Contextualization is Inevitable A 10 year old Canadian boy squats by the bank of a river in Borneo and watches the Prayer Man of the Dayak tribal group prepare the Beranyut ceremony. The son of missionaries to the Dayak people, Loren Warkentin1 was filled with curiosity about this ritual that these tribal animists performed once [...]
All Articles having the tag "Cross-Cultural".
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Searching for a Metaphor that Connects “Give me my share of the inheritance” (Luke 15:11). With one small phrase the son callously declares that his Father is more valuable to him dead than alive.1 He dishonors his father, disregards his family, abandons his community and treats his religion with disdain. In the Muslim Sindhi society,2 [...]
This article tries to explain why a contextualization of the gospel, such as described in Shaping the Gospel Message so that it Resonates, does not compromise the Bible or the gospel message. It argues that one universal explanation of the cross is insufficient to communicate the gospel message because of the depth of the gospel [...]
A Shift in Communicating Salvation There was a pause in the conversation. My visitor considered seriously the illustration I had presented to him. He then spoke words that became a critical turning point in my ministry in Pakistan – he challenged my understanding of salvation. To present the gospel, I would often use an illustration [...]
Cross-Cultural Confusion Early on in my attempts to deepen my ability to converse in the Sindhi language, I learned a new idiom for “dying,” which is similar to the English “to pass on.” I decided to use it while conversing with an acquaintance and said casually, “When I pass on…” He started and a look [...]
Meaning is Determined by Culture I recently gave a message from the book of Ruth focusing on the meaning of the Hebrew concept of go’el, the “kinsman–redeemer” (NIV), which is one of the key themes of the book. While struggling to find the best way to communicate the reality that the meaning of the term [...]
Every year I enjoy teaching the “Pioneering Church Planting” lesson for Perspectives on the World Christian movement in the Lower Mainland, Vancouver. Perspectives is a very popular and highly recommended course for any believer who has an interest in what God is doing worldwide. The primary thesis of my lesson is that the cross-cultural church [...]
Both literal or “word for word” translations as well as meaning-based or “thought for thought” translations are legitimate representations of the original biblical manuscripts. Each style of translation has strengths and weaknesses in providing readers access to the content of the biblical writings in their own language. The argument in these articles is that a [...]
NOTE: Mark is available to work with our FEBBC/Y churches to coach missions committees in their role in leading their local church in the area of missions. Please contact Mark via the Contact Me form or view Mark’s Coaching page It is so easy to become distracted! Whenever I come home from my Bible translation [...]
NOTE: A companion workshop to these articles is available to multi-ethnic churches that provides information, exercises and interaction to encourage the implementation of those disciplines that promote healthy intercultural relationships. Please contact Mark via the Contact Me form. Whose rules rule? In the innovative cultural simulation game, Barnga, created by Sivasailam Thiagarajan, groups of people [...]
NOTE: A companion workshop to these articles is available to multi-ethnic churches that provides information, exercises and interaction to encourage the implementation of those disciplines that promote healthy intercultural relationships. Please contact Mark via the Contact Me form. The High Power Distance / Low Power Distance1 Culture Clash HPD = High Power Distance LPD = [...]
NOTE: A companion workshop to these articles is available to multi-ethnic churches that provides information, exercises and interaction to encourage the implementation of those disciplines that promote healthy intercultural relationships. Please contact Mark via the Contact Me form. The Power Distance Contrast In Pakistan there is a strong tradition of “holy men” who are called [...]
Three ways to understand the Bible My wife, Karen, heard a message by a young woman with no theological training on Jer 29:11, “I know the plans I have for you….” The young woman spoke of the verse as if it was addressed to us today and talked about the plans God has for us. [...]
“That’s just NOT right!” exclaimed a woman in a Bible study I was conducting. The object of her disapproval was Naomi’s instructions for Ruth to approach Boaz while he was sleeping (see Ruth 3). She was correct in that she recognized the inappropriateness of such an action within our society. She was incorrect because she [...]
(This is an edited reprint from FEBInternational’s publication “Focal Point”) “There are too few trained leaders!” This statement jumped out at me from my browser one morning a short while ago. Although the Operation World web page was referring to Burkina Faso, this statement describes many countries with thousands of young Christians who lack the [...]
What is culture? There is a current debate (National Post, March 2-, 2007) about whether fashion should be classified as culture, with implications for government funding. Canada has policies promoting “multiculturalism.” I have read books and heard sermons concerning the need for Christians to remain separate from “the prevailing culture.” These diverse nuances of the [...]
Accuracy requires a single standard I remember seeing an ad for a new translation of the Bible claiming to be the “most accurate translation” available today. Although a good marketing tactic, it is less than honest because accuracy in Bible translation is relative to the underlying philosophy and goals of the translation. Such a claim [...]
Part V: Theological Basis for “Christ centered worldviews” What would this worldview look like if Christ was Lord? I remember the time a young believer brought a friend to me so that I could explain the gospel to him. We were living among the Muslim Sindhi people of Pakistan working with FEBInternational. The friend was [...]
Part IV: The Benefits of “Christ-centered worldviews” When translating the Old Testament in the Sindhi language of Pakistan or when teaching from the Old Testament to Sindhis I am constantly amazed at the similarities of culture and worldview. One believer enthusiastically exclaimed to me, “The reason why we understand the OT and you don’t is [...]
Part II: Worldview Clarification Worldview distinct from Theology In these articles I am arguing that we should speak of “Christ centered worldviews” in the plural, rather than claim that there is only one “Christian worldview” that is correct to which all people should conform. It is important to realize that “worldview” is very different from [...]
Part I: Communication within worldviews It is quite common to come across the phrase “The Christian Worldview” in evangelical writings. I believe that this phrase is unhelpful and misleading particularly for those involved in cross-cultural missions and I would propose an alternative. I believe that we should instead speak of “Christ centered worldviews” in the [...]
A team of Canadian youth was involved with young people from another culture for an intense two weeks of ministry in children’s camps. They came back excited and impacted, but apart from relief at their safe return home, the church and parents showed little interest in the effect that experience had on the lives of [...]
The Need for Cross-cultural Leadership Training: Why FEBInternational is developing the CLTP program “We no longer need ‘general practitioner’ missionaries here.” This comment from an experienced FEBI missionary points to an important reality in missions today: the need for quality personnel who can provide “value added” ministry. A guiding principle to validate the expense and [...]
Contextualization is an important part of missiology. This is the process of discovering culturally appropriate means of communicating the transforming power of the gospel. Authenticity requires the missionary to live out the gospel with integrity according to the assumptions and priorities of his or her own culturally shaped worldview. However, missions necessitates cross-cultural sensitivity and [...]
A recent book review in the Evangelical Baptist (March / April 2005, p. 20) on the book Ishmael: My brother – A Christian Introduction to Islam, contained the provocative statement, “from a biblical vantage point, Allah does not exist.” Such a claim is based on the reality that Allah is not viewed by Muslims as [...]
The Fear of Dilution I was recently talking with a colleague who voiced a concern about the expanding understanding of missions in some of our more missional churches. The missions committee at his church expressed the desire to incorporate local evangelistic and social efforts under the broad umbrella of “missions.” My colleague was afraid that [...]
Learning to be an effective change agent for Jesus Christ in another culture is the goal of a missionary. This can be mistakenly reduced to methods of communicating the gospel message which do not reflect sufficient appreciation or validation of the existing culture. Cross-cultural ministry is not a matter of learning a new language to [...]
In Canada we live in a pluralistic (1) society. How are we as Christians to respond to different philosophies, lifestyles, religions and cultures? What is the right attitude for those who believe in the exclusive claims of Christ? Should we appreciate other people’s cultures? Should we appreciate other people’s religious beliefs? It is an illusion [...]
In Pakistan we lived next door to a mosque. The Maolvi (Muslim clergy) and I would occasionally talk and one day I gave him a New Testament to read. The next time we met he informed me that "this is not God’s Word. But it contains God’s Word." Further clarification revealed his view that scripture [...]
Implications for the Church Oriented Sending Agency The Partnership Trend Stemming from a college professor’s interest in his international students, members from a local church began to build relationships with families from that people group. Some of the church members went on to minister full time to these people in their homeland. While there they [...]
Proactive Churches in Missions It was only a decade ago that common wisdom for finding support for missionaries said, "Forget the churches and focus on individual contacts." Some missions organizations even encouraged their members to use the churches as a means for raising individual support. In this way they sometimes managed, often to the irritation [...]
Before my wife, Karen, and I went to Pakistan in 1985 we learned the LAMP (Language Acquisition Made Practical) method of language learning. Although I often wished the course had been better tailored to suit my ability (perhaps LAMPSSSSS – Language Acquisition Made Perfectly Smooth Sailing for the Simple minded and Slow of Speech), the [...]
<p>While we were learning the Sindhi language in Pakistan during the 1980s my wife, Karen, tried to discover the word for "share" and was given a word essentially equivalent to the English "give". The problem was that "share" is a concept based on a principle of individual ownership and the permission required for another to [...]
The people in the best position to teach others are those who are actually involved in doing the task that needs to be taught. This conviction is behind the goal of creating an experience-based mentored environment for the training of cross-cultural ministers through Northwest Baptist Seminary (www.nbseminary.com/), located on the Trinity Western University campus, Langley, [...]
Even though in our churches, salvation in Christ is primarily described in terms of justice and mercy using the analogy of a celestial court, the focus of justice as a major issue for society is often overshadowed in Evangelical circles by other concerns. The death of thousands of infants through abortion makes the pro-choice cries [...]
"Don’t plant churches, plant ministries!" In our recent BC convention (May, 2003) Dr. Ray Bakke challenged us to reach the city for Christ. At one point he said "Don’t plant churches, plant ministries!" Focus on meeting the needs of people in practical ways and the transforming power of the cross will be experienced. By living [...]
Karen and I worked in evangelism and church planting for 10 years among the Sindhi Muslim people in Pakistan. Although our goal was to plant a church and a number of Sindhis became followers of Christ, we were not successful in establishing a "3-selfs" church (self-governing, self-supporting, self-propogating). Whenever we attended a conference in Pakistan [...]
The Perfect Translation Illusion The translation of Scripture into other languages is a cross-cultural mission activity that enjoys enthusiastic support in evangelical circles. But curiously this support is coupled with wide spread ignorance concerning what constitutes an accurate Bible translation. There seems to be an illusion that the perfect translation is possible, one which will [...]
As an evangelical I cringe when evangelism is described as "humanizing," as if the focus of salvation has somehow changed from what God has done for us in Christ, to what we are to accomplish for ourselves. However it is never wise to quickly dismiss another point of view without grappling with the questions and [...]
Global technological and political developments have changed the face of the world and altered forever the way the church can participate in God’s work of establishing his kingdom. The great gods of science and secularism of the 20th century are making room for the pluralism and skepticism of the postmodern mind. An increasing sense of [...]