Haase_UZ_x007E_DTh (2).pdf - South African Theological Seminary

58
produced in the West a weaker (i.e., disestablished) Christianity, greater moral relativism
and widespread pluralism. Yet, with this shift, with the wave of instability that
postmodernity has produced, has come a renewed commitment to science and progress --
because men still need something to believe in, and a reason to exist. The postmodern
wave has [briefly] challenged the march of modernity, but like a great ship moving
through the waters of historical global culture, is not about to be stopped, certainly not by
the likes of postmodernity.
Deconstruction
Deconstruction is a major, functional component of postmodernism that originated in
France during the late 1960’s. Largely the creation of Ferdinand de Saussure and Jacques
Derrida, it purposes to critically assess modernity, and critique the metaphysics (i.e.,
Judeo-Christian) that have so deeply impacted Western thinking. Both the philosophy
and practice of deconstruction are rooted in a negative approach to life. Deconstruction is
extremely difficult to define and understand, yet has been widely discussed.
Deconstruction is a critical component of the postmodern hope to de-throne existing
Western thought, to later produce a worldview more to their liking.
Philosophically, postmodernism tends to follow two streams of thought. The first is
post-structuralism, with its anti-foundationalist ideas, often expressed via deconstruction.
Among its adherents have been Lyotard, Baudrillard, Foucault and Jameson. The other
philosophical stream is generally associated with modern critical theory, especially that of
Jurgen Habermas, who argues the modern project is not finished, that such a massive,
pervasive universal cannot be so easily done away with. Habermas argued that
postmodernity represents a resurgence of counter-Enlightenment ideas, which have
emerged since the 1700’s in various forms, including Romanticism.
Deconstruction is a poststructuralist theory, which began with the linguistic work of
University of Zululand, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa