Recently on a trip to Africa I was sitting next to a PhD professor in anthropology discussing the benefits of Christianity to tribal cultures; just your everyday conversation over bad airplane coffee. It went something like this…
(Phd) “Why do you want to change them?”
(Me) “I do not want to change the beautiful things about their culture (and there are plenty). I want to see them come to know and enjoy the God who created them. Right now they do not know Him and this separation has caused many terrible things that hurt and destroy them. So we are training young tribal pastor sto be able to share the life changing message of Jesus.”
(Phd) “Why do you think religion is what they need? Hasn’t Christianity has done so much to harm so many tribal peoples over the centuries.”
(Me) “This is true, but they were usually horrible distortions of what Christ intended, and when it was true to the teaching of Christ, it always brought hope and good things to that culture.”
(Phd) “I doubt that.”
(Me) “I believe the best and longest lasting change in a culture occurs from the inside out. It begins with individuals right connected to God in relationship. When they are whole people, then and only then, can they be rightly related to themselves, others, and creation. You can’t have healthy cultures made up of unhealthy people.You might study a culture and introduce a new program that you believe will fix some aspect of their poverty, but real poverty begins in your soul. Every ill in every culture begins here. This poverty of spirit this leads to broken communities, hurtful tribal customs, impoverished cities, and corrupt nations full of social, economic, and educational policies that oppress, enslave, and harm. Dealing with the symptoms has its place, but only as with deal with the real disease.”
(Phd) “But isn’t there divine in each of us and we just need to let it out?” (She was Unitarian and believed none of us were broken, just out of touch with the divine nature we all possess)
(Me) “We are made in God’s image, so there is some truth to what you are saying. But that image has been defaced and distorted by sin. The gospel is the power of GOD. Only He can redeem, bring life, set free, and transform. What is inside me is not pretty. It is selfish, prideful, autonomous. I cannot just decide to change that. That is why Jesus came. To set me free from sin, give me a new heart that desires God, and give me His Spirit to die to myself and live life loving God and others. Jesus really does radically transform people for good. That is why I want to bring the gospel to this tribe. It is the only real hope they have be whole persons, live in whole communities, cultivate just laws, and bring life-giving racial, gender, political, and educational reforms. It takes the power of God. Nothing else will do.”
(Phd) “That is very interesting.” (meaning “I don’t buy it, but you make interesting arguments I’ve never heard of ever.”)
Then I spent a week with this tribe, teaching young pastors evangelism and discipleship. I witnessed first hand the decimation of war on families. One of our students was abducted, forced to hike 6 miles in the dark, and beaten for a day by his in-laws because he could not pay his dowry obligation, which is a lifetime debt to the entire extended family of the wife. If he cannot produce what is demanded, it can end with his wife and children being taken from him permanently and the marriage dissolved by her family. I saw the ravages of alcohol, the ongoing theft of crops by neighbors, the hatred of neighboring tribes, the lack of education leading to lack of opportunity, malnourishment, and poverty. I saw ignorance of basic hygiene and medicine resulting in ongoing sickness and death. Worst of all I saw hopelessness. The specter that no one can stand up to. Only the power of God can change their poverty. Only the power of God can change my poverty. Only the power of God can change our poverty. That is why I preach the good news of Jesus.
Jesus is gloriously transforming this village and restoring hope to the degree that His truth and life are embraced. It not any different for my “village” or yours. People need the gospel, and we need not be ashamed of it because “it is the power of God for salvation to everyone.” (Romans 1:16)