Are We Bridge-Builders or Culture Warriors?
The question asked in my subtitle, “Are we bridge-builders or culture warriors?” is important to those of us who serve in Christian ministry. I would contend that if we are to be faithful and fruitful in the “ministry of reconciliation” (2 Cor. 5:18) we will need to engage relationally as ambassadors more than either issuing edicts as cultural dictators, or cutting ties with the world outside our spiritual stockade.
The question asked in my subtitle, “Are we bridge-builders or culture warriors?” is important to those of us who serve in Christian ministry. I would contend that if we are to be faithful and fruitful in the “ministry of reconciliation” (2 Cor. 5:18) we will need to engage relationally as ambassadors more than either issuing edicts as cultural dictators, or cutting ties with the world outside our spiritual stockade.
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| AP Photo 2012 |
Yet it seems to be culturally acceptable to cut ties with others, blowing up our relational bridges because they don't meet our expectations. It is hard work to seek understanding and work towards reconciliation with those who have offended us or whom we have offended. We can unfriend/unfollow someone on social media with the click of a button. We end marriage through easy access to divorce for almost no reason at all. Many people are estranged from their family because one party or both are unwilling to seek forgiveness. This relational brokenness is a contributing factor to both economic and relational poverty.
As pastors and Christian leaders, we should not contribute to further brokenness but participate in God's mission to "rebind the broken cosmos." However, sometimes our efforts are tragically flawed by our own self-assurance that we even know what the problem is and our unilateral efforts to fix things because we are the ones who know/have the solution.
If you are interested in exploring this question, I am including links to three articles I wrote a few years ago for an academic cultural engagement blog, Compelled2.blogspot.com.
How do we intentionally reach out to engage, to build bridges of understanding and respect, on behalf of the common good? The steps to building a physical bridge offer surprising insights into the process of building, and maintaining, relational/cultural bridges.
So many of our conflicts arise, or are exacerbated, by our failure to really listen. Just as large construction projects must include an environmental impact study, any effort at relational bridge-building must begin with serious listening. As the church looks for a ministry paradigm for an increasingly diverse yet hyper-connected world, the ambassador approach to cross-cultural engagement is vital! |
| KGW News Photo |
This article began as an assigned response to Paul Louis Metzger’s prompt entitled “Beyond Tolerance to Tenacious Love.”
While these posts don’t provide all the answers, perhaps they will help us to start asking the right questions. If these posts are helpful to you and your ministry I would love it if you would let me know.
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| Longview Bridge Photo: Greg K. Dueker |
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