No one writes as counterintuitively about the Christian faith as James K. A. Smith. In an earlier book, Who’s Afraid of Postmoderism? Smith argued that the ‘unholy trinity’ of French philosophers—Derrida, Lyotard, and Foucault—had something valuable to add to Christianity. In Who’s Afraid of Relativism? he’s back at it, writing positively about one of Postmodernism’s most dreaded ingredients.

The strength of this book lies not only in its counterintuitive nature, but in the logic that holds it all together. For Smith, the Christian claim to know ‘objective truth’ is tantamount to a denial of our very creaturehood. The postmodern emphasis on relativism, rooted in the pragmatic tradition, is more faithful to our existence as contingent creatures. Smith says it far better than I can summarize:

[T]o know that God is God (and we are not) is to own up to the tenuous fragility of our existence. This is to recognize that everything depends—not just our life and breath, but also truth and knowledge, even our epistemology and metaphysics. But all too often we construct accounts of knowledge and truth that effectively deny our dependence, that efface our vulnerability and try to “secure” us from the relativity of being a (rational, knowing) creature. (35)

Like in Who’s Afraid of Postmodernism, Smith interacts generously with three philosophers not typically read by the church: Wittgenstein, Rorty, and Brandom. He finds value in even their most controversial claims. Take for example Rorty’s famous statement that, “truth is what your peers will let you get away with saying” (73). Smith (while adding significant disclaimers—reality pushes back!) shows how this glib saying points us toward community.

There are a number of reasons to read this book. Smith challenges the cheap shots taken by Christians against culture, introduces and engages important twentieth century philosophical themes, and (most importantly) reminds us of “what it means to be a creature” (17).

Smith, James K. A. Who’s Afraid of Relativism? Community, Contingency, and Creaturehood. Baker Academic, 2014.