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Why Retro Is the Future of Cultural Apologetics
Christian cultural apologetics often chases the latest sensation. Take, for instance, the countless words written about a blonde pop icon who dominates headlines with her catchy tunes, her dating life, and her symbolism-filled videos. Her every move sparks heated debates about feminism, sexuality, and the nature of pop stardom.
She’s more than just a singer; she’s a cultural phenomenon. Her concerts are sell-out events, drawing throngs of adoring fans who mimic her distinctive style. Critics alternately praise her as a trailblazer and condemn her as a corrupting influence. Meanwhile, Christian commentators scramble to make sense of it all, penning countless articles analyzing her latest hits for hidden meanings and potential gospel connections.
Wait, did you think I was talking about Taylor Swift? No, I’m referring to Madonna, circa 1985.
Just as Madonna once held the cultural spotlight like today’s pop stars, the themes surrounding her work—identity, rebellion, and the search for meaning—echo in today’s pop culture debates. Yet in our rush to engage with what’s trending, we miss a crucial truth: these issues aren’t new, and neither is the struggle to make sense of them. While engaging with current trends has its place, deeper spiritual insight often comes from engaging with lasting works that address enduring human questions—works that have stood the test of time.
For me as a teenager in the 1980s, what resonated more than analyses of Madonna’s hits were the works of thinkers like Francis Schaeffer, who drew from the deeper wells of history, art, and philosophy. In his book How Should We Then Live? (1976), Schaeffer considers how the work of Paul Cézanne, John Cage, and Ingmar Bergman shaped modern thought. I’d never seen the paintings, heard the music, or watched the films of those artists. Yet such examples were more enlightening than close readings of the lyrics to “Papa Don’t Preach” or “Like a Virgin.”
Schaeffer was a master of a powerful but often neglected approach to cultural apologetics: engaging with eternal truths by looking to the not-so-recent past, to cultural touchstones that are considered “retro” and have had time to mature in our collective consciousness.
By examining cultural artifacts that have stood the test of time—whether songs, films, books, paintings, or other works—we can uncover spiritual insights that speak not just to a fleeting moment but to enduring aspects of the human experience. This approach allows us to move beyond surface-level analysis and knee-jerk reactions, inviting deeper reflection on how art, culture, and faith intersect.
Shortcomings of Trend-Centric Apologetics
Retro cultural apologetics also aligns closely with the biblical concept of wisdom. As Proverbs 1:5 tells us, “Let the wise listen and add to their learning, and let the discerning get guidance” (NIV). By engaging with works that have endured over time, we’re following this biblical mandate to seek wisdom from those who’ve gone before us.
Yet in recent years, Christian cultural engagement has followed the opposite path by gravitating toward whatever is most current in pop culture. Apologetic efforts dissect the latest song, movie, or viral trend, looking for theological connections. While this approach can be useful for initiating conversations with modern audiences, it has several key limitations.
First, pop culture is inherently fleeting. Trends that dominate the public consciousness today may be forgotten tomorrow. Apologetic works that latch on to these trends run the risk of becoming irrelevant almost as quickly as they’re written. Consider Christian think pieces that explored the themes of empowerment and sacrifice in Wonder Woman or redemption arcs in Spider-Man: No Way Home. While such analyses might have sparked valuable conversations for a moment, they’re already dated. They aren’t remembered because those works failed to wrestle with the complexities of human suffering or grace in the same way as, say, Dostoevsky does in his novels or Flannery O’Connor does in her short stories.
Pop culture is inherently fleeting. Trends that dominate the public consciousness today may be forgotten tomorrow.
Second, pop culture engagement often focuses on easily digestible themes like empowerment or individuality rather than on the meatier questions of life and faith. For example, many Christian commentators have analyzed pop songs for traces of redemptive arcs or moral lessons, but these analyses can sometimes feel forced. Superhero movies may offer insights on violence and grace, but they rarely engage with the full complexities of human sin, suffering, or grace in the way that older, more substantial works can.
Additionally, focusing too much on the newest cultural trends can lead to overcontextualization, where we risk watering down or oversimplifying the gospel message to make it fit contemporary pop narratives. The danger here is that in our effort to remain relevant, we may inadvertently reduce Christianity to a set of moralistic principles rather than presenting the full, rich gospel of salvation through Christ.
Take, for example, Christian think pieces on WandaVision (which, after only three years, already feel outdated). While many explored themes of grief and reality-bending, these articles often missed opportunities to connect the show’s exploration of loss with theological discussions about suffering and divine providence. But who has time to put that much thought into a comic-book show? The rapid pace of pop culture leaves little room for the kind of sustained reflection that leads to genuine spiritual growth.
Richness of Retro Cultural Apologetics
In contrast to this trend-chasing approach, retro cultural apologetics offers a deeper, more reflective engagement. By turning our attention to works of art, literature, and film that have lasting influence, we can uncover insights that speak not only to the issues of the moment but also to the broader human condition. We invite Christians into the Great Conversation—the ongoing dialogue between great thinkers, writers, and artists throughout history who’ve wrestled with life’s fundamental questions. This conversation spans centuries and crosses cultures, addressing themes such as truth, beauty, virtue, justice, and the nature of reality. By engaging with these great minds, Christians can contribute to this broader conversation, offering the unique insights of the gospel to a world hungry for answers.
For example, C. S. Lewis, one of the most influential Christian apologists of the 20th century, frequently engaged with older works. In The Abolition of Man, Lewis critiques the modern educational system. Rather than relying on contemporary cultural references, Lewis builds his argument by drawing deeply on classical philosophy and premodern ethics, engaging with thinkers like Aristotle, Plato, and the medieval theologians who shaped Christian moral thought. His ability to engage with the Great Conversation allowed him to offer a profound critique of modern secularism, one that continues to resonate today.
Similarly, thinkers like G. K. Chesterton and Schaeffer used retro cultural apologetics to engage with the great ideas of their time, drawing on history, philosophy, and art to demonstrate the Christian worldview’s coherence and truth. By rooting their apologetics in the broader conversation of ideas, they were able to address not only the immediate concerns of their audience but also the deeper, more enduring questions of existence, morality, and meaning.
Retro cultural apologetics encourages Christians to slow down, step back from the noise of the present moment, and engage with truths that have shaped civilization for centuries. In doing so, it helps to anchor our faith in something deeper than the latest trend—it grounds it in the enduring truth of the gospel and the wisdom of those who’ve gone before us.
Swift I Know, and Marvel I Know; but Who Is Dante?
One of the challenges of retro cultural apologetics is that many of the works we reference may not be familiar to a contemporary audience. Names like Taylor Swift and Marvel Studios are immediately recognizable, but mention Dante, Dostoevsky, or O’Connor, and you might get blank stares. How can we connect with people using cultural references they’ve never engaged with or perhaps never even heard of?
The key isn’t to assume familiarity but to create bridges that introduce these retro works in ways that feel both accessible and relevant to modern readers. It’s possible to help people engage deeply with older works—even those centuries removed from their cultural context—by drawing connections to things they already understand and by making the unfamiliar both compelling and approachable. Here are several ways to do that.
1. Start with the familiar and build a bridge to the past.
One of the most effective ways to introduce older, less familiar works is to start with something your audience knows well and use it as a gateway to the retro reference. For instance, people might be familiar with themes of good versus evil in superhero movies like Avengers: Endgame. You could use that familiarity to introduce Dante’s Divine Comedy, explaining that, long before the Avengers were battling Thanos, Dante explored the nature of good and evil through his vivid depictions of hell, purgatory, and paradise.
Why not just stick with the cultural reference people know? Because in Avengers: Endgame, the battle between good and evil is clear-cut, with superheroes fighting a villain bent on cosmic destruction. Dante’s Divine Comedy, in contrast, goes far deeper, presenting not just a battle but a moral journey where the choices of each soul carry eternal consequences. The vivid depictions of sin, punishment, and redemption engage with human morality on a level that modern pop narratives rarely touch.
The goal is to show how the ideas in these older works aren’t foreign or abstract; they’re deeply connected to the same human questions and struggles we see in contemporary culture. By starting with something familiar and then showing how a classic work addresses the same themes in a deeper or more enduring way, you make the older work accessible and meaningful.
2. Draw out the universal themes.
Works that have stood the test of time—such as Dante’s Inferno or Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment—do so because they address universal human experiences and emotions. Even if people have never heard of these authors, they can connect with the themes their works explore: the nature of suffering, the search for meaning, the struggle with guilt, or the tension between justice and mercy.
Dante’s Divine Comedy, for instance, may seem distant from modern-day concerns, but its exploration of sin, punishment, and redemption speaks directly to ongoing questions about justice and moral responsibility. In a world increasingly obsessed with individualism and subjective morality, Dante’s ever-relevant vision challenges us to think about eternal consequences, not just temporary struggles.
When introducing a retro reference, don’t assume your audience needs a detailed historical or literary background to appreciate it. Instead, focus on the human questions the work raises. For example, to introduce Dante you could explain that The Divine Comedy is essentially about the human journey through the consequences of sin, the hope of redemption, and the longing for union with God. These themes resonate just as deeply today as they did when Dante first wrote them in the 14th century.
3. Contextualize without overwhelming.
It’s important to provide enough context for your audience to understand the significance of a retro work but not overwhelm them with too many details. When introducing an unfamiliar figure, you don’t need to give a full literary biography or a history lesson. Instead, offer just enough background to situate the work in its proper context, while keeping the focus on why the work matters today.
The Divine Comedy’s themes resonate just as deeply today as they did when Dante first wrote them in the 14th century.
For example, you might briefly explain that Dante wrote The Divine Comedy during a time of political turmoil and personal exile, but quickly move on to the more relevant point: Dante’s depiction of human souls journeying through hell, purgatory, and paradise invites us to reflect on our own moral and spiritual journey. The historical details serve as a framework, while the emphasis should be on how the work speaks to contemporary spiritual realities.
4. Highlight modern parallels and influences.
Many classic works you may want to reference in retro cultural apologetics have influenced modern culture, whether your audience realizes it or not. By pointing out these connections, you can make the retro reference feel more relevant and interesting.
Long before I ever read Dante’s Inferno, I read X-Men Annual #4: Nightcrawler’s Inferno. In that 1980 comic, Doctor Strange, Wolverine, Storm, and Colossus journey through the hell described by the Italian poet to find their friend Nightcrawler. I therefore knew Dante before I was exposed to his work. Many people have had a similar experience. His work has influenced everything from modern literature to video games and movies, and so people know more about his work than they realize.
By drawing parallels between Dante’s vivid imagery and the symbolic representations of good and evil in pop culture, you help your audience see how the old and the new are connected. Similarly, pointing out how Dostoevsky’s exploration of guilt and redemption influenced modern psychological thrillers can create a bridge between Crime and Punishment and something your audience already enjoys.
5. Make it personal.
One of the most compelling ways to introduce a classic work is to make it personal. Share how a particular retro reference has influenced you, shaped your thinking, or deepened your faith. When people see that these older works have real relevance to your life, they may be more inclined to explore them for themselves.
For instance, you could share (as I could) how reading Augustine’s Confessions transformed your understanding of the human heart’s restlessness apart from God. Augustine’s famous line “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you” might have resonated deeply with you, helping you see how even centuries-old reflections speak to the modern struggle for identity, purpose, and peace. By discussing how Augustine’s story of faith, doubt, and conversion mirrored aspects of your life, you can show how his ancient writings are still profoundly relevant. These personal connections help demystify older works and open the door for others to engage with them.
6. Present the work as a conversation partner.
Instead of treating retro works like relics of the past, present them as active conversation partners for today. When you engage with the Western canon in your cultural apologetics, emphasize that these authors and thinkers were grappling with many of the same questions we face today—about love, loss, morality, and the search for meaning.
Frame the classic work as part of an ongoing dialogue about life’s biggest questions. For example, rather than simply giving a summary of The Divine Comedy (which they can get from Wikipedia), ask how Dante’s understanding of sin and salvation compares to our modern views on morality and redemption. By positioning these older works as conversation partners rather than museum pieces, you invite your audience into a dialogue that feels both relevant and enriching.
Anchor Apologetics in Eternal Truths
Introducing unfamiliar retro works isn’t just about imitating past voices; it’s about carrying their wisdom forward. We may not be as clear as Lewis, as clever as Chesterton, or as comprehensive as Schaeffer, but we can draw from the deep wells of history as they did and bring the same timeless truths to a new generation. We can show how the cultural moment may change but the truth remains. It’s just waiting for us to recover it.
Instead of treating retro works like relics of the past, present them as active conversation partners for today.
As we engage in cultural apologetics, let’s not be content with chasing today’s trends. Instead, let’s immerse ourselves in the enduring works of the past—those that have shaped not only Christian thought but the very fabric of human civilization. By doing so, we’ll offer a richer, more reflective apologetic that speaks to the eternal truths of the gospel in every age.
So let’s take action. Pick up a book that has endured, a piece of art that has spoken across time, or a symphony that has stirred souls for generations. Engage with it deeply, reflect on its connection to the true faith, and use it to invite others into a conversation that transcends the present moment.
Don’t stop at simply engaging personally with these works. Form a book group to discuss them in your community. Bring up these ideas in church contexts, small groups, or even conversations with friends. Use them as teaching tools in youth groups or Bible studies. By doing this, you’ll be able to offer something far richer than what can be gained by chasing page views and fleeting trends. You’ll be able to offer an apologetic rooted in the eternal.
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