Yesterday I received the current issue of  Newsweek whose title caught my eyes immediately — The New Pragmatists. In the beginning of the cover story, it says that Asians have elected pragmatic leaders or manager-in-chief who promise a  return to the good old days of fast growth, job security and social mobility.  “You can’t be ideological when confronted with globalization, you have to be pragmatic,” a quote from a political economist at Temple University in Tokyo.

What is pragmatism anyway? Pragmatism is a philosophical movement around the turn of the 20th century (founded by Charles Peirce and popularized by William James and John Dewy) based on using practical consequences as the primary basis for evaluation.  So whatever works best will be the primary goal whether the proposal or plan you considering is true or not.

Is Pragmatism truly rooted in the foundation of the Biblical perspective? In Luke 24:, Jesus said, “If you want to be my disciples you must love me more than your own father and mother, wife and children, brother and sisters — yes, more than your own life.” And  how good is it if a man gains the whole world and yet forfeit his own life (Luke 9:36)?

Do we embrace truthfulness or usefulness? The former lies in Jesus; the latter in pragmatists.