REFRAMING Worldview Education with Simon Kennedy (ep. 68)

On this episode of the podcast, I speak with Simon Kennedy about his buzzy new book Against Worldview. It’s a book that is provocative in the best way, especially for anyone who has used the phrase “Christian worldview,” in an educational context. It asks what we mean when we say worldview and whether the concept has been pressed beyond its usefulness. Among the topics we discuss:

• The ways that "worldview" can go wrong, especially when used as an organizing principle for Christian education.
• Why worldview can lead to "painting by the numbers" instead of the placing of tiles in a mosaic
• Why the biblical concept of "wisdom" may offer a better way forward, and why it is better to build towards worldview (inductively) than from it (deductively)
• Tensions in the concept of wisdom and whether there is a parallel to general vs. special revelation
• Whether the real problem is the modern push for uniformity
• Why Christian institutions need to double down on doctrine and catechesis, insisting that we look "at" what Christians believe and not just "through" the world view lens

Get the book: https://lexhampress.com/product/305968/against-worldview-reimagining-christian-formation-as-growth-in-wisdom 

Justin's note: I wrote a review of this book for Christianity Today, and we bring up points of that review a few times during the podcast. The review is here: https://www.christianitytoday.com/2025/02/against-worldview-wisdom-simon-kennedy-abraham-kuyper-christian-education/