Journal: Eikon
Volume: EIKON 03:2 (Fall 2021)
Article: The Counterfeit, Anti-Biblical Epistemologies Of Postmodernism And Critical Theory
Author: Mark T. Coppenger

Eikon 3.2 (Fall 2021) p. 52

The Counterfeit, Anti-Biblical Epistemologies Of Postmodernism And Critical Theory

Mark Coppenger

Mark Coppenger has authored, edited, and contributed to numerous books. His articles and reviews have appeared in Touchstone, American Spectator, Criswell Review, USA Today, and Christian Scholar’s Review. Coppenger has served as Professor of Christian Philosophy and Ethics at Southern Seminary and President of Midwestern Seminary. He is a retired infantry officer.

Among the world currencies, some are strong, others weak. And yes, there are the parasitic counterfeits. Unfortunately, these pretenders can do a lot of damage, trading on another’s good name. Albert Talton is a case in point: Using only a standard inkjet printer in the early 2000’s, he managed to produce seven million dollars’ worth of phony one-hundred-dollar bills, circulating many of them before going to jail in 2009. Unfortunately — even tragically — postmodernism and critical theory have generated epistemological counterfeits that have beguiled and bankrupted much of our culture.

Eikon 3.2 (Fall 2021) p. 53

Knowledge

Treasury agents are trained to spot counterfeits by first scrutinizing the real thing, and so we shall begin with the classic definition of “knowledge” — what it is, how you get it, and how you can be confident you have it — the subject of epistemology. The formula traces back to Plato, who, in the Theaetetus, has Socrates identifying it as “correct belief” together with “an account” of why the judgment is made.1 Socrates hesitated to endorse it, since, as worded, it was circular, including knowledge of supporting evidence in the definition of “knowledge.” But the core notion endured, thanks in large measure to the identification of the need for and availability of foundational, epistemic premises, whether empirical or rationalistic. So, we press on with the ancient characterization, today expressed as “justified true belief.”

Eikon 3.2 (Fall 2021) p. 54

Of course, all sorts of philosophical analysis have challenged and refined the definition. For instance, we contrast “knowledge that” (propositional) with “knowledge of” (e.g., how to ride a bike), and a fellow named Edmund Gettier came up with an ingenious counter-argument in the 1960’s, where all three elements were present, but still no knowledge — prompting philosophers to rise in defense of the received concept.2 But there is a strange new assault on it, mounted by purveyors of postmodernism and critical theory.

Just as Christian Science is neither Christian nor s...