Monthly Archives: May 2015

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May 27, 2015

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Definitions, Multicultural churches

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Most Christians Don’t Speak English

Myopia is a medical term for nearsightedness. Sadly, many Christians suffer from social and spiritual myopia.

We can see the things and people that are close to us very clearly. The people that are further from us culturally or ethnically, or by wealth or education we don’t see as clearly. Sometimes we walk right past them and don’t see them. Sometimes we look around our community and only see people like ourselves.

In this short but excellent video Russell Moore encourages mono-cultural churches to ask why they’re monocultural. But don’t look around a room and ask people like yourself. You need to go outside the church building, into the community and have those conversations with people of other races. Is there a reason that a Black, Hispanic, or Chinese family wouldn’t come to this church?

Is it possible that churches filled with white Americans have come to view ourselves as the definition of a Christian? That our standards should be universal standards? That our beliefs should be universal beliefs? That our “way” of doing church is the “right way”?

This mindset decreases the likelihood that a church will make changes in order to accommodate others. We’re more likely that even when we acknowledge different perspectives of time flexibility between cultures we’ll still demand that African or Latin-Americans keep a schedule that we’re comfortable with, rather than adopting looser start and finish times. Because the way we do things is the right way.

We might convince ourselves that four-part harmony is the “reverent” way to worship God, oblivious to the roots this style of music has in European culture. Because this is the right way to worship, we expect others to become like us, rather than us learn to appreciate Japanese or Indian musical worship genres.

The way we define “normal” is crucial for churches wrestling with the challenges of multiculturalism. Life in a multi-ethnic church must challenge our myopia. We also need to acknowledge our tendency toward myopia and be alert for its symptoms.

I’ll leave my commentary there and I hope you enjoy this video.

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May 19, 2015

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Current Events, Multicultural churches

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So Many Questions

Over the years I’ve engaged in numerous discussions regarding the role of the church in social and political issues. As an Australian I have zero expectations that the government will reflect Christian values, at least, not because they’re Christian. When a Christian is elected to parliament it’s nice to see and I hope they vote according to their conscience. However, I don’t look to politicians to further the kingdom of God. Faith cannot be legislated.

I also struggle within myself regarding the extent to which churches should engage social issues. I am not a proponent of abortion, but the role churches have played in publicly and loudly condemning abortion seems to have done little more than produce a harvest of guilt in women who’ve made that decision.

We don’t need to look very far to see the other side of the coin. I’m sure most (all?) of my readers are aware of the role the church played in the United States’ civil rights movement and the prominent voice of Dr Martin Luther King. This upswell of Christian and broader social pressure transformed American society for the better.

mondaysThe pursuit of social causes by churches also creates dilemmas:

  • Which cause should a church pursue?
  • Can a church of 100 or 500 immerse itself in ending sex slavery in the community and/or around the world, and supporting teenage girls who find themselves mothers; and fighting AIDS or malaria in Africa? Churches need to make decisions and it seems whichever need we prioritise we’ll be criticised for overlooking another.
  • How do we balance these legitimate needs with the need of people around the world to hear the Gospel for the first time?

Then there are more significant systemic issues.

I’ll confess that since I work with a multi-ethnic church (mostly bi-racial: black/white) I view the events in Ferguson and Baltimore differently than I otherwise would. I now ask how my brothers and sisters that I worship with each week feel about these conflicts. I want to make society better, not just for people in general, but for the people I talk to each Sunday. I want the future to be brighter for the children with whom my daughter plays.

I think about the unrest in these cities. I think about the role of the news media. I think about the role of churches in those communities. I think about the role of my church in my community.

I see black church leaders take a public stand against policy policies and behaviours that discriminate against African-Americans. I see black ministers marching with protestors calling for justice. I see black churches functioning as voices for the black community and I wonder, “What is my role as a white minister in a biracial congregation?”  (For example watch this video.)

I recognise that God has given the church a role of calling empires to practice justice. I recognise that when the news media finally leaves Ferguson and Baltimore the root problems have not been solved. So…

  • Should my church lobby for reform in the education system?
  • Should we have signs on the lawn highlighting the disparate rates of incarceration between the black and white communities?
  • Should my church offer education programs for employers to promote equal hiring practices?
  • Should church members seek to strategically join committees and organizations promoting racial harmony and equality?
  • What difference can a church make to these institutional systems that have been in place for decades?

Do issues of racial justice automatically take a higher priority than sex slavery because my church has African-American members? What if the church was evenly divided between black, white and Vietnamese? Would my position require me to equally champion black and Vietnamese rights?

Or should I simply focus on preaching the death, burial and resurrection to anyone I meet? Should I focus on baptisms, not legislation? Should I point people to Jesus then allow individual members to take whatever action they deem best on these issues?

I am aware that in posing these questions I have established a divide between the church, politics, and social causes that is artificial and not necessarily helpful. But I believe that this is the starting point for most leaders in multi-ethnic churches facing these issues for the first time.

What do you think?