Premium Essay

The Advancement Book Critique

In:

Submitted By kbuck9219
Words 705
Pages 3
The Advancement Book Critique

Liberty University

BOOK SUMMARY L. Russ Bush, a dean and professor at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. His book entitled, The Advancement (2003), is an apologetic approach to naturalism. He came up with the term “advancement” to explain philosophical revolution because it was portray newness to modernism. He felt like the name “modern” seem outdated and old-fashion. Modern tends to provoke an attitude of staleness, rather than revolving and advancing. Bush’s book (2003) is divided into eight chapters. It starts with Chapter 1, entitled “The Worldview of the Advancement”. This chapter discusses the fundamental of compare and contrast of modern view and earlier view of God, nature, history and mankind. The second chapter of Bush’s book, The Rise in the Advancement of Science, pays particular attention the development of modern science. The rise of uniformitarian thought in evolution. “The human body is related to nature, and it is similar in many respects to the body of animals” (34). This thought does not include that the Christian view that a human body is different than animals. We have a soul, whereas, animals do not. Sigmund Freud’s The Future of an Illusion, argued that religion base on wishful illusion, rather than reality. Bush’s third chapter (2003), The Advancement and the Theory of Knowledge, concentrate on how science effects and outcomes with the absence of God. The Bible promotes the idea that man was made in the image of God. However naturalistic biological evolution “explains the variety of living things as being a set of natural variations of organic matter. Every life-form, including human life, supposedly arose from the same underlying reality” (page 38). The only reality that exist is physical reality. Bush refers to this as “nature”.
Chapter four, Modern Theistic

Similar Documents

Free Essay

Book Critique

...Why not Advancement: a critique of The Advancement by L. Ross Bush A paper submitted to Dr. Bruce Forrest in partial fulfillment of the requirements for Christian Apologetics APOL 500 Bobby Barnett 11/24/2013 Contents Section Page Introduction……………………………………………………………………………3 Summary……………………………………………………………………………….3 Critique…………………………………………………………………………………6 Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………...10 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………………….11 Introduction The society of today has come a long way in many disciplines such as technology. While the human race basks in the advancements of these many disciplines, a real danger that once was an unthinkable travesty has become an unfortunate reality. The reality is that as society enjoys the advances in science and knowledge, these advances are not progress at all but a hollow attempt of a society that has willingly begun to extinguish the light of faith in order to live in darkness spiritually. This is the domain of The Advancement by L. Russ Bush. Bush coins the term “advancement” and defines this term as the age into which society has now begun to descend on the vehicle of postmodern thought. The danger that Bush presents as inherent in the change to advancement thinking is that regression both physically and spiritually is interpreted as progression within the previous modern and postmodern paradigm. Summary The Advancement by L. Russ Bush is a presentation. Bush presents the word “advancement” as both...

Words: 2478 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Famous Creative Thinker

...individual’s unique contributions to society, ideas used to solve a specific issue, how the ideas were applied, personal and political background, creative thinking process, and a critique of their thoughts. From religion, oppression, educational segregation, and the Civil Rights movement, Hal Cone and Cornel West made a remarkable amount of progressive contributions to society. The contributions made by Hal Cone and Cornel West are often over-looked by today’s youth. Black American youth and young adults in particular have become somewhat distant form Black history because the way things appears in today’s society. What is overlooked, and should often be recapped is; without the endurance and dedication within the creative minds of these two creative thinkers, it’s possible that oppression and segregation would still remain a part of our society. Many Civil Rights leaders are responsible for the equality growth in our culture, and Hal Cone and Cornel West has been influential in ensuring Blacks continued to advance in America’s society. Both men contributed an important view to Civil Rights, and is known as leaders who changed the way the world worked personally, socially, and politically. James Hal Cone is a Black libertarian theologian who was born in the early 1930s. The Reverend Hal Cone has written several books about liberation theology. His core contribution to society has been bridging the social gap among Blacks and Whites, and providing clarity between the bible and African...

Words: 2307 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Book Review of Bush the Advancement

...BOOK REVIEW of Bush, L. Russ. The Advancement. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2003. APOL 500 LUO (fall 2013) Introduction to Apologetics Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary Christopher R. Townsend (#2600628) September 16, 2013 CONTENTS Introduction 1 Summary 1 Critical Interaction 3 Conclusion 6 Bibliography 7 Introduction This is a critique of L. Russ Bush’s The Advancement. In order to properly ascertain the individual components as well as the overall success of Bush’s work, this article deploys the use of a general summary, followed by a section of critical interaction, and finally a conclusion. In the end, elements of Bush’s argument prove invaluable, while others miss their target. Summary Chapter 1 begins with an historical review of the modern worldview formation. This includes first the secular worldview, inspired by the focus on freedom inherent in the Enlightenment. Bush then begins to explore the details of the Christian alternative. This discussion reaches a climax as he notes the contrast of the new and old worldviews. “In the earlier view there is a natural stability in both history and in nature. Progress or decline are products of a person’s relationship or lack of relationship to God, and neither is inevitable historically (15).” Ultimately Bush concludes, “The older worldview is not true (just)...

Words: 1629 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

The Advancement

...Book Critique on The Advancement By Brandon Killings APOL 500 Christians live in a world that seems to have changed overnight. The meaning of marriage is being redefined by allowing same sex marriages and the meaning of the absolute truth has just disappeared. So Bush is trying to figure out where did this new approach of life originate and why did things change so sudden from one generation to the next. The text states that this drastic change didn’t just happen overnight, but it started during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Bush tends to answer this question in his book, entitled, “The Advancement.” L. Russ Bush, is a dean and a professor at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. The Advancement is an apologetic approach to the philosophy of naturalism. Bush used the term “advancement,” to explain the modern worldview based on a naturalistic philosophy. Bush felt that the term, “modern” is outdated and old fashioned because this term tends to provoke a mindset of staleness, rather than revolving and advancing. Bush organizes his book into eight chapters. In the book, Bush explains the ideas of postmodern evolutionary thought and offers a response from a Christian perspective. Bush’s main goal for writing this book was to expose the discrepancies of the modern naturalist philosophy, compared to the truths of Christianity. The first chapter, which is entitled “The Worldview of the Advancement,” which basically talks about the worldview that is most dominant...

Words: 917 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

The Advancement

...BOOK CRITIQUE of The Advancement: Keeping the Faith in an Evolutionary Age L. Russ Bush APOL 500 (Summer 2013) Introduction to Apologetics Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary Edwin S. Krzyzek (ID# 25767621) June 16th, 2013 Introduction The scales of theology have shifted. The balance of human epistemology has shifted from a higher creator to cosmic accident. The vast majority of history has shown humans to be theistic; the most recent dot on the string of time has been that of naturalism. Where Christianity has dominated western thinking for so long, it now finds itself in the minority voice of reason. Even Christians themselves have taken to blending their views to remain contemporary. L Russ Bush addresses this proliferation of naturalism in The Advancement. Brief Summary Bush produces an eight chapter discourse on the evolution, propagation and fallacy of a view that espouses inevitable naturalistic progress. One that believes biological life and humans in particular are evolving into a constant state of improvement. That believes science to be the replacement of God. Bush coins this worldview, “the Advancement”. Bush says that Christian stability has been replaced by naturalisms unstable relativity. Meaning no longer has meaning. Truth itself is subjective and new is always better. Bush begins by introducing a number of pre-modern and modern philosophers. Bush succinctly steps us through the evolution of this modern thinking and contrasts...

Words: 1326 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

The Advncement Keeping the Faith in an Evolutionary Age

...In: Religion Topics The Advancement BOOK CRITIQUE of The Advancement: Keeping the Faith in an Evolutionary Age L. Russ Bush APOL 500 (Summer 2013) Introduction to Apologetics Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary Edwin S. Krzyzek (ID# 25767621) June 16th, 2013 Introduction The scales of theology have shifted. The balance of human epistemology has shifted from a higher creator to cosmic accident. The vast majority of history has shown humans to be theistic; the most recent dot on the string of time has been that of naturalism. Where Christianity has dominated western thinking for so long, it now finds itself in the minority voice of reason. Even Christians themselves have taken to blending their views to remain contemporary. L Russ Bush addresses this proliferation of naturalism in The Advancement. Brief Summary Bush produces an eight chapter discourse on the evolution, propagation and fallacy of a view that espouses inevitable naturalistic progress. One that believes biological life and humans in particular are evolving into a constant state of improvement. That believes science to be the replacement of God. Bush coins this worldview, “the Advancement”. Bush says that Christian stability has been replaced by naturalisms unstable relativity. Meaning no longer has meaning. Truth itself is subjective and new is always better. Bush begins by introducing a number of pre-modern and modern philosophers. Bush succinctly steps us through...

Words: 361 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Week 3

...Does IT Matter? (2004). Many of which most have been translated into more than 25 languages. Does IT Matter is considered as a book that changes the thoughts of a individual about technology and its strategies. It details how innovative, monetary, and aggressive powers are joining to change the information technology and the innovation it plays in business, with significant ramifications for information technology administration and speculation and additionally system and association. IT is seen as the most recent in a progression of extensively embraced advancements that have reshaped industry in the course of recent hundreds of years from the flow to the broadcast and the phone to the electric generator and the interior ignition motor. For a brief period, as they were being incorporated with the framework of business, every one of these advancements opened open doors for forward-looking organizations to increase genuine points of interest. Be that as it may, their accessibility expanded and their cost diminished as they got to be pervasive. From a key point of view, they got to be undetectable; they no more mattered. That is precisely what is going on to data innovation today, and the suggestions for corporate IT administration are significant. Carr recognizes exclusive advances and what he calls infrastructural innovations. Exclusive advancements can give a vital point of interest to stay confined through "physical impediments,...

Words: 472 - Pages: 2

Premium Essay

Afam

...Pan-Africanism: African and the Genesis of Humankind (Critique) Prepared by Ariane Sip In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for Pan Africanism(AFAM 3370) at Xavier University of Louisiana Professor Dr. Ronald Dorris Fall 2012 A Critique of Africa and the Genesis of Humankind African Studies: A Survey of Africa and the African Diaspora is edited by Mario Azeveda. This book was published in 2005 by Carolina Academic Press. This 565-page book includes acknowledgments, introduction, contributors, and index. The text comprises twenty seven chapter. This critique focuses on the chapter, “African and the Genesis of Humankind.” this part of the book is thirteen pages that are divided into six subsections evenly. The focus of this critique will center on how tone, voice, language, and structure is used to argue that Africa has been considered the cradle for humankind. This chapter focused on a few major points. The first point was that physical environments play an important role in determining the course of human development. In Africa, humans have been able to change the physical environment an the way the environment impacts society. The next point shown was that Africa is a huge continent of human and geographic diversity. This diversity contributes to a greater diversity in society and cultures. The third point was that Africa was the cradle of humankind not only for early ancestors but also for modern day. Evidence have been found by scientists...

Words: 978 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Christian Worldviews: Book Report

...Book Critique There are weaknesses in this text that give no strength to Christianity even when naturalism is exposed. It appears that Bush’s reasoning behind this book is to question societies capability in vindicating scientific axioms that persuade against the Christian worldview, a worldview that is more realistic. Considering Bush’s arguments, even though he is successful in breaking down the naturalistic worldview with sound and effective evidence to reinforce his stance, he did not refute their perception with sound biblical evidence or theology to show why Christianity is a stronger and more realistic worldview, causing him to fail regarding the defense of Christianity when given the proper platform. This took place throughout most of the book. Concerning naturalistic worldviews, a growing trend, society has concluded that anything new constitutes as being the best option needed to solve the issues of the world (ix), as if someone took the time to research every religion known to man, dissected each one individually, separated the good from the bad, then created a new religion with only the good from each old religion. Moreover, Bush authored a book that comprised an assortment of worldviews. When...

Words: 889 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Docx

...U1A2 Assignment Contributors to the field of Marxist U1A2 Assignment Contributors to the field of Marxist Karl Marx (Marxism) - For Marx, production is essential for the advancement of society. Associated with the creation of goods there will be, eventually, a few individuals that will control the majority of the resources and their means of production. Louis Althusser – He was a French Marxist philosopher who had a strong following as a serious and intellectual interpreter of Marxism. (I thought it was interesting to put in a critique of Marxism therefore to see the critique of his theories.) Theorist | Theory Summary | Critique of Theory | Louis Althusser - | He was a French Marxist Philosopher his work is in the structuralism tradition. Althusserian Marxism is anti-economist and anti-humanist. His work is a move away from preoccupation with economic determination. Also Althusser also rejected the idea of a Marxist humanism. He wasn’t so much a contributor as he saw attacking the theoretical foundations of Marxism. | His workings didn’t focus on the individual worker it more examines the overall structure of society. Marxism looked at how the human productive power will be exploited in order to maximize profits for the rich. He presumed that humans are actually shaped by societal structures instead of the rich dominating the poor. | Friedrich Engels - | He was a German-English social scientist and a co-founder of the Marxist alongside Karl Marx. They believed...

Words: 914 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Summary Of The Military Revolution Parker

...In this paper, I will analyze the book The Military Revolution and the argument of the author, Geoffrey Parker. Parker is a British historian with many works focused on early military history. Moreover, Parker has accumulated several astounding honors over the years for several of these works and his general contribution to military history. In The Military Revolution, Parker argues that the three most important innovations of the sixteenth century are: firepower, fortresses, and increase in army size. He declares that these three developments transformed warfare in early modern Europe. Furthermore, I stand by Parker and his argument that artillery weapons, advancement in fortifications, growth in army size, and naval advancements constitute...

Words: 1567 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

Scream 4

...many viewers as yet another repetitive sequel in a franchise where “there didn’t seem to be much life left” (Whitty). According to reviewers, the opening scene of the film seemed to show this very well. The “flashes of wit in the opening film-within-a-film-within-a-film sequence” (Hale) displays the fact that this is the fourth film in the sequel and that each film is fairly repetitive in basic plot. Most reviewers seemed pretty underwhelmed with the plot but liked all of the murders and chase scenes. They felt that it was very predictable and justifying itself. “Sequels don’t know when to stop” (Schwarzbaum). “Existing in a self-contained universe, Scream 4 is its own remake (Screamake), sequel (shriekquel), parody and critique” (Corliss). Gale Weathers’ book The Woodsboro Murders becomes a film franchise called Stab that is “modeled after Sidney Prescott’s fictional life within the film” (Legel). This franchise and even the original series of Scream films are seen by many reviewers as extremely Meta, or self-referential, within the Scream films. “Scream 4 should be subtitled That's So Meta, so pervasive is the movie's habit of commenting on itself” (Travers). In the Stab franchise in Scream 4 the “new Ghostface is mimicking the sequence of killings in the original series” (O’Hehir). Many reviewers felt these Stab films continued the horror in Woodsboro instead of letting the town, and victims, recover from it. Another aspect that almost all of the critics commented on was the...

Words: 654 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

End of Work

...of work written by Jeremy Rifkin discusses the decline of the global labor force and the dawn of the post market era. The book is divided into five sections; ‘The Two Faces of Technology “,”The Third Industrial Revolution”: The Decline of The Global Force”, section 4:“The Price of Progress” “The Dawn Of The Post- Market Era” he organized the text in sections so that the readers can understand how the end of work started declining in stages has we read through each section. With that, the analysis of the critique is focused on section 1, which focuses on the current technology revolution viewed from the standpoint of its effect on employment and global economy. Rifkin described that the world is entering a phase in history, which is characterized by the rate of unemployment in the world today. He said “ Unemployment is now at the highest level since the great depression of the 1930s” (Rifkin 2005: xv). He furthered mentioned how the growing numbers of underemployed or unemployed and new extrants into the workforce find themselves victims of technology development and new technologies are replacing labor force. Rifkin wrote, “Today, all three of the traditional sectors of the economy: agriculture, manufacturing, and service are experiencing technological displacement, forcing millions onto the unemployment rolls”(Rifkin 2005: xvii). I think that the book The End of Work is very informative, and it helps provide an understanding to the unemployment rate in the world today. Rifkin...

Words: 1161 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Typology

...Michael Johnsons book, A Typology of Domestic Violence: Intimate Terrorism, Violent Resistance, and Situational Couple Violence provides an in-depth analysis of intimate partner violence, broken up into four different categories in hopes to clarify past research that has created misleading, problematic and contradictory findings. The four different types of intimate partner violence, according to Johnson, are intimate terrorism, violent resistance, situational couple violence, and mutual violent control. Johnson argues that intimate partner violence is not a unitary phenomenon and that understanding intimate partner violence as having different types will help those in the field of domestic violence to diminish overgeneralizations and provide better support for women experiencing intimate partner violence. Johnson formulates his book with an initial overview of the four different types of intimate partner violence and how determining which type of intimate partner violence, either intimate terrorism, violent resistance, situational couple violence, or mutual violent control, will help researchers move forward with their findings and the various conclusions that have surfaced over the past thirty years. Johnson dedicates three chapters of his book, one to intimate terrorism, and another to violent resistance, and a third to situational couple violence, claiming that these are the most prevalent forms of intimate partner violence found today. Johnson does not dedicate a chapter...

Words: 1663 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

Arif

...According to Rabindranath Tagore “There is only one history – the history of man. All national histories aremerely chapters in the larger one.” The book Nationalism is a compilation of three lectures delivered by Rabindranath Tagore. The three lectures published in this book are: Nationalism in Japan, Nationalism in the West and Nationalism in India. This book was written in 1917 about the Nation-State and how the East should adjust to modernization. It is a well thought out and balanced view of society that reads more like poetry than like political philosophy. The just of the book is that the East and America must evolve in a way that is not mechanical but moral and human. Though this book was written in 1917 it is surprisingly applicable to our current situation. I definitely suggest giving this a read. Nationalism is a complex concept to understand. Anderson defines the nation as an “imagined community,” born with the demise of feudalism and the rise of capitalism. For postcolonial critics this definition, however, is not unproblematic since while referring to constructions of nation2 and nationalism with regard to third world countries Anderson underlines their dependency on the European models with the contention that the American and European experiences “were now everywhere modularly imagined.”3 Following Anderson, it is widely believed that “Nationalism is a doctrine invented in Europe at the beginning of the nineteenth century” aNationalism is not a sporadic sentiment...

Words: 1891 - Pages: 8