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Changing Signs of Truth: A Christian Introduction to the Semiotics of Communication

In the Fields of Blessing (Scholar’s Compass)

harvest photo
Photo by zilverbat.

And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to the reapers,“The Lord be with you!” And they answered, “The Lord bless you.” – Ruth 2:4 
(ESV)

Reflection

As we continue through the story of Ruth we are now in the midst of the barley fields ready for the harvest. From his first steps into the story, Boaz recognizes God’s presence among the workers in the field as he greets the reapers with the words “The Lord be with you.” (2:4) 
Then Boaz follows God’s command to have his reapers leave remnants in the field so people could come behind to glean the leftovers. This was a practice that God required. [Read more…] about In the Fields of Blessing (Scholar’s Compass)

Book Review: Changing Signs of Truth

Changing Signs of Truth: A Christian Introduction to the Semiotics of Communication by Crystal L. Downing (InterVarsity Press, 2012).

Life on the edge of the coin. That is Crystal L. Downing‘s image for the communicative task properly understood in Changing Signs of Truth: A Christian Introduction to the Semiotics of Communication (InterVarsity Press, 2012). We live in the tension (or on the edge) between that which we want to communicate and the one with whom we want to communicate. Downing develops this idea by introducing us to the use of signs in communication–the field of semiotics. Along the way, we meet de Saussure, Gramsci, Peirce, and Bakhtin and other major figures in this field of study.

The major purpose of this book is not simply to elaborate a theory of communication, however. It is to think about the significance of “signs” in the communication of Christian truth. Downing suggests for us the idea of living on the edge between resigning ourselves to the truths of orthodoxy and (re)signing ourselves and our communication in the 21st century world to connect with our contemporary culture. She thus argues for neither rigid adherence to the statements of Christian truth from the past, nor a capitulation in the attempt to be relevant, but rather the use of new signs to express the same truth. One example of this she gave from my own generation was the rise of a counter-cultural movement in the early 1970’s that recognized the establishment connotations of the sign “Christian” and adopted the name “Jesus People” instead, which appealed to hippies and others in the counter-culture of the time. [Read more…] about Book Review: Changing Signs of Truth