As far as Christians, I was really interested. Here is a underlying superstructure of the life of the church. While popular movements can sustain the witness for a while, I am convinced that there must be hard intellectual work for the ongoing vitality of the life of the church, work that engages the culture at very basic presuppositions. Occasionally we find someone like John Paul II who combines the two -- a serious, philosopher-theologian who also becomes a popular figure.

As I thumbed through, there was one Christian "intellectual" mentioned -- Rick Warren of Purpose-Driven, Saddleback fame. I guess that he was considered an intellectual, not a scientist -- though it seems to me that scientist might be just as accurate a phrase. That Warren was placed there is a commentary on either culture, Time Magazine, the life of the church, or all of the above.

Boy, do I waste my time!!! Here I am trying to read, study, teach, be faithful to the Christian tradition at its roots, understand its difference from contemporary secularity in its modern and post-modern forms, when what I need to be doing, so it seems, is learning to talk in a therapeutic, individualistic theo-religious self-help language, made for a conservative audience, but with underlying intellectual basis in Protestant thinkers like Paul Tillich.

Fortunately, I am on this influential "intellectuals" email list. So, in closing, I will just cut and paste an email, unedited, that I received from Saddleback and "Pastor Rick" this week. It shows the depth of intellectual insight and acumen that the contemporary culture demands of its theological, intellectual leaders:

Dear Saddleback Attenders,

THIS SUNDAY AFTERNOON is your LAST OPPORTUNITY to become A
FOUNDING MEMBER of Saddleback and be listed as one of the "First 25 Year Founding Members." This is the amazing group of people who joined our church family in the first 25 years. They will be remember by church historians as the Legacy Group who established one of the most influential churches in the world.

I want your name on that historic list of people who are Founding Members. BUT THIS AFTERNOON, FROM 3 to 5 pm , will be your last chance to take CLASS 101 before the books are closed.

Don't miss being a part of history! Show up for class!

Next weekend, we begin an entirely new era of our church at Angel Stadium in Anaheim. It's going to be quite a rush!

God bless. Pastor Rick