Justin Taylor gives a helpful tip about the health of Tim Keller’s mojo. Apparently, he hasn’t lost it. The proof is a feature in New York Magazine with the unfortunate title, “Tim Keller Wants to Save Your Yuppie Soul†(which invites the question, “what must I do to be yuppie?â€).
Mr. Taylor’s point seems to be that we were wrong to suggest a decline in Keller’s popularity by his appearance on “The 700 Club.†Actually, our point was to call attention to what Keller’s fans notice or don’t notice.
In which case, Taylor’s post only confirms our point. When Keller appears with Pat Robertson, Keller’s advocates yawn. But when Keller generates buzz in NYC, then he is the “it” man. (Just go to Google blog search and look for references to Keller’s appearance with Robertson compared to this feature story in New York Magazine.)
This suggests that for many evangelical Presbyterians who follow Keller, Virginia Beach is chopped liver compared to the Big Apple. The Reformed Chicks Blabbing at Belief.net give voice to this infatuation. “It’s amazing to me that the gospel can be preached in New York and New Yorkers are responding to it. They may not like everything they hear (as the journalist notes) but they at least giving the message a fair hearing. If jaded New Yorkers haven’t rejected the message, then there must be something of value in it.†Not only does this reveal a certain kind of provincialism – “gee, golly, look at all those big buildings in New York City†– but it also expresses a very un-Van Tillian apologetic – “we need to judge the merits of Christianity by whether sophisticated New Yorkers believe it.â€
When Chicago Magazine, or Philadelphia Magazine, or Wichita Magazine run features on Keller, then we will know that his mojo is truly national and not simply confined to evangelicals in awe of Manhattan. But like that sophomore philosophy class question about trees falling in the woods, if Keller fans don’t notice the feature story on the most celebrated Presbyterian pastor, did the report really happen?
Old Life 
“From Google to ‘The 700 Club,’ from the blogs agog to silent bloggers, one wonders if we are witnessing the first phase of contemporary Presbyterianism’s brightest star’s burn out.”
Maybe you didn’t mean to predict the demise of Keller’s popularity, but if not, your “Has Keller Lost His Mojo?” is an odd way of not doing it. The post seemed to highlight the possible demise of Keller as much if not more than how much his fans pay attention to his appearances on the 700 Club v. Authors@Google.
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If I remember correctly, there are over 8 million people in NYC. Does reception of the gospel by a few thousand of them constitute “received by jaded New Yorkers”? Maybe if a million of them were in attendance at Redeemer, we could call that “not rejected” but then, that’s less than half. I don’t get why we give so much attention to megachurches when the number of people in attendance at these churches relative to the city population is miniscule. How is that an “impact”? How has Keller gotten the slightest bit closer to “redeeming New York” with a few thousand folks at his church? Relative to population in a town of one million, my 30 person OPC is no smaller than the neighboring megachurch of 5,000. Call me when you get six figures and I might take some advice. Maybe.
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“It’s amazing to me that the gospel can be preached in New York and New Yorkers are responding to it. They may not like everything they hear (as the journalist notes) but they at least giving the message a fair hearing. If jaded New Yorkers haven’t rejected the message, then there must be something of value in it.â€
You could substitue any city, country, continent, hemisphere, whatever for New York, and the amazement should be the same. Could you imagine Paul saying, “If those jaded Romans haven’t rejected….and so on? If faith is a supernatural work of the Spirit, then the people group being saved really has nothing to do with it, or am I missing something here?
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Matt,
Eggs-actly.
I am partial to Mrs. Tim referring to NYC as the Whore of Babylon. I wonder how native Manhattanittes like that. You know, that’s someobody’s home, Mrs. K. I think these sentiments reflect the difference between those with localist leanings and those with transfomer outlooks. Or maybe some have watched way too many movies.
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Kathy was only describing the negative attitudes of others toward New York. The article recounts in great detail our delight in New York City, particularly for its common-grace-wonders.
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Dr. Hart,
I truly enjoy your blog. Your 2k dialogue has been incredibly enlightening to me, and your insistence on the spirituality of the church here and in some of your lectures have been nothing short of revolutionary. At some time, I honestly wonder – did Tim Keller kick your dog? I understand that you both come down differently on some important issues, and that spirited dialogue is well in order, but seriously what gives?
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Jed, do you think Albert Barnes kicked Charles Hodge’s dog? Or had Gilbert Tennent hurled John Thomson’s cat by the tail? Thus ends my impersonation of Socrates.
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Yes, I could detect the irony. At the same time, when taken in the wider context of transforming, it seems to suggest that there really is something intrinsically wrong with NYC. So the waxing of delight and the waning of transforming seem at least somewhat confusing.
Same would be true if Redeemer-Manhattan came to my little podunk hometown with platitudes to transform, coupled with ironic comments about us being sleepy backwater. We can smell out-of-towners a mile a way when they wink at us for being quaint, and we are confirmed when they hold out ideals to be more than we are. Gratefully, we already have a Redeemer PCA. She sits in the downtown neighborhood of Traverse City, no winking or platitudes, just feebly holding out Word and sacrament. Like NYC, TC is just fine the way it is.
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Jed–
Honest, I haven’t! I didn’t even know Dr. Hart had a dog!
Seriously, Jed. Darryl is often scathing about me but he’s quite a bit more civil than many other bloggers. And he’s often more critical of those who cite me than of me. There’s no hard feelings!
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Complete disclosure here: I’m a cat person. But I think Pastor Keller and I would disagree about the merits of old Gil Tennent.
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I am glad to know that there have been no animal rights violations, thanks for clarifying. BTW- Dr. Hart I appreciate your bravery in disclosing that you are a cat person. You stand with the likes of TS Elliot in your defiance of convention.
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I don’t know that felino-centrism is particularly courageous. I like dogs as much as the next American, but would rather clean a litter box than take an early morning stroll no matter what the weather.
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But walking is the sport of pilgrims. That’s why Scoto-Presbyterians invented golf, as in a good walk spoiled. Besides, aren’t cat people light in their loafers, or is that just a vicious rumor amongst us dog people golfers?
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Zrim, who says you need a dog to walk? And yes, those who live with cats (we hardly own them) may be light in the loafers. But from what I see in downtown Philadelphia, those who are truly light have all sorts of dogs. So let’s not get hetero about this.
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