Gospel in a Pluralist Society: Authority, Autonomy, & Tradition (ch. 4)

Newbigin eschews the Enlightenment trend of rejecting tradition and looking at things “critically” as impossible. We are all subject to our tradition and use it as a starting point for moving forward in the various fields of knowledge. Every field, even hard sciences dismiss much that is outside the “tradition” unless it comes from someone respected within the tradition. And something that does not fit the tradition is not a threat to the tradition unless it builds up and ends up answering more questions about life than its predecessor. Something is not dismissed if it does not make sense; it is only dismissed if there is something to replace it. This is why evolution is still hanging on – there’s no atheistic replacement.