Earlier this year, Aaron Salvato and I presented a workshop together at the Calvary Chapel pastors and leaders conference on the topic of Understanding Doubt and Deconstruction.
The purpose of the workshop was to help equip Christian leaders to understand and engage those experiencing doubts or going through a process of deconstruction, in order to help strengthen their faith in Jesus and their trust in the Bible, so they might wholeheartedly embrace the gospel.
Prior to the conference, we recorded our material and Aaron took that video, added graphics and text, and is releasing it in parts on the Calvary Chapel YouTube page.
The first part can be seen here, and I have to say that Aaron did a really good job with the graphics.
One of my favorite parts of this episode is the discussion of the philosophical origins of the Deconstruction Movement, discussing Foucault, Derrida, and others.
Theology for the People 
Hi Nick,
I watched Part 1 with great interest. If deconstruction is based on the philosophy that there is no objective truth, how is Martin Luther an example of deconstruction? It’s my impression that he was examining his beliefs to try to find the basic objective truths of Christianity, not to prove that there is no basic truth. Weren’t his premises the basic truths and principles of Christianity?
I’m glad you do these kinds of thought provoking talks, and look forward to Part 2.
Thanks for considering my question.
Diana Thompson
Hi Diana! Thanks for watching, and thanks for the thoughtful question. What I meant by that is that the “deconstruction movement” as it is commonly thought of and practiced today is based on the postmodern philosophy of Derrida and Foucault. However, in academia, the word “deconstruction” is often used apart from these philosophical underpinnings, and is not always negative. For example, my postgraduate studies were done with a focus on the topic of “theological method”, which I often describe as a focus on “deconstructing” the way that people come to their theological conclusions by looking at how they interact with Scripture, tradition, reason, community, and experience. It is in this sense that Martin Luther and the other Reformers were practicing a form of deconstruction, in that they were seeking to examine the foundations of the beliefs of the Roman Catholic Church. Luther, through this process, was able to discern that the church had reached some of its beliefs (e.g. about purgatory, indulgences, praying to Mary and saints, and the belief in salvation through faith plus works) by means of ecclesial traditions which were actually in contradiction with the Bible and the Apostolic Tradition (the faith once for all delivered to the saints – Jude 3). Other doctrines, however, he could see, had their origin in Scripture. So, in the case of the Reformers, the form of deconstruction they practiced wasn’t based on a relativistic understanding of truth, but was about examining the origins of their beliefs. My point in bringing this up is to say that there are different kinds of deconstruction, and that not all are bad.