Postmodernism states there is no objective truth, and to insist that there is (in this case, judicial law, juries, trial, evidence) is to impose violence. Postmodernism says that one’s experience and emotions are sufficient to weigh ‘reality’ whatever that is. So “in our hearts” is sufficient. Zimmerman is guilty because “we feel that he is.”

Watching the George Zimmerman case in Florida has revealed much about ourselves as a nation.  If you follow the pundits and the media, they say the case is about race.  A recent follow-up article by ABC news continues to refer to Zimmerman as a “White Hispanic.”

But if you drill down a bit further than the facts of the case; i.e., a 17-year old was killed by a neighborhood watch volunteer you uncover something that I would say is far more revealing.  Like cutting a multi-layer cake and looking at the layers from inside, the Zimmerman case reveals a world view that is fully entrenched in postmodernism.

There are those who would dismiss all of postmodernism in its entirety and I would commend this as wrong.  Postmodernism, at least from a Reformed perspective, rightly judges modernism’s penchant for believing if one has enough time, talent and technology, that one can discover all truth.  This is sheer idolatry.  But there are many tenets of Postmodernism that we must reject and its children are alive and well as seen in the Zimmerman trial.

In an interview given by a juror in the trial and ABC news article the juror stated:

• She says he got away with murder
• She says there was no evidence
• She says the trial was a publicity stunt
• She says it should never have gone to trial
• She says he should never have been arrested
• She says “in our hearts we knew he was guilty”

This clearly demonstrates postmodernism at its best or worst – Postmodernism states there is no objective truth, and to insist that there is (in this case, judicial law, juries, trial, evidence) is to impose violence. Postmodernism says that one’s experience and emotions are sufficient to weigh ‘reality’ whatever that is. So “in our hearts” is sufficient. Zimmerman is guilty because “we feel that he is.” Cut the ‘cake’ on this case and look at the layers and it exposes the world view for what it is.

Our laws are founded on an objective reality of agreed consensus of the good of the many within a society.  We may feel that they are wrong for many a reason but they are outside of ourselves.  Within those laws are found rules of evidence which are supposed to be followed.  Based on those rules of evidence charges are brought against those who would break those laws and if found judicially guilty that person or persons will be held accountable by another set of laws.  Feeling that a person is guilty has nothing to do with the judicial law.  But in this case it had everything to do with it.  The jury, to their credit, did follow the law.  But the juror made it clear, though she contradicted herself several times, that this was a postmodern trial with a postmodern world view.

The law didn’t matter, the evidence didn’t matter, the jury’s decision didn’t matter.  What mattered was how everyone felt about the case.  Cut the cake on the case and you see how the world thinks.  Look at how the world views the Gospel: we are morally and judicially guilty before God – the Law says we are, the evidence is in, and the jury (God) has decided.  He has provided a substitute for us in the death and resurrection of his Son, Jesus.  But for 2000 years people have been saying the Law doesn’t matter, the evidence doesn’t matter, the jury’s decision doesn’t matter, and it is how we feel about our case.  Cut the cake and you see how the world thinks.

Dr. Christopher Faria is a Teaching Elder in the Presbyterian Church in America, lives in Colorado Springs, Colo., is a member of Rocky Mountain Presbytery, and served as an Army Chaplain for 26 years.