Help with Discussion Thread Replies: Communicating an Unchanging Gospel Message

Replies of at least 200 words each. Each reply must incorporate at least 1 biblical citation.

No. 1 – response to Christina Estes

The gospel message as told in the Bible is an unchanging and timeless message that applies to all people regardless of culture. The message of Jesus is as true for us today as it was in the first century. However, the way, or method, in which the message is delivered and understood can vary depending on culture. Each individual person brings their own assumptions and predispositions when they read, study, or hear Scripture. These assumptions and presuppositions are developed in each person based on their culture and life experiences and can have an impact on the interpretation of Scripture. Intercultural communication, or having the ability to communicate across cultures, is an essential part of ministry. In Mark chapter 16 Jesus talks about the Great Commission and in verse 16 he states, “go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation (English Standard Version).” He does not give a stipulation for culture.

Traditions, beliefs, and values are all part of one’s cultural belief system. Traditions can include things like myths, legends, ceremonies, or rituals all of which can have an effect on how one interprets Scripture. For the one in ministry, understanding how each of these affect a person’s view on Scripture will aid in their ability to minister effectively. Cultural beliefs are a set of fundamental assumptions or world views that people hold dearly to their hearts without question.[1] These beliefs include a person’s beliefs about life, death, and the afterlife. Proposed questions around these beliefs include those found in major religions such as Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism.[2] Cultural values are another area of differences that can occur across cultures. These values can serve as the motivation for actions.[3] All of these areas are developed within a person based on their culture and can affect a person’s view about God. Ministering and sharing the gospel message to a Buddhist will be different from sharing the gospel message to someone who practices Islam.

With technology and the ease of communication and travel, we have more contact with culturally diverse people than ever before. While one in ministry may never plan on traveling overseas, technology allows them to cross the barriers of the ocean in mere seconds. The internet allows those in ministry to spread the gospel to thousands of people and many different cultures. We need to understand what it means to become culturally competent in order to effectively share the gospel. Ting-Toomey states that without sound comparative cross-cultural knowledge, we may look at the world from only one lens which is our own lens.[4] She also points out that we must be in tune with our own self-awareness and understand our own uncertainties and emotional vulnerabilities.[5] We should not impose our own beliefs onto others before understanding their own beliefs.

Cultural Intelligence (CQ) opens the door for us to help break down the barriers we face in other cultures. Livermore explains Cultural Intelligence (CQ) as the capability to function effectively across national, ethnic, and organizational cultures and states that it offers leaders an overall repertoire and perspective that can be applied to myriad cultural situations.[6] This would include ministry and sharing the gospel message. It can be quite difficult for someone who has never traveled to understand the implications of other cultures. However, cultural intelligence is not something picked up from experience with a particular culture but instead is an individual capability and anyone can become more culturally intelligent.[7]

Obtaining CQ offer four capabilities of culturally intelligent leaders as defined by Livermore. These four capabilities begin with CQ drive or motivation. This is a person’s level of interest, drive, and energy to adapt to other cultures.[8] In ministry, we should have a desire to tell others about the gospel message as Jesus commanded. This desire gives us motivation and a drive to actually put this command into action. It is challenging to engage and persevere through intercultural challenges but is one of the most novel and important aspects of cultural intelligence.[9]

The second capability is knowledge or cognition. Having a core understanding of others culture, language patterns, and nonverbal behaviors will help build your confidence when working in a new cultural environment such as ministering.[10] Ministering to those of a different culture will require courage and confidence. As mentioned before, ministering to those in Islam will be different than those practicing Buddhism. Having an understanding of their particular beliefs, culture, language, and behaviors will bring more chance of success for sharing the gospel message.

The third capability is strategy or metacognition. This is one’s ability to strategize when crossing cultures and will help to plan a strategy for interacting with another culture.[11] Being a woman in ministry, if I am ministering to a culture that has very different views on how men and women function within their culture and society, my approach and plan will need to be different than if I am ministering to someone who holds men and women in equal views. Learning to accommodate different cultures is essential to an effective ministry.

The final capability is action or behavioral. This is one’s ability to appropriately act in a range of different cultural situations.[12] The three behaviors of speech, verbal actions, and non-verbal actions need to be adapted to cultural norms and modified when we interact with different cultures.[13] For example, speaking loudly or softly can have different meanings in different cultures. If I am ministering to someone in a culture who views loud, boisterous speech as offensive, I would make sure I am speaking to them in a softer tone to communicate effectively. If I have no CQ then it will be hard for me to understand why they are offended when I speak loudly.

Intercultural communication and cultural intelligence may seem overwhelming at first. These four capabilities can help leaders, including those in ministry, face many different cultural situations. Without cultural intelligence, leaders risk driving their careers and organizations into obsolescence.[14] This is certainly not something we want to do when ministering to others. We want everyone to hear and understand the gospel message and the promises Jesus offers to everyone regardless of culture.

[1] Stella Ting-Toomey and Leeva C. Chung, Understanding Intercultural Communication (New York: Oxford University Press, 2012), 19.

[2] Ibid., 19

[3] David Livermore, Leading with Cultural Intelligence: The Real Secret to Success (New York, NY: AMACOM, 2015) 20.

[4] Stella Ting-Toomey and Leeva C. Chung, Understanding Intercultural Communication (New York: Oxford University Press, 2012), 14.

[5] Ibid., 15

[6] Ibid., 5

[7] David Livermore, Leading with Cultural Intelligence: The Real Secret to Success (New York, NY: AMACOM, 2015), 20.

[8] Ibid., 25

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid., 26

[11] Ibid., 27

[12] Ibid., 28

[13] Ibid.

[14] Ibid., 39

No. 2 – Response to David Callands

In our American society, most people are accustomed to attending church with people who look like them culturally. There has only been a short span of years in which churches have had to accommodate those from other cultures. Even in everyday walks of life, the majority of people do not have of take the opportunity to interact with those who are different culturally, ethnically, socially and theologically. Although there is an increase in churches becoming more culturally diverse, there are still a great number of churches where intercultural interaction is not present. The increases in population and demographic changes make it almost impossible to navigate through life without some intercultural interaction. According to Ting-Toomey and Chung, “Direct contact with culturally different people in our neighborhoods, communities, schools, and workplaces is an inescapable part of life.”[1] Church leaders are now tasked with communicating the Gospel to all while also making it the message understandable by all.

The message of the Gospel is forever unchanging, but demographics have changed that has caused the necessity of being able to communicate this message across cultural barriers. This gives rise to the question, “How can an unchanging Gospel message that can be grasped and understood by all, regardless of those barriers created by race/ethnicity, social status, culture, and theology? The answer lies within intercultural Communication and cultural intelligence. Livermore describes cultural intelligence as, "cultural intelligence is the capability to function effectively across national, ethnic, and organizational cultures."[2] Applying the processes of intercultural communication and cultural intelligence creates the possibility to effectively communicate across cultural barriers.

The presence of cultural barriers naturally creates mistrust between individuals from diverse cultures. Cultural intelligence and intercultural communication present ways for the dividing lines to be erased as they incorporate practices that allow more consciousness of perspectives from other cultures. This acts as a bridge builder between diverse cultures and helps give a clearer understanding of the other’s viewpoint. This is important when reading scripture in intercultural settings as the reader will be more sensitive to how those from other cultures will receive the message. We are commanded to make new disciples by the Great Commission. It is essential that we learn to properly communicate and lessen the chance to misjudge other cultures so that we can fulfill the command.

Bibliography

(Livermore 2015)

[1] Stella Ting-Toomey and Leeva C. Chung. Understanding Intercultural Communication. 2nd ed. (Oxford University Press Academic US, 2012), 5

[2] David Livermore. Leading With Cultural Intelligence. The Real Secret to Success: Second Edition.

(New York, American Management Association, 2015), 4