missions & culture

It was Wednesday, I couldn't believe it was week 6 and we were already halfway through this weeks teaching, a Chilean couple teaching on missions and cultural diversity. The first half of the week had been a rocky start, defining the world by cold climate and warm climate they had spoken concerning cultural custom and approach, their teaching had a lot of valid points unfortunately the extreme examples had slightly offended most of us from cold climate culture as they seemed to defining direct as plain rude, it had caused tension in the ranks to say the least. But the basis was right that cold climate culture is driven by time money and work, you work to achieve and being slow at tasks eats into socialising and family time. Whereas in warm cultures they were more relational, work was a slow and social thing, the relationships always more important than the task.

The classes went on (and an apology was issued) the highlights of warm climate to cold climate approach really sank in. There really are a thousand ways to offend another culture even when you think your giving them the best. They had a point about the cold fish thing thought, you don't know hospitality until an African boy offers you a coke only to return 7 hours later with it having sold some belonging and walked Kms to to the nearest town get it, and what do we do... we send people away if we are busy we prioritise our time over relationships so many times and in general don't have a clue. An Indian man moved to Amsterdam and thought no-one liked him because they took his no to be no, not the customary invitation that is extended 3 times when you seriously want someones company in India.

The teaching built and started to cover other ways of separating and defining cultures, group or individualistic culture, in the west we are very much of mindset that we have individual rights and choices, when you go to the supermarket you get what you want even when in a group. If a group in a warm climate or group culture go they make the decision as a group, they go to the shops together, eat the same thing...together they buy the household stuff together and go out together. They are more open and inclusive in conversation is open to everyone, possessions are shared and seen as group possession (think of your siblings walking around in your clothes without asking or it being a big deal) Whereas individualistic culture value privacy, our own time and space, possessions are our property and not expected to be lent without first seeking permit ion. We choice our own food, we often eat separately or different meals and conversations are private you ask if you can join or if its private (usually of course there are exceptions to this)

The best points were that in group culture (often warm climate cultures) the person inviting pays everything for the invitees, if you say lets all go out to lunch you are offering to shout lunch for everyone, in individual culture you ask people out all the time, this is taken as invite for company unless otherwise stated this is your treat.

They went on to give statistics about how much of the world was 'reached' this is a christian mission term, in the bible it talks about go into all the world to to the nations and make disciples, (matt28 v 20) when it talks about every nation the original world used was etne which means ethinic group, there are currently roughly 24,000 known ethnic groups in the world, of which it is believed that 14,000 are 'un-reached'. However we discovered the term reached does not mean have all herd about jesus. If one church or one christian is recorded as being in that country it is deemed as 'reached' so actually to think that 10,000 ethnic groups have not yet herd or had access to hearing about jesus, the other 14,000 only have access to hearing about the gospel. Think about it, if your a christian - are you a lazy one?