The imprint of culture

Fashion is always affecting by and affects our culture.

Years ago there was a famous quote about the relationship of Christ to culture. As I have aged and thought and rethought through some major issues, the effect of a constantly and rapidly changing culture has made me realize how hard it is for people to communicate across cultures at times.

I grew up reading Francis Sheaffer and admiring his experiment to communicate with questioning young people, (which was my generation at the time), and now his skeptical son Frank has the ear of culture as he reflects not so admiringly on his parents fundamentalism.

This week we are entertaining three people who are in Christian work in the Phillipines, and the last time we visited I was struck by how much her age and her culture affected the way she lived and communicated her faith. It seems that she was stuck in a type of permanent childhood experience. Do disrespect intended at all but there were just obvious differences in the way she spoke about issues and faith.

I am going to try to learn more about them this week, to get below the surface of politeness if I can. Reinhold Neibhur was his name, and he believe Christ was above and in culture, and that he could transform people in and through culture as well. We tend to dispise youth culture because it is always different than ours, but God has not abandoned this present generation of kids, as he did not abandon mine. He understands us even as we are changed with changing times.