Cross Cultural Matters, Part 2

In our last discussion on cross-cultural ministry we observed that cultural differences require us to make adjustments in how we interact with and think about situations. We saw that the adjustments we need to make in any given situation are directly proportionate to the amount of differences involved. The more different a situation is, the more adjustments are required. But that's not the only equation that applies to cross-cultural ministry. Additionally, tension is directly proportionate to adjustment. The greater the adjustment required, the greater the resulting tension. And conversely, if little adjustment is required, then only a small amount of tension may result. Consider a rubber band. In its original state there is no tension and no reason to snap. But as you stretch the band out you increase the tension. The further you stretch it, the greater the tension, until finally the tension becomes too great and it snaps.

This is similar to what happens in cross-cultural situations. As we experience differences in culture and make adjustments, our way of thinking (our paradigm) is being stretched. For example, one afternoon a group of short-term missionaries was playing on a soccer pitch with some children. As the sun went down the temperature began to drop. One team member went to the van to grab her sweatshirt and then realized that none of the children had sweatshirts to put on and it was only getting colder. This experience stretched her thinking in regards to wealth and poverty. It’s one thing to hear about it on the news, but to actually experience it forces you to engage the tension.

Now it is important to remember, tension itself is not a bad thing. If it weren't for tension, how could the rubber band hold anything together? Tension is inevitable in cross-cultural situations, and is in fact part of the reason we engage in cross-cultural ministry. The tension is the indication that we are being stretched beyond our current way of thinking. It opens our minds to new ways of understanding the world. If it weren't for tension there would be no learning. However, too much tension can be a bad thing. It is the job of your team leaders to help you process the tension and make sure it doesn’t become so great that you snap.

As you work through these inevitable experiences there are two potential results. The first, as we have mentioned, is that you learn and grow from it. Allow your mind to be stretch and you will come to a fuller understanding and appreciation for this new culture. The other potential result is frustration and misery. The primary factor in determining which result you will experience is the attitude with which you approach the situation. If you approach your cross-cultural experience with an open mind, a humble attitude and a willingness to learn and adapt to the situations around you, then you will likely experience growth and become enriched through the process. However, if you approach these new experiences with a close-minded arrogance, an attitude of superiority and an unwillingness to change, then you will likely endure a frustrating, aggravating trip. Reflecting on our rubber band analogy, it’s the older, more fragile rubber bands that break. The more flexible ones can undergo great tension without snapping. Thus the second steadfast rule in cross-cultural ministry is: Flexibility, flexibility, flexibility!

In our prior lesson we began to address this attitude by recognizing that different is not necessarily wrong. Now we add to this the willingness to adjust to new situations and try new things. The combination of humility and flexibility will go a long way in helping you have the best cross-cultural experience possible.

How to look like a tourist

In our efforts to prepare you for your cross-cultural experience this summer I thought it would be helpful to pass along this educational training video. Whenever you're in a different culture you automatically stick out like a stubbed toe. However, there are certain things you can avoid that may help ease your acculturation process. If you do not understand or appreciate sarcastic humor, I suggest you go watch 17 hours of Bill Murray movies before watching this short video.

Cross Cultural Matters, Part 1

In any cross-cultural situation you will find similarities and differences. The similarities are easier to handle because it's what you're already used to. You don't have to make as large an adjustment to fit it into your current paradigm of thinking. When you walk past a KFC in Namibia you'll say to yourself, ‘That looks familiar.’ When you walk in you see the same logo, the same menu, you smell the same fried chicken. It's almost as if you're back in America again. You don't have to make adjustments in how you interact with that situation because it's so familiar. Similarities are easy to handle.

It's the differences that cause so much trouble in cross-cultural situations. The differences between cultures force us to make adjustments on how we think about and interact in various situations. Adjustments are directly proportionate to differences. The more different a situation is, the more adjustment it requires. The more similar a situation is, the less adjustment it requires. This is easily illustrated as you walk out of the airport to your vehicle. As you look around you see a fairly arid environment with mountains in the distance and small shrubbery dotting the landscape. You've seen pictures of deserts before or perhaps been to a desert, so this experience is somewhat familiar and requires little adjustment. You then load your bags into the back of the kombie and make your way to the right side of the vehicle to get in. You are embarrassed to find no passenger door and everyone else climbing in from the other side. In Namibia, the driver’s seat is on the right side while passenger sits on the left. This is a minor difference that requires a minor adjustment every time you approach a vehicle to make sure you go to the correct side. In Namibia, they drive on the left side of the road. This is a much greater difference and requires more adjustment from the driver. At every intersection he must consider which lane he will pull into. He must adjust his thinking on who has the right of way and which direction cars are coming from. He must make adjustments for new road signs and markings, and adjust from miles to kilometers. So it's easy to see that the more significant the differences between cultures, the more adjustments are required.

When interacting with two different ways of doing things our natural reaction is to think that our way is right, while the other way is wrong. However there are many problems with this tendency. Is there really only one right way to do it? And if so, how do you know that yours is the right way? How do you know that there isn’t a better way? Or perhaps there are two or more equally good ways of doing it? What are the motivations behind them doing it that way? What are the motivations behind us doing it our way? The reality is by presuming that our way is the only right, or even the best way of doing something we prove our own arrogance and risk alienating those from other cultures. That is perhaps the easiest and fastest way to ruin your cross-cultural experience and your ministry.

That said, the number one rule in cross-cultural situations is this: Different is not necessarily wrong. That phrase should be permanently burned into your memory because it is counterintuitive to how you naturally think and it will make or break your trip. There is not one right way to print money. You’ll see bills and coins of all different sizes, colors, and denominations, and not one of them is wrong; it’s just different. Driving on a certain side of the street, or using a certain system of measurements is not more right or wrong than another; it’s just different (In fact, most of the rest of the world drives on the left and uses the metric system!).

One potent example is to consider how people use their money at the grocery store. In America, someone might buy the large box of cereal or the large jar of spaghetti sauce because even though you spend more at the moment, you’re saving money in the long run because it costs less per ounce. In Namibia, they are far more likely to purchase the smaller, cheaper box or jar because it satisfies what they need at the moment and it’s less expensive. When they run out, they will come back and buy it again. As a result, over time they will actually end up spending more money on the same amount of product as the American. To us that may sound foolish and wasteful, but remember – it’s not wrong, it’s just different. Africans tend to be much more focused on the present than the future. Historically, because of war, disease, famine, etc., Africans had shorter life spans and were never guaranteed tomorrow. Additionally, they may not have the space or storage capacity to keep food over longer periods of time. And paychecks only stretch so far, so they must buy only what they need. Buying in bulk is a luxury we take for granted. Perhaps we as Americans have much to learn from this example of a different culture.

Notice I do say that different is not necessarily wrong. That means, in some cases different is wrong. Typically these situations are in the areas of morality and religion. For example, in Namibia you will see that alcoholism and drunkenness is much more prevalent than in the States. Child abuse and neglect are common place. The state of families and marriage is in shambles. These are issues that must be addressed. But they must not be addressed from another cultural standard of morality (namely ours). We don’t say their morality is wrong because it’s different from our morality. When dealing with moral issues, God is our ultimate standard of right and wrong. We judge their culture (and our own) based on God’s perfect standard. This is, in fact, why we do missions. We are spreading the truth of the gospel to areas of the world where they have it wrong. But I can not emphasize enough, that does not exclude our own culture! No culture is perfect. America has immorality of its own that must be addressed (pride, materialism, greed, gluttony, etc.). So as we approach some of these differences we must do so from the standard of God’s truth and not the standard of Western culture.

To summarize, when you interact with cross-cultural differences you’re going to have to adjust your way of thinking. Sometimes it will take great adjustments, other times, not so great. But your way of thinking needs to be stretched; that’s one reason we go on these trips. If something falls outside your paradigm and you don’t adjust your thinking, the natural tendency is to degrade or insult the difference. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard people say, ‘Well that’s stupid,’ when in reality it’s just different. In areas regarding preference, we must extend grace. But in areas regarding God’s Word, we must extend truth. Sometimes things really are wrong, but sometimes they’re just different. We must learn to distinguish between the two.