I love studying culture. So it was EASY to love the readings this week for our Perspectives Exposure series.
We were in Chapter 4, called "Cultural Exposure: How Can They Be Heard?"
Here are my thots:
1. "Introduction"
Whoa! Moment #1 — "A Hindu woman was told ‘Jesus has come to give you eternal life.’ From her point of view, believing in continual reincarnation, she replied, ‘But I want to get out of eternal life." (Now, I can totally see it, but I never connected the dots before.) Image courtesy Ross Taylor.
2. "Understanding Culture"
- Favorite quote — "Everyone has a culture. No one can ever divorce himself from his culture." (Culture is like a set of unconscious-assumptions that everyone has.)
3. "Culture and Cross-Cultural Differences"
- Whoa! Moment #2 — "Among the Siriano of South America, men spit on each other’s chests in greeting." (Hey Ben! Let’s add this to our Sunday service! Actually, I wonder what about US looks ridiculous to them?)
Hmmm Moment #1 — "The problem arises when an American meets an Arab and arranges a meeting for 10a. The American shows up at 10a…the Arab at 10:45a, the ‘right times’ according to [their cultures]. The American feels the Arab has no sense of time (false), and the Arab thinks Americans act like servants (also false)."- Whoa! Moment #3 — "Bridesmaids…originally used by non-Christians to confuse the demons who, they thought, had come to carry off the bride."
4. "The Viable Missionary: Learner, Trader, Storyteller"
- Favorite quote — "So the missionary must become an insider, at least to some extent, if he hopes to avoid these negative reactions to his presence and become a valuable person in the community."
- Favorite quote — "How can [we] explain the gospel so it seems culturally right?"
6. "The Missionary’s Role in Culture Change"
- Favorite quote — "Change is almost always initiated by someone within the cultural community."
Post your thoughts/ideas/questions from the readings here. And keep listening for God’s "still, small voice!"
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about communicating the gospel within the context of our own post modern culture. Where’s the line between keeping the message culturally relative and allowing culture to alter the message? Deep stuff.
Sounds like a cool study you guys are doing! Generally, Americans are so narrow minded when it comes to culture. This study will undoubtedly give your people new lenses for viewing the world.
Brad, great questions to wrestle with…stuff I love thinking through too! One thing I’ve found helpful to me is seeing the gospel presented in other cultures. A great way to challenge that what I thought was Biblical, but was actually just cultural. 🙂