RESEARCH PAPER: PART 3 Turabian Format
2
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Research Paper 2
Submitted to Professor Dr. Kenneth Nehrbass
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of
GLST 650 – D04 LUO
Intercultural Communication and Engagement
by
Avery Clementin
August 5th, 2018
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CONTENTS
CROSS-CULTURAL EFFECTIVENESS……………………………………………..………………………………..3
AID FOR CHURCH MINISTRY………………………………………………………………...4
COMMUNICATION SKILLS USAGE…………………………………………………………..5
CROSS-CULTURAL EFFECTIVENESS
Cross-cultural effectiveness may be explained as the capability of an individual or ministry to be able to effectively communicate and relate to people from different cultural backgrounds well. At the ministry level, the usage of the different aspects of intercultural communication if used well, it will enable the ministry to pass its message in a better way, ensure that it is well perceived both verbally and non-verbally, and to also be even more widely accepted. This will help to prevent unnecessary cultural biases and misunderstandings, be culturally sensitive in communications among others
At the local community church, using cultural intelligence, the church has been able to have huge acceptance here judging from the following. There is an increased level of church attendance remembering that the community around has members from different cultures who live within the church community . This may be from the leadership style in use here at this church as, the leadership has a wide knowledge of the different cultural and religious beliefs of people and again the majority of the church leaders, are able to communicate fluently in more than two languages excluding English.
The young followers in the church are also further engaged in other activities in the church or church-sponsored activities. For example, the volunteering to social community callings like the visiting of homes of the elderly.
AID FOR CHURCH MINISTRY
They can be convinced, and they take up such callings full heartedly. These young followers are also made aware of how to handle the different experiences that they may encounter while doing such duties.
By the local church acts, the community has also gained external aid from volunteers who do supply some of the essential material goods for use in furthering of the church’s works as, the church’s message is well sent both verbally and non verbally. There are also very elaborate methods of dealing with the various challenges which may arise, and also the expected challenges.
There is also the continuous training of the different members of the local church on different aspects, but mostly, it is for them to better their work and to be able to handle more than one task and to also increase on their productivity. For example, those that are charged with out of the community evangelism, they are trained in the different travel procedures to different countries and cultures of the world.
At the church ministry level, there is also guided emphasis on group achievements and interpersonal and personal relationships, planning ahead for both short term and long-term objectives, and on how to communicate in relation to context, tone and words . Good Leadership of multicultural teams, effective global solutions implementations among others.
COMMUNICATION SKILLS USAGE
I would use elements of interpersonal communication to communicate Biblical truth by doing the following more effectively. One is to ensure that, in most of the communications, it is in the form of a dialogue and not monologue, the other is to always aim at increasing the knowledge and competency of the language being used to reinforce further what is being communicated, for the message to be better understood and even more importantly accepted. The other is the knowledge of just how much different people from different cultures need their personal space. Others may like closeness while others may wish for more distance. The knowledge of different cultures personal appearance is also vital as different cultures have different codes of dressing and personal grooming.
Other ways of using elements of intercultural communication to more effectively communicate Biblical truth includes the following: One is the usage of a variety of different communication modes, for example the visual and written materials all which will aid in getting the message across, the acknowledgement of other people’s opinions and respecting them, the usage of an inclusive language, the avoidance of the usage of slang, acronyms and where they must be used, very clear explanations of them to always be given. Speaking clearly and using straightforward sentences, selecting one topic at a time to work on or discuss and where necessary, confirm the understanding by requesting another person to restate the key points.
Always seeking for clarification whenever unsure of what someone means instead of making assumptions as there are differences between different cultures . Remembering always that, at times, people may require some time to do the translations in their first language mentally. Having an open mind, respect and admiring cultures from others and attempting to better understand them. Recognizing one's own individual cultural bias and the differences that may exist from the people that one may be dealing with, be aware that some words, expressions, phrases or jokes may be offensive to some cultures while in others not. Lastly but not least, the continuous practicing to communicate better in different cultures as it betters one's communication skills across different cultures.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Richard West, Lynn H. Turner. Understanding Interpersonal Communication: Making Choices in Changing Times. Cengage Learning, 2008.
Scott Dawson. Evangelism Today: Effectively Sharing the Gospel in a Rapidly Changing World. Baker Books, 2009.
Shelley D.Lane. Interpersonal Communication: Competence and Contexts. Routledge, 2016.
Will McRaney. The Art of Personal Evangelism: Sharing Jesus in a Changing Culture. B&H Publishing Group, 2003.
� Richard West, Lynn H. Turner. Understanding Interpersonal Communication: Making Choices in Changing Times. Cengage Learning, 2008.
� Will McRaney. The Art of Personal Evangelism: Sharing Jesus in a Changing Culture. B&H Publishing Group, 2003.
� Shelley D.Lane. Interpersonal Communication: Competence and Contexts. Routledge, 2016.