Interesting thoughts about spirituality and suburbia I'm still mulling over. Read and mull here.
And speaking of suburbia and spirituality, Albert Hsu has a forthcoming book with InterVarsity Press titled The Suburban Christian. It should be interesting, as is his blog.
Interested readers should also check out Kevin Kruse's White Flight: Atlanta and the Making of Modern Conservatism (Princeton UP, 2005). He teaches history at Princeton and there's a nice interview about the book on his webpage. Kruse draws important connections between the rise of suburbia, racism, and the emergence of right-wing politics. Such things fit hand in glove and he sets an important historical context that all should think critically about. Kruse is at work on a book about the Religious Right and also has a forthcoming collection of essays on what is called the new suburban history. Read more here.
4 comments:
Thanks Phil,
Your boy is "touching" on some really important matters. But, like he said people in the "suburbs," whatever the geographical location of the 0 "neo-epicurean" pleasure seekers may be, tend to avoid being confronted with truth that requires social change. So, I wonder how we will move deeper into the social issues that he is bringing up.
It seems to me that (white) people (and peoples of colors) with a more "progressive" vision of the world with respect to racial reconciliation, racial justice, economic equality, etc. must decide to remain in the suburbs and bring up the hard questions, and offer the critiques that most are content to ignore. One must remain radical and committed in this context.
as a member of the American youth, and having been exposed to much of these types of people, i can speak from experience to the effects life in the suburban religious right. there is not one of my contemporaries ive ever met who hasnt wanted, deep down, even if they wont admit it at first, to break away from the teathers of that type of environment. its such a cultural wasteland that television (fox news) and the internet (fox news.com) are how most of the right's children and teenagers are tought. but when we get the pleasure of exposure to the real world from a friend and/or teacher **cough cough**, we are really able to step back and see that part of america for what it really is. its a cultural wasteland, arid of any change or enthicity. no one can do anything differently without being labeled as insane, literally, i can speak to that from experience. but what do i know? im just a high school student taking american history for summer school at a private christian church on the outskirts of one of our nations biggest cities.
-dan
this is why travel and getting outside of the burbisphere is so important, especially with so many people retreating to the "safety" of the burbs.
in essence you wind up cultivating a sort of social, religious, cultural and mental custom of incest and spiritual retardation.
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