How Does The Christian World Look For The Outsider? David Kinnaman

An outsider is defined as “a person who does not belong to a particular group.” In the book, The Outsiders, many of the characters can be described as being an outcast from the social society. Ponyboy, Johnny, and Cherry are outsiders in this novel because none of them really fit into the groups that they’re “supposed” to be in.

David Christian, This Fleeting World: A Short History of Humanity. Great Barrington, MA: Berkshire Publishing, 2009; 120 pp. $14.95 (paperback)

Throughout this class we have discussed the different worldviews that an individual may have. This class has taught me that a worldview is how an individual understands the world and their place in it. “A worldview consist of what a person believes to be real and true, what a person values, how a person makes decisions, and what forms a person’s desires, longings, and goals” (Fuller, Lecture One). An individual’s worldview is the motivating force behind their every emotion, decision, and action. A worldview is what helps an individual make sense of life and this world. A worldview will provide answers for many different questions in life. A few of the questions that a worldview helps answer are questions of origin, human dilemma, hope, and destiny.

The Outsiders by S.E Hinton and The Clay Marble by Minfong Ho both center around the motif of being an outsider. The theme of both books is that you are never an outsider when you have friends and family. This is shown through the two main characters, Dara and Ponyboy. While they share similarities, the two are also vastly different.

Tim Stewart, creator of the Dictionary of Christianese website, in his article “Missionary Kid (MK)” (2013), argues that missionary kids can either be little devils or precious angles, but either way they have a unique and diverse upbringing. He supports this claim by first defining a good MK as someone who practices what the bible teaches (par. 1), then by declaring the bad stereotype of the MK who falters under the pressure and becomes a rebel or troublemaker (par. 2), finally by showing that MKs grow up surrounded by a different culture than their parent’s, which provides many beneficial circumstances for learning (par. 3-6), while also cultivating issues when returning “home”. Steward’s purpose in writing this is to educate Christians about

Many people believe that that the motivation of the Christian church is to radically “change the world”. However, through his book To Change The World, James Davison Hunter explains how this common believe is a misconception. Rather, he shows readers that, from a sociological perspective, while Christians thrive in many areas of life by reaching others individually, they fundamentally components of creating cultural change.

My name is Asia Harvey. I am eighteen years old. I was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. I am a freshman in college majoring in communications. Worldview to me means how everyone in the world interprets reality. I believe everyone has a worldview and it is influenced by our ethics, morals, and family values. It can also be influenced by what we hear, what we read, what we see or who we associate with. Worldview is mostly influenced by religion and science even though, a worldview can and do change. I believe the Christian worldview deals with the belief in the Bible. It leads me to believe that God created the universe in six days and on the last day he rested and that I am God's creation put on earth to fellowship with him and govern

The Transforming Vision, written by Brian Walsh and Richard Middleton, yearn for a change in the way Christianity is viewed. According to the authors, science, technology and economic growth is what shapes our society, while Christianity stands in the sidelines. The authors aspire to see a change in Christianity where it “may receive social and cultural embodiment.” In the first chapters, Walsh and Middleton explore the reason behind why Christianity of North Americans is so disembodied compared to others. In addition, Transforming Vision explores the different types of worldviews compared to a Christian worldview, or biblical view. Furthermore, it discusses how the different type of world views affects us and if there is any worldview better than another.

Firstly, Lyons points out that the “old” Christianity in Western civilization is fading and replaced by “next Christians”, which are Christians in our present and future generations who hold new notions and values from our secular and fast-changing world. The “Christian America” was dead as the industrial age brought us speed and progress. More and more Christians have a feeling that our faith is changing drastically. More and more worries about the loss of faith appear in our society, but Gabe, gives his determined answer: the next Christians do not abandon Gospel, but embrace it as they encounter our broken world, seeking restoration for our culture. The death of “old” Christianity must mean that the “new style” has been born.

My program of study is obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Sociology. In this course I will be taking the some of the following classes, Marriage and family, Intro to Probability and Statistics, Intro to Social work, Christian Worldview, etc. Intro to Probability and Statistics studies different variables of probability, and distribution. I believe I will like this class because I want to study the reasoning of people’s actions.

“Things are rough all over.” (Hinton 35) Ponyboy Curtis says this in the book The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. An outsider is someone who is different or doesn’t fit in in a certain way, which is why Hinton never emphasizes who the outsiders are; readers can interpret this book and the outsiders in their own way because Hinton proves that everyone is an outsider in their own manner. While it can be argued that every character is an outsider, the main outsiders in this book are Ponyboy Curtis, Johnny Cade, and Cherry Valance.

In the first chapter of “Christianity Rediscovered” by Vincent J. Donovan he is introducing us to the idea that missionaries now have a poor reputation due to their history. He says “History has offered the opportunity to deflect and distort the meaning of missionary work in every age”. For a long time a missionary was a person spreading the word of God and after years of doing so we have diminished many different beliefs, practices, cultures and history. At the time it was thought to be the right thing, to spread out and share the gospel to help people find meaning and acceptance. In today’s age a missionary is a lot of different things, in many cases it is more focused on the health and physical wellbeing of the people. Many people still share the gospel through missionary work, but in other cases it is more of a material aid. Donovan introduces the book as a voyage of discovery he wants us to put our normal beliefs aside to see his perspective of living a missionaries life and struggling with the fact of if you are helping or hurting.

Christianity has been facing many obstacles from all the non religious world views. There has been a lot of contemporary influence in this modern churches and Christian gatherings as they try to fit in and accommodate the changing world views. Due to all this influences, everything about Christianity is being questioned especially on issues of sex, divorce, marriage and birth control. There has also been a rise in non denominational churches started by individuals or a group of people with no ties or relationships to already established churches

If one were to ask the American public about their views of Christians, what response would one receive? We can imagine that there would be a great variety of answers. However, most people might say that, in general, Christians are not very different from everybody else. This is a problem. There are many people who claim to be Christians whose lifestyles do not reflect their beliefs. The problem with this situation is that it gives non-Christians the wrong impression of Christianity. Christians need to live their lives in a way that reflects what they claim to believe.

Why are the youth being drawn in great numbers to the Christian faith? Could it be the sense of belonging that they are after? Has the culture that they have grown up in made it important to belong to a group? What makes the youth of the nineties different from their predecessors? It’s not like all of these kids come from disadvantaged or broken homes. Many of them are well-adjusted middle-class kids that don't need to be attached to something out side of themselves to be validated or excepted. The one thing that they all seem to have in common is that they have been raised in a much more complex social atmosphere than past youngsters. They have spent more time in front of a television than any other generation. They have been labeled a generation without a cause. Their energy has been sapped by endless hours of Nintendo and the constant race to stay on the cutting edge of fashion. They become consumers at younger ages too and that brings on the pressure to have the best, and have it first. Kids find themselves making one purchase after another and never coming away with anything that will last. The life that Hollywood romanices and glorifies leaves them feeling hollow and unfulfilled. The youth today are experiencing burn out at a very young age. Suicide