%PDF-1.7 1 0 obj << /Type /Catalog /Outlines 2 0 R /Pages 3 0 R >> endobj 2 0 obj << /Type /Outlines /Count 0 >> endobj 3 0 obj << /Type /Pages /Kids [6 0 R 19 0 R ] /Count 2 /Resources << /ProcSet 4 0 R /Font << /F1 8 0 R /F2 9 0 R /F3 10 0 R /F4 11 0 R /F5 12 0 R /F6 14 0 R >> /XObject << /I1 15 0 R /I2 16 0 R /I3 23 0 R /I4 24 0 R >> /ExtGState << /GS1 17 0 R /GS2 18 0 R /GS3 21 0 R /GS4 22 0 R >> >> /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] >> endobj 4 0 obj [/PDF /Text /ImageC ] endobj 5 0 obj << /Producer (dompdf 1.0.2 + CPDF) /CreationDate (D:20241126222438+00'00') /ModDate (D:20241126222438+00'00') >> endobj 6 0 obj << /Type /Page /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] /Parent 3 0 R /Contents 7 0 R >> endobj 7 0 obj << /Filter /FlateDecode /Length 1896 >> stream xXMsWѮ |T[^YRqő|}CbV;^⿛$&J@rztEaHfx{CIn2Hݔt񷔢U͆o~DGR]oo+fqAi,NAd R͂OSw7#(+~x_Q|)vq ϗA4^.J__DI8$IB"[K;97 ac᝾NҘg4tFl%ےnԷwC[u1~FQ|vO?ԪP!^~>ͿOq0O:]\Iw&BB,No転ЦT:MWߍt|_b;g VܳͮHɒ c4,**<FOlqzGIt#m'v$qDYK_dT2|a4 z̞V4P*QmEf,C_ne7Htd3҂e:VS2uVۊFsV>J\fĐ]{# LDoJ(C+,3~!ݙ~e޼ /0JފZ6 [KIf6!ӡ$Z(~%;ANs+ [9#” ZமZ=`,k^@lw} GƉiFMbUjJ8A!]ǞICgY֑NygWX#? m a>;RFto |GaB֗Y{ڑecp9d-$7dϣM3,}p;rz'[t>ۑnJ#<ܣ0w7-Մ3 ePuCc9x({1(4wdîs >!9~A+?9kt 7[?9ʺІ; tGuoh~ gLdE!Ozs2`سAQ>b48q.q8=ء1U/~`%aM૮ˋ k؊Ϫ6ۓm JFt>^Ʒ|ÜΗtcwm-_cԌsOIipy&ǧ0E|0H endstream endobj 8 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F1 /BaseFont /Helvetica /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 9 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F2 /BaseFont /Times-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 10 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F3 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 11 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F4 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Bold /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 12 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F5 /BaseFont /Helvetica-Oblique /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 13 0 obj [6 0 R /Fit] endobj 14 0 obj << /Type /Font /Subtype /Type1 /Name /F6 /BaseFont /Times-Roman /Encoding /WinAnsiEncoding >> endobj 15 0 obj << /Type /XObject /Subtype /Image /Width 550 /Height 140 /Filter /FlateDecode /DecodeParms << /Predictor 15 /Colors 1 /Columns 550 /BitsPerComponent 8>> /ColorSpace /DeviceGray /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 5329>> stream xqDǯ뺒$ILfff&I335Lf2\3I2L&_3$3I$d+$\W=9y9lLss99P`0 `0 `0 `0 !U_:~u = F~sZŻدns⃪Qg¢G(F[-s͓^ DZ>d>3Dr#\OΉ, ZFwjux<;4Ƀxز#_v?nO<|{7c(b{Oū}w[N e~Hs䎷wwOn<1B.k+%U=eԘ -mCj)t:}c'ϓ*n"-ovkZ?R"V%wʶ7s]eX&eǕq` 1-2e JYHCFOUam 7:(Ԙt_@ހN t{B~ :V@}o#7!z^&zFL:ʤn X<- %"bNWqF c` M'4?cH-V`ǵAF>=#Ěm75dB I&7E5<>-͏їFǿl3M6x]Y&)2 FoΌ N.<t i4wL\^=_|Fo؏IȄ ik$ɄL?{?|tmCޮ=~T&iTevϷ'奔s?EꋄLPY͹箵?@L:Aˤ3y_:9AtA*0qVe- e6g)%a}.qKcI V/xʤzM|\ HSql0;*%+Mذ-闛obebu2iU&lLbtIcxb5^B#8 ޮaʻ _ w>j+L:$"&O;bZ K1 jmU玫ݢ=S/J<WO2'_yUPvp=`"aL5 Nl7"rlQT޼==-I[Se* F'(\`󴯉'{:נnVZ TG6*r$Tyx^LJū.C<3` %ANrxUo"˄ 0&$tO F&bIcW3GG͈ y!{m,LkCI d,(2"@ dR%F1thUL8Rݒ^+v9^?sʯYעDl~Qd" N2sc|ov}=F,3K#vxIvG^,[OM&wI[#,Jޙ\ض;L^fv[LbyYvM#/EI#/Zס$(ڼ ," &LK/IF i-Zx彰픢]MKeR n(PhV'LҸ\f$w/ e]"mɷWO߻˱ KerSPe (ӼGMȈ}X?ʍto7ZKl+81_Y&ǡd uʤ1Vw!sQ"/$zNkw(t)2BWQW"˄OXLp:e‡# וzn2F}qlc5ؾ:WH xLz LP:d# Q>(MRېd2Qt$o~R$YR5,-nޜLr_βehd" 2k1lvO X= eC p+[R=jU!֖}_DޟY2 (*wkZQ>Fl̲soR#^u3hhyTԲt.LtD8sk4z4Rbl@zp4hy0Tn\=.fnő Y/:TC9<@fSI$:QR/bq7DfR/ֻn)Vqd"䳽˄GL;ϝRG顼n&%Sv eFv,L"t}I&N> D73]$e)( ;]XhL`kSzJlcC$<)깍h}dr,1ܝRM뭍eMa $?e3f8΍҈&P(x+JU5{I 3 M- ;7|#G9 !\œ&=xp2,L{-`?OW":4uܚEadv ~9q.VdV%UT@73$@W¯B!ݒaVLH:!opr;gAɀiήpfߙR E/IDO*Luf0}{7mfyDxT.g)w5RvHx#Z]&M$ gZUTt+lZqZ_;a&JaG,-JLJDFIcV|:I3nB&;N0Lna=Y_Gl,p5,,kc EKgd;2vt7selT9˸sX޲.6r<1!| L0lTMS1?Xsf cq )KSgBB&׭x. v c@^Yk΀v],E[ɾ QhYyXXC2)g/J@su1ScL, ?C[{V2i͛!סӠ&> 6lu>4Ƕʤ|=12鱧l{^:a/Y%~].26G: p^CZ V&Vedҟ?RrX7d#I]ՕuL1 ?_ /12IEh ̴b<ӯ^e _ϝ䰻^]vy> /ColorSpace /DeviceRGB /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 873>> stream x1j08-K/)],) &gi+:U̲\"9H!@"9H!@"9H!@eY.Z[p_E{QHKV[/`j%ʒcP,SX4W{7urd5ɱPr:-ֆʇX$$zfZpClbw7z{[]qGlwlGlZiM,ߺ7x}w` L9=3zpWL9 j)ۓB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$e]k` B$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$/؋ endstream endobj 17 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /CA 0.3 >> endobj 18 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /ca 0.3 >> endobj 19 0 obj << /Type /Page /MediaBox [0.000 0.000 612.000 792.000] /Parent 3 0 R /Contents 20 0 R >> endobj 20 0 obj << /Filter /FlateDecode /Length 1131 >> stream xV˒6W1B|OI?*J dI>8@HcJ%!&9 'zX{NsD(Q?n!MG$)+6~C{߾04P;2rT Oj)ZZju-A!UJ l;=z>I}=H8O50Җ05FE{ڨfq"29Q3x'5(1ښ8 AaEK58T]!H3l-U+`8-,5"7|g­\ ,JRwjfJ9*&q%Ҭ?P`z*v(p+b(x@Bر^8mfnM?S8eLvc^=Co}MN#Bz1jQhK,n$7NY7XleJ6Uv#_6=/qomQB E4I]MJ'd"@K endstream endobj 21 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /CA 1 >> endobj 22 0 obj << /Type /ExtGState /BM /Normal /ca 1 >> endobj 23 0 obj << /Type /XObject /Subtype /Image /Width 550 /Height 140 /Filter /FlateDecode /DecodeParms << /Predictor 15 /Colors 1 /Columns 550 /BitsPerComponent 8>> /ColorSpace /DeviceGray /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 5329>> stream xqDǯ뺒$ILfff&I335Lf2\3I2L&_3$3I$d+$\W=9y9lLss99P`0 `0 `0 `0 !U_:~u = F~sZŻدns⃪Qg¢G(F[-s͓^ DZ>d>3Dr#\OΉ, ZFwjux<;4Ƀxز#_v?nO<|{7c(b{Oū}w[N e~Hs䎷wwOn<1B.k+%U=eԘ -mCj)t:}c'ϓ*n"-ovkZ?R"V%wʶ7s]eX&eǕq` 1-2e JYHCFOUam 7:(Ԙt_@ހN t{B~ :V@}o#7!z^&zFL:ʤn X<- %"bNWqF c` M'4?cH-V`ǵAF>=#Ěm75dB I&7E5<>-͏їFǿl3M6x]Y&)2 FoΌ N.<t i4wL\^=_|Fo؏IȄ ik$ɄL?{?|tmCޮ=~T&iTevϷ'奔s?EꋄLPY͹箵?@L:Aˤ3y_:9AtA*0qVe- e6g)%a}.qKcI V/xʤzM|\ HSql0;*%+Mذ-闛obebu2iU&lLbtIcxb5^B#8 ޮaʻ _ w>j+L:$"&O;bZ K1 jmU玫ݢ=S/J<WO2'_yUPvp=`"aL5 Nl7"rlQT޼==-I[Se* F'(\`󴯉'{:נnVZ TG6*r$Tyx^LJū.C<3` %ANrxUo"˄ 0&$tO F&bIcW3GG͈ y!{m,LkCI d,(2"@ dR%F1thUL8Rݒ^+v9^?sʯYעDl~Qd" N2sc|ov}=F,3K#vxIvG^,[OM&wI[#,Jޙ\ض;L^fv[LbyYvM#/EI#/Zס$(ڼ ," &LK/IF i-Zx彰픢]MKeR n(PhV'LҸ\f$w/ e]"mɷWO߻˱ KerSPe (ӼGMȈ}X?ʍto7ZKl+81_Y&ǡd uʤ1Vw!sQ"/$zNkw(t)2BWQW"˄OXLp:e‡# וzn2F}qlc5ؾ:WH xLz LP:d# Q>(MRېd2Qt$o~R$YR5,-nޜLr_βehd" 2k1lvO X= eC p+[R=jU!֖}_DޟY2 (*wkZQ>Fl̲soR#^u3hhyTԲt.LtD8sk4z4Rbl@zp4hy0Tn\=.fnő Y/:TC9<@fSI$:QR/bq7DfR/ֻn)Vqd"䳽˄GL;ϝRG顼n&%Sv eFv,L"t}I&N> D73]$e)( ;]XhL`kSzJlcC$<)깍h}dr,1ܝRM뭍eMa $?e3f8΍҈&P(x+JU5{I 3 M- ;7|#G9 !\œ&=xp2,L{-`?OW":4uܚEadv ~9q.VdV%UT@73$@W¯B!ݒaVLH:!opr;gAɀiήpfߙR E/IDO*Luf0}{7mfyDxT.g)w5RvHx#Z]&M$ gZUTt+lZqZ_;a&JaG,-JLJDFIcV|:I3nB&;N0Lna=Y_Gl,p5,,kc EKgd;2vt7selT9˸sX޲.6r<1!| L0lTMS1?Xsf cq )KSgBB&׭x. v c@^Yk΀v],E[ɾ QhYyXXC2)g/J@su1ScL, ?C[{V2i͛!סӠ&> 6lu>4Ƕʤ|=12鱧l{^:a/Y%~].26G: p^CZ V&Vedҟ?RrX7d#I]ՕuL1 ?_ /12IEh ̴b<ӯ^e _ϝ䰻^]vy> /ColorSpace /DeviceRGB /BitsPerComponent 8 /Length 873>> stream x1j08-K/)],) &gi+:U̲\"9H!@"9H!@"9H!@eY.Z[p_E{QHKV[/`j%ʒcP,SX4W{7urd5ɱPr:-ֆʇX$$zfZpClbw7z{[]qGlwlGlZiM,ߺ7x}w` L9=3zpWL9 j)ۓB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$e]k` B$ DrB$ DrB$ DrB$/؋ endstream endobj xref 0 25 0000000000 65535 f 0000000009 00000 n 0000000074 00000 n 0000000120 00000 n 0000000461 00000 n 0000000498 00000 n 0000000647 00000 n 0000000750 00000 n 0000002719 00000 n 0000002826 00000 n 0000002934 00000 n 0000003044 00000 n 0000003157 00000 n 0000003273 00000 n 0000003302 00000 n 0000003412 00000 n 0000008987 00000 n 0000010118 00000 n 0000010177 00000 n 0000010236 00000 n 0000010341 00000 n 0000011546 00000 n 0000011603 00000 n 0000011660 00000 n 0000017235 00000 n trailer << /Size 25 /Root 1 0 R /Info 5 0 R /ID[<355fff0803089fa00d9a235b5f20fc7c><355fff0803089fa00d9a235b5f20fc7c>] >> startxref 18366 %%EOF What is culture? | Caring Magazine

Vol. #28

Grace Uncovered

Read Issue

Latest Impact StoriesView All

Popular Topics

PopularView All

What is culture?

January 15, 2010
3 minute read
Total
0
Shares
0
0
0
Listen to this article

by Elicio Marquez, Major –

What is culture? According to Charles Kraft it is a “complex, integrated coping mechanism”; according to Philip Block it is “what makes you a stranger when you’re away from home”; and according to Bob Sjogren it is “what makes us ‘us’ and them ‘them’.”

How did Jesus handle cultural differences—the “us” vs. “them” dynamic?

Jesus, in fact, actively involved himself with multicultural opportunities. In the Scriptures, three sections in the New Testament address the issue of cross-cultural ministry as they narrate a dialogue between Jesus and someone of another culture: a Syrophoenician in Mark 7:24-30, a Canaanite in the much-redacted parallel in Matthew 15:1-28, and a Samaritan in John 4:4-42.

The well-known passage of John 4:4-12 provides a detailed example of Jesus involving himself in ministry across cultural barriers. Here Jesus reaches out across many divides to engage in conversation that would result in transformation—transformation not of just one individual but of a community.

The key principals for engaging in multicultural and cross-cultural ministry are highlighted here. The first principle is that of intentionality. John 4:4 reads, “Now [Jesus] had to go through Samaria.” It is important to note that the “had to go through” was not a geographical necessity. While it is true that the shortest route from Jerusalem to Galilee was through Samaritan territory, it is also true that many Jews would not travel that way because they regarded any contact with Samaritans as defiling. Jesus, however, intentionally broke from common Jewish practice. In multicultural ministry, we are also required to take intentional steps out of our cultural comfort zones.

While traveling through Samaria, Jesus crossed social barriers when he stopped at a well and asked an openly immoral Samaritan woman to draw him a drink (v. 7). In our multicultural ministry we will need to cross barriers in order to make others feel welcomed.

The third principle, which we see in this portion of Scripture, is that of expecting transformation. Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman transformed her and her community. As we engage in multicultural ministry, we may well see transformation take place—transformation of individuals, communities and even our own congregations and corps.

The last principle that I would like to mention is that as we engage in multicultural ministry we must use God’s resources. The transformation that occurred in Samaria required God’s resources; nothing else would have transformed the woman at the well. As we engage in ministry, we too must rely on these same provisions from God. Jesus gave his disciples instructions and a promise just before his ascension into Heaven, and this promise is given to us, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised….You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Jesus envisioned disciples and a church that would minister across all barriers. He commissions his disciples to engage in various areas of ministry as his witnesses: Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of earth. Jerusalem is equivalent to those in our towns or neighborhoods who are culturally like us. Judea is equivalent to people who are culturally like us but who live in the communities surrounding our Jerusalem. Samaria is that area or individuals who live around or near us but are culturally, ethnically, or religiously different from us. Ministry to the ends of the earth is self- explanatory, involving going to distant parts of the globe as cross-cultural witnesses of Christ.

Download this page as a PDF

You May Also Like