Christian hedonism

Doctrine associated with John Piper and Vernard Eller

Hedonism
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Christian hedonism is a Christian doctrine believed by some evangelicals. The term was coined by John Piper in his 1986 book Desiring God based on Vernard Eller's earlier use of the term hedonism to describe the same concept.^[1] Piper summarizes this philosophy of the Christian life as "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him."^[2]

Doctrine

The Westminster Shorter Catechism summarizes the "chief end of man" as "to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever."^[3] Piper has suggested that this would be more correct as "to glorify God by enjoying Him forever."^[4] Many Christian hedonists, such as Matt Chandler, point to figures such as Blaise Pascal and Jonathan Edwards as exemplars of Christian hedonism from the past, though their lives predate the term.^[5]

Christian hedonism was developed in opposition to the deontology of Immanuel Kant.^[2] Kant argued that actions should be considered praiseworthy only if they do not proceed from the actor's desires or expected benefit, but rather from a sense of duty.^[6] On the contrary, Christian hedonists advocate for a consequentialist ethic based on an understanding that their greatest possible happiness can be found in God.^[2]^[7] In this critique of Kant, John Piper was influenced by Ayn Rand.^[8]

Criticism

Most immediately, some Christians object to the teaching's controversial name, as the word "hedonism" by itself has the connotation of the pursuit sinful, fleshly pleasures.^[9]^{[verification needed]} It has little commonality with philosophical hedonism; however, Piper has stated that a provocative term is "appropriate for a philosophy that has a life changing effect on its adherents." Critics charge that hedonism of any sort puts something (namely, pleasure) before God,^[10] which allegedly breaks the first of the Ten Commandments: "You shall have no other gods before me." In response, Piper states on his website that

By Christian Hedonism, we do not mean that our happiness is the highest good. We mean that pursuing the highest good will always result in our greatest happiness in the end. We should pursue this happiness, and pursue it with all our might. The desire to be happy is a proper motive for every good deed, and if you abandon the pursuit of your own joy, you cannot love man or please God.^[11]
— John Piper (theologian), We Want You to Be a Christian Hedonist!

References

Footnotes

^ Talbot 2010, pp. 71–76.
^ ^a ^b ^c Piper, John (1 January 1995). "Christian Hedonism: Forgive the Label, but Don't Miss the Truth". Desiring God. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
^ Presbyterian Church (USA) 2014, p. 205.
^ Piper 1996, "Introduction".
^ Chandler, Matt (10 November 2013). "Persevering in the Pursuit of Joy". Flower Mound, Texas: The Village Church. Retrieved 3 April 2017.
^ Kant 1785, sec. 1, 4:397; Rand 1961, p. 32.
^ Piper 1996.
^ Piper, John (9 October 2007). "The Ethics of Ayn Rand: Appreciation and Critique". Desiring God. Retrieved 2 January 2019.
^ Gentry, Greg (17 September 2005). "Why I Am No Longer a Piperite". Parableman. Archived from the original on 7 May 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
^ Booth, C. W. (2002). "A Biblical Study of the Theological Foundation of Christian Hedonism". The Faithful Word.org. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
^ Piper, John (31 August 2006). "We Want You to Be a Christian Hedonist!". Desiring God. Retrieved 2 April 2017.

Bibliography

Edwards, Jonathan (1994). Schafer, Thomas (ed.). The Works of Jonathan Edwards. Vol. 13.
Grenz, Stanley James (2000). Theology for the Community of God.
Kant, Immanuel (1785). Groundwork of the Metaphysic of Morals.
Lewis, C. S. (1949). The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses. New York: Macmillan. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
Piper, John (1996). Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (rev. ed.). Multnomah Books. ISBN 978-1-59052-119-9. Archived from the original on 31 March 2007. Retrieved 1 January 2019 – via Desiring God.
——— (1998). God's Passion for His Glory: Living the Vision of Jonathan Edwards (PDF). Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books. ISBN 978-1-58134-007-5. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
——— (2013). Brothers, We Are Not Professionals: A Plea to Pastors for Radical Ministry. Nashville, Tennessee: B&H Publishing Group. ISBN 978-1-4336-7882-0.
Presbyterian Church (USA) (2014). The Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). Part I: Book of Confessions (PDF). Louisville, Kentucky: Presbyterian Church (USA). ISBN 978-0-9837536-5-0. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 July 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2019.
Rand, Ayn (1961). For the New Intellectual. New York: Signet.
Storms, Sam (2010). "Christian Hedonism: Piper and Edwards on the Pursuit of Joy in God". In Storms, Sam; Taylor, Justin (eds.). For the Fame of God's Name: Essays in Honor of John Piper. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway. pp. 49–69. ISBN 978-1-4335-2321-2.
Talbot, Mark R. (2010). "When All Hope Has Died: Meditations on Profound Christian Suffering". In Storms, Sam; Taylor, Justin (eds.). For the Fame of God's Name: Essays in Honor of John Piper. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway. pp. 70–101. ISBN 978-1-4335-2321-2.