keep our lights shining brightly. Ted

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  22. Well said, Caralyn! I couldn’t agree with you more. 🙂

    These are shop-worn caricatures of Christianity, a straw man (constructed for political reasons in this case) anyone with any sense should see through. But people will believe what they want to believe, regardless of the facts. Which is why I also agree, we need to tell people what Christianity is (instead of what we’re against all the time) and stop letting all the haters define us.

    As you said, eternal life very much includes this life because knowing Christ IS eternal life (John 17:3)

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  24. “…when Christians “worship God, [they] are simply worshipping what they themselves value…”

    Gee, I dunno Mr. Wood, I believe if that were the case, we wouldn’t find it quite so difficult to live up to the standard.

    Thanks for the article. Enjoyable read.

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  26. Love it. Preach it, sister.
    You know, people attack Christianity because they can. Almost every other faith is either off limits or too dangerous to attack. However, what these secular intellectuals don’t recognize is that Christianity thrives on persecution. So bring it on and watch our engine roar.

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  27. I agree with you that the point of Jesus’ message was not how to get to some other and future place (e.g. “heaven”), but that Jesus’ atonement brought heaven to us and now. That was the message of the early Christians with faith, loving one’s neighbors (and enemies), and acting on those beliefs (read the letter from James)

    Unfortunately the church (i.e. Catholic church) was so self-indulged by the time of the Reformation that the Luther’s, et al’s attempts to get Christians back on track lead to a focus on escaping this world to some other and future place. Evangelical Christians have only pushed the process further that we are sort of stuck with either Heaven after death or the Gospel of Prosperity (me, me, me). If anyone has given non-Christians a bad view of Christianity, it is Christians (mis-read many letters from Paul).

    You are right. Let’s get back to believing and acting now, not just for some other and future place. Jesus brought heaven to earth. Let’s live it, in love and peace (I’ll pass on the straw, as I don’t use them anyway).

    -Bro Oscar

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    1. Hi Oscar! Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts on this! You’re so right – He brought Heaven to earth! You brought up a lot of great points. Thanks for stopping by! Hugs and love xox

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  28. Many times as a Christian I feel like an outsider looking in. These are the days where we need to be bold and courageous, and different. We have been silent and afraid for too long, and now we see the results. Trust in God to lead us to where we need to be and to say what needs to be said. If we truly believe that God is with us, then who can be against us.

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  30. I think the title is intentionally provative and designed to cause debate. Perhaps one of the greatest enemies of Christianity is apathy and anything, which gets us fired up, might actually be a good thing in the long run. There was a great episode of Touched by an Angel, where the guy sang about God being dead. The guy’s wife had patiently tried to explain to him, how offensive the song was. Of course being Touched by an Angel, she had died. God’s angels had come to teach him instead.

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    1. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts on this. The title definitely “grabbed” me – so I guess that it did what it set out to do. How interesting. Never seen the show. Thanks for stopping by! Hugs and love xox

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  31. I just trjed to read the article so thatb I might make an informed comment. Guess what? The New York Times also had an article titled ‘God is dead.’ January 9th, 1966. Perhaps they roll around every fifty years or so.

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  33. I have to chuckle at the comment that when Christians “worship God, [they] are simply worshipping what they themselves value, and are projecting those values onto the figment of objectivity they choose to call God.”
    Seriously, without a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, I would have a very different set of values. When one comes to know Jesus, we value what He values, and it might conflict with what we believed in before.
    Sincerely, a former socialist.

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      5. Your interesting blogpost has sent me down a deep rabbit hole. From what I can see Friedrich Nietzche started the whole God is dead thing. I found an ancient lecture by Jordan Peterson. (Gee he looked young) on the subject. Apparently as with most things, Nietsche’s quote is taken out of context and has been used to pummel christians for decades.

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      6. I am definitely very familiar with Nietzche. glad this sparked some interesting findings for you!

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  36. As a Christian I understand the distaste and frustration of the article, however if we as Christians were to be completely transparent a good portion of the reasons why these type of things are brought into existence is because of us christians. For years, regardless of denomination, Hell has been used in large to persuade and motivate people into salvation; a great inspiration behind the phrase “saving souls” and “getting saved”. Furthermore, if we, Christians, are being honest about how we are in comparison to the scriptures and stories we use as life examples and guidelines it goes without saying that we fall tremendously short. I can not speak for our brothers and sisters in other countries but here in American we are some of the most powerless and illegitimate Christians to probably ever walk this earth. We don’t come close to the disciples and apostles in the New Testament and are even further from the prophets of the Old. Although the stereotypes do not define us individually, collectively they are surprisingly accurate. We as the body of Christ simply have yet to start acting like it.

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    1. Thanks fore sharing your thoughts on this! You’re right – we fall short to the example set for us by Jesus and the leaders in the Bible. Lots of powerful food for thought here. Hugs and love xox

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  39. When I was in college I had to read the New Yorker, and I had to write a paper on the article I choose. The class was a tough one. I was so happy when I finished the class. Anyway, another great post. 🙂

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  42. I hardly look at the newsstand, so I didn’t know this copy existed. I, too, would have brushed past it. However, you used it as a platform for your comments and incisive observations. Enjoyed the read. If you have a link, I will post it to my facebook and twitter accounts.

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  43. When you wrote how this writer claimed that Christians are only Christians so they can get to heaven, I wondered if he knew what heaven is. While it is a city with gates made out of single pearls where the lamb, lion, and child play together in perfect harmony, a simple Gospel song defines it more completely. “On land or sea, what matters where? Where Jesus is, ’tis heaven there.” Maybe I am a Christian to get heaven, but if so, then the heaven I am getting is a relationship with Christ Himself that is open to whoever accepts it.

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    1. Thank you so much Yolanda for sharing your thoughts on this. Amen – a relationship with Christ! What a powerful thought. Hugs and love xox

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  44. Wow, that took a long time to get to the end of the comments! I enjoyed reading this post. Thank you. They obviously totally misunderstand the point of Christianity. Jesus came to save us and restore us to God. Once that is done, we can truly live a more abundant life and that doesn’t mean a selfishly indulgent life. It’s a useful life living according to his example and going through the daily routines of life in communication with the living God Himself. On this earth, we may never have a paradise naturally around us, but the kingdom of God is within us. A non-believer will never understand or know the extent and the beauty of the kingdom that is inside of us, and that’s what’s sad. They don’t know the unconditional, exquisite love of their own Father. Because they can’t see the interior life of a Christian, they can only assume that we are as naturally minded as they are. Too bad. We can pray for them though.

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    1. Aw thank you so much! I’m so glad this resonated with you! And amen – we need to pray for them. Hugs and love xox

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  46. Great blog! You certainly touched a nerve. It appears there are lot of people who are looking for something out there. Just mentioned heaven in my next blog, waiting to be finished. Everyone should remember when you die you have only to answer for yourself and what you did with your life. You are a beautiful person.

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    1. Thank you so much Barb! I’m so glad this resonated with you! Amen to that – we will all have to do that! I appreciate your kind words! Hugs and love xox

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  47. Thank you! Very true it needed to be said! The true spirit of Christ indeed is about living in this life to its fullest for Him and for the next. There indeed is no separation between this life and the next in how it’s meant to be lived. That is something Christians can agree on, be they Protestant or Catholic (I’ve been both, raised Presbyterian and turned Catholic). Thanks by the way for liking my WordPress blog post, you can read more of my faith and poetry blogs on #ToDreamers

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  49. Read my comments to Brandon’s Wisdom, Questions About Christianity…

    I do not read or reply to blatant racism. But in this case I had to reply. He is not about any open dialogue cause he has all the answers! I am surrounded by lonely, arrogant and mean types in my apartment complex who have the same superior attitude.

    It is the standard Ashkenazi attitude!

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