"The Oxford Union is one of the worlds most prestigious debating societies. So when I was a student there, I wanted to cut my teeth in these debates. To my surprise however, I soon found myself getting bored because they seemed to boil down to political-legal superficialities. When I asked one of the leaders about this he immediately recognised my observation and noted that everyone who came to the university believed uncritically in three things: democracy, free markets and sexual freedom. So here were these people who despised “dogmatic fundamentalists”, themselves holding certain uncritical fundamental beliefs! And since Oxford stands as one of the great founts of Western thought, it seemed fair to apply this diagnosis to rest of the West..."
- Interview with the Centre For Public Christianity
Recent Press
Reviews
There is much to like about Western Fundamentalism. While it will interest seasoned readers of political philosophy, the book is also an ideal gift for someone only beginning to explore the foundations of our contemporary world. Breaking the mould with the use of cartoons, diagrams, and photos throughout, the book is readable enough for a thoughtful high school student. But the book’s accessibility does not prevent it from being a source of new knowledge and insight for advanced readers, as it was for me.
The book’s tone is balanced and winsome. Many of Menzies’ observations are driven by his Christian perspective: a perspective that he offers, perhaps, as a completion to what is lacking in our contemporary worldview. But he offers his thoughts humbly, with honest acknowledgement of his own uncertainties throughout. I thoroughly recommend!
Dr Emma Wood, Fellow, Simeon Network, PhD, Philosophy (Victoria University of Wellington)
"Our conversations often struggle to discuss the things which really matter. The central claim of this book is that underneath our opinions and beliefs are core convictions which are more assumed than argued.
Such "fundamentals" are often thought only to be operating in religious faith, but actually, all human beings operate from a set of unprovable presuppositions. Unless these core assumptions are identified and discussed, our capacity to listen to each other, and to change our mind, becomes seriously impaired. Because this text is written by an economist, but one who is philosophically astute and historically informed, it offers an angle that you likely have not heard before. "Western Fundamentalism" works well both in diagnosing the assumptions operative in Western culture, but also proposes how we might discuss these with both rigour and charity."
B) It addresses heavy topics (lots of philosophy) in really digestible ways, including wit & humour, comics, graphs, personal sharing, different genres mixed in, but mostly prose that is easy to follow and clear.
C) it examines and critiques the “unthoughts” of western worldviews from a Committed Christian position but in a posture that is relaxed, inquisitive and even, at times, generous to opposing viewpoints."
If you want to feel smart, read this book. Gordon Menzies is one of those rare people who is both thinker and teacher, with enough of a grasp of philosophy, economics, and political theory to understand why you think the way you think, but able to explain it so that you can understand as well. Western Fundamentalism is a conversational exploration of the unspoken fundamentals that lie at the core of our western thinking. Just like scientists assume the order and intelligibility of nature, so the denizens of western liberal democracy share a common set of presuppositions about ourselves and our world that shape our thinking and ethical intuitions.
The aim of this book is not to evaluate western liberal democracy, but to bring those core assumptions to light, so that we can better understand ourselves and more calmly and confidently interact with others. Even the smartest navigation software can’t tell you how to get where you want to go, if it doesn’t know where you are right now, so, as we seek to bridge gaps of culture and morals and politics in our increasingly globalised and polarised world, we need to know where we are before we can constructively reach out to others. Read Western Fundamentalism. Your fellow travellers will thank you.
Lewis Jones, Simeon Network
"Dr Gordon Menzies has written a very helpful book.
It is to some degree a reaction against the easy critique of Christian faith which represents all Christians as fundamentalists. Conversely, Menzies suggests that in the West, we are all fundamentalists, having implicit trust in the virtues of democracy, free market liberalism and sexual freedom as unchallengeable givens. Indeed, he asserts ‘the West believes it has an implicit “right to continual sexual enjoyment”’. Menzies unpacks the thinking behind fundamentalism in its various guises.
This short text will be very useful for Christians facing the often challenging cauldron of ideas and worldviews in contemporary society. It would
It deserves to be widely read."
Dr John Collier Headmaster, St Andrew's School, Sydney
"It's not often you come across a book that so effectively challenges the underlying beliefs of human thought.
In Western Fundamentalism, Dr Menzies presents a systematic review of Western thought in a manner that is sure to reshape the readers understanding of fundamental beliefs."
Geoffrey Miller, UTS Graduate
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