Philosophy #1 - The Immanent Frame

Try a thought exercise with me. 

Imagine you are sitting in Marvel Stadium with 50,000 people. The roof is open, and you look up at the heavens above you. You think of your creator God, and His angels, the heavenly beings whom He dispatches as messengers and workers on the earth. You also think of the evil angels, Satan and his demons. You are spiritually porous – you can be affected by the spirit world. And all the other 49,999 people in the stadium know this also to be self-evident. 

This is what life was like in the Western world in Medieval times and earlier. Religion was not a concept because God was assumed. There might have been atheists, but they were a rare peculiarity. People took for granted a Cosmos that intertwined the spiritual with the physical.

However, in 2025, belief in God and the spirit realm is no longer assumed. The West is disenchanted. Over the past millennium, the gradual emergence of rationalism, the European Reformation and the scientific revolution have made faith in Jesus one option among many. In our Secular Age, it’s as if the roof on Marvel Stadium has closed over. We look up and see a ceiling. Nothing on the other side. No God. No spirit realm. No Heaven or Hell. Reality is what we physically experience inside the world, the closed-roof stadium. Our world floats in a scientifically neutral Universe rather than a beautifully ordered Cosmos. 

Philosopher Charles Taylor calls this “The Immanent Frame,” a constructed social space that frames our lives entirely within a natural (rather than supernatural) order. It's the self-enclosed space of the modern social imaginary that, by its very structure, makes it difficult to believe in or even conceive of anything beyond it. This doesn't necessarily mean that everyone within the Immanent Frame actively denies the existence of God or the transcendent; rather, it means that our default understanding of the world operates without reference to them.

The Western mind has thus shifted over time from a "porous self," characterised by openness to transcendent realities, to a "buffered self," enclosed within a naturalistic worldview. It’s not that no people in the West believe in the possibility of the transcendent. But now, in our post-modern condition, belief is relegated to a subjective option, one among many, often perceived as anachronistic or irrelevant. This transition necessitates a nuanced approach to discipleship that acknowledges the Immanent Frame's pervasive influence.

A Secular Church

It's crucial to acknowledge that the Western Church, while possessing a Biblical counter-narrative, has not been immune to the pervasive influence of the Immanent Frame. Practices and theology have secularised, prioritising entertainment and consumer-driven models in worship that mirror secular trends rather than cultivating transcendent experiences. The secularised Church emphasises pragmatic results, self-sufficiency and managerial efficiency over spiritual disciplines and contemplative practices.

Moral Therapeutic Deism (MTD) has become a secular distortion of the gospel, reducing faith to a vague sense of a benevolent God who wants us to feel good. It minimises the demands of discipleship, the reality of sin, and the necessity of transformative encounters with God. It fits comfortably within this frame because it minimises or eliminates the need for a truly transcendent God who actively intervenes in the world. The buffered self is drawn to a therapeutic theology because it desires comfort and self-sufficiency. It prefers to avoid the challenging demands of a transcendent faith that calls for repentance, sacrifice, and surrender. It emphasises subjective experience and personal feelings that align with the Immanent Frame's prioritisation of individual autonomy. MTD is ethically shallow, focusing on being "nice" rather than grappling with complex issues or divine commands. Essentially, it is a domesticated theology adapted to the Immanent Frame, offering a sense of spiritual comfort without challenging the fundamental assumptions of the secular worldview. It creates no need to leave the buffer, diminishing the radical claims of Christianity and reframing it to fit within modern life. MTD, therefore, is a natural outgrowth of a culture that has internalised the Immanent Frame.

Even for those churches that have resisted MTD, many have succumbed to appealing to individualistic and consumeristic desires rather than promoting communal responsibility and sacrificial service. Materialism and pursuing personal success overshadow the call to radical discipleship and concern for the marginalised. This buffered self, prioritising individual autonomy and desires, naturally aligns with a consumerist mentality where religious experiences are sought as personal commodities rather than as opportunities for communal discipleship or sacrificial service. The Immanent Frame's reduction of transcendence to the material realm reinforces a focus on immediate gratification and material possessions, mirroring the broader consumer culture. Churches, in turn, offer "products" and "services" that cater to these desires rather than challenging them with a counter-cultural gospel. Additionally, the Immanent Frame's emphasis on subjective experience and personal feelings, often at the expense of objective truth or communal tradition, further strengthens individualism within the Church. This leads to a "pick-and-choose" approach to faith, where personal preferences outweigh communal discernment or biblical authority. When the Church fails to challenge individualism, consumerism and materialism, it stops being a counter-cultural community that embodies the gospel's transformative power.

The secularised Church, therefore, is increasingly rationalistic and influenced by science, more inclined to dismiss spiritual experiences, miracles, and the mysterious aspects of faith. It has gradually cultivated a "disenchanted" faith that lacks wonder and awe. This inclination stems from a desire to make Christianity appear intellectually respectable within a culture that elevates scientific rationality. This creates tension between faith and reason, prioritising scientific consensus over biblical authority or theological tradition. With an over-reliance on scientific interpretations of scripture, there is a tendency to dismiss theological claims that cannot be empirically proven.

All this leads to an insecurity in the Church and a longing for acceptance. Consequently, the Church feels pressured to align itself with dominant ideologies or political agendas in order to remain relevant and effective. This can lead to blurring the lines between Christian values and secular norms. Furthermore, the Immanent Frame's emphasis on immediate, tangible results can lead the Church to prioritise political and cultural victories over long-term spiritual formation and transformative discipleship. This focus on worldly success can compromise the Church's integrity and its commitment to the radical demands of the gospel.

Even modern church architecture and approaches to liturgy reflect the closed-roof Immanent Frame. Think about the many churches that meet inside theatre-style black boxes. You walk into the worship space and find your Gold Class seat. There are no windows looking to the outside world: reality exists within this closed box. The climate is perfectly controlled by industrial heating and cooling. You gaze ahead at state-of-the-art screens with flickering images that transcendently glow. Your eyes and ears are stimulated by stage lighting and a sound system that rivals Melbourne's best music venues. The Global Pastor walks on stage. You are there to hear him speak God's word. These are secular ministry strategies that accommodate and result from the Immanent Frame.

A New Discipleship

We cannot turn back time to an age when everyone believed in God, nor should this be necessarily desired. Instead, our task is to discover how to be the Church faithfully in the present reality. This demands a radical shift from outdated religious models. To reach the "buffered self," so deeply entrenched in a naturalistic mindset, we need teaching approaches that acknowledge and address the constraints of this perspective. This isn't merely an intellectual exercise; it's a transformative experience designed to disrupt the very assumptions imposed by the Immanent Frame.   

Therefore, discipleship in this Secular Age requires us to confront the Immanent Frame head-on, exposing the emptiness of secular pursuits and their inherent limitations. But we don't stop there. We have the power to re-enchant the world, igniting a sense of wonder and awe through the beauty of liturgical practices, the power of art, and a renewed engagement with the splendour of creation. This involves a bold emphasis on transcendent encounters and a recovery of potent spiritual disciplines. Our churches must become sanctuaries of authentic worship, where genuine encounters with the living God are possible and expected. And we must passionately share our stories, testimonies of life-changing spiritual experiences that testify to God's active presence.   

Above all, we are called to cultivate virtuous communities where ethical living is championed with grace, forgiveness, and mutual support. We are to embody the character of Christ, prioritising deep relationships and communal growth over the shallow allure of individualism. Only then can our pastoral ministry become a potent witness to God's presence.  

In the spirit of Walter Brueggemann, we must nurture a "prophetic imagination," daring to challenge the narratives of the age and articulate compelling visions of hope and justice. We must fearlessly speak truth to power, confronting the falsehoods of dominant ideologies that oppose the gospel. We are called to be advocates for justice, champions of compassion, and unwavering defenders of the marginalised.   

To accomplish this, the Church in this Secular Age must reclaim a robust theology, immersing itself in the inexhaustible riches of Christian tradition and spirituality. This means fearlessly re-emphasising the foundational doctrines of our faith: creation, the fall, redemption, and eschatological hope. But our theology cannot remain abstract; it must be embodied in practical expressions of Christ's love. We are called to engage in tangible acts of service and compassion, becoming instruments of transformation in our neighbourhoods, demonstrating God's Kingdom's living reality.

By consciously resisting the allure of the Immanent Frame, we can reclaim our unique Christian identity and offer a compelling alternative. This undertaking necessitates patience, discernment, and a profound commitment to incarnational ministry. The challenge lies in bridging the divide between the transcendent and the immanent in articulating the gospel's relevance within a secular way of knowing. The task is not merely to transmit doctrinal propositions but to cultivate transformative encounters with the living God, thereby fostering authentic and relevant discipleship in our urban, secular context.

Glossary of Terms

• Buffered Self: This concept describes the modern individual's experience of self as bounded and separate from the world, including other people, nature, and any transcendent reality; this self is "buffered" against external forces, contrasting with the "porous self" of earlier times.   

• Cosmos: The pre-modern worldview that perceived the universe as an ordered, meaningful whole, where the natural and supernatural were intertwined; it was understood as a place imbued with spiritual significance, unlike the modern concept of a scientifically neutral universe.   

• Disenchantment: The cultural shift in the Western world away from a belief in the sacred and supernatural towards a secular, rationalised worldview, where meaning and order are primarily found within the natural world.   

• Eschatology: Theological doctrines concerning the end times, including beliefs about the final destiny of humanity and the ultimate purposes of God's plan.   

• Immanent Frame: Philosopher Charles Taylor's term for the modern social imaginary that encloses reality within a naturalistic framework, making belief in or even conception of the transcendent difficult; it's the sense that reality is limited to what we can experience inside the "closed-roof stadium."   

• Individualism: A cultural emphasis on individual autonomy, self-reliance, and personal pursuits, often at the expense of communal values and social responsibility.   

• Materialism: A focus on material possessions, consumer goods, and economic success as primary values, often overshadowing spiritual or ethical concerns.   

• Moral Therapeutic Deism (MTD): A prevalent, secularised form of religiosity characterised by a belief in a distant, benevolent God who desires people to be happy and "nice" while downplaying sin, the need for repentance, and the importance of divine intervention.   

• Porous Self: The pre-modern understanding of self as open, permeable, and vulnerable to the influence of spiritual forces, divine or demonic, and interconnected with the surrounding world.   

• Prophetic Imagination: A concept developed by theologian Walter Brueggemann, referring to the ability to envision and articulate alternative social realities rooted in justice, hope, and God's promises, challenging the dominant narratives of the present age.   

• Rationalism: A philosophical perspective that emphasises reason as the primary source of knowledge, often leading to scepticism towards supernatural or non-rational forms of belief. 

• Secular Age: The contemporary historical period, characterised by a decline in religious belief and practice, where faith is one option among many and no longer a societal default.   

• Secularisation: The broad process by which religious institutions, practices, and beliefs lose social, cultural, and political significance in modern societies.   

• Transcendence: The concept of a reality that exists beyond the material world and human experience, often referring to the divine, the spiritual, or that which is "other" than the natural order.