Doug Wilson is a pastor, author, speaker and evangelical theologian from the United States.
He is (probably most) known for his “controversial” book Southern Slavery, As It Was and his series of debates with Christopher Hitchens.
Doug has an impressive body of work at his website and his sermons can be found at Christ Church’s website.
Doug’s outlook is “about embracing the teachings of Christ in every aspect of life”.
To achieve this, he argues, we need a robust theology that stands up to challenges. He aims to promote a combination of the ideas of G.K. Chesterton and John Calvin, particularly in the context of education, sexuality, culture, theology, politics, book reviews, postmodernism, and various other topics.
Doug’s perspective can be summarised as the following.
- Truth is described as objective, ultimate, absolute, personal, alive, and triune.
- Humans, as creations of God, can understand Him as the ultimate truth, as well as comprehend lesser truths in the world around us.
- Objective truth doesn’t mean uninterpreted truth. Objectivity in our knowledge means our interpretation aligns with God’s interpretation.
- Doug criticises those who oversimplify the concept of truth, stating that this gives postmodernists a group to feel superior to.
- Truth is more complex than a simplistic structure, but also more organised than an indistinguishable mass. It can be both complex and unyielding.
- Postmodernists’ claim that all truth assertions are veiled power grabs reveals more about their intentions than they might intend.
- He criticises the influence of postmodernism on science, leading to concepts like “global warming” and “sustainability”, which he views as forms of statist rhetoric.
- He disputes the modernist claim that secularists built the modern age, arguing that Christians were too easily deceived by this assertion.
- Doug criticises Christians who interpret the Scriptures to align with contemporary trends, suggesting they are seeking respectability rather than truth.
- Finally, he asserts that Jesus is Lord, not just in our hearts, and that the only consistent Christian response to contemporary challenges is a form of resurgent Christendom.
