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Saturday, August 21, 2010
Are we taught to see people's differences?
Donald Miller posted this on his blog recently and I thought it fitting with what we discussed last Tuesday. Click the link below to read his post:
Like Donald says people don’t have to be taught to emphasize differences – that is a normal human tendency. I disagree that emphasizing differences is wrong. Jesus does not ask us to pretend that we are all the same. All too often the result of reading this kind of article is a fake feeling of fuzziness toward humanity as we imagine that they are all “just like us.” People in Africa or Central America are not just like us. They share some things with us; but their culture is, in fact, radically different than what I am used to.
There are also several categories of differences. Some differences are cultural and superficial like how I cut my hair, what I eat, or how close I stand to people in conversation. These preferences make no difference in my spiritual life and in these categories everyone’s preferences are equal.
But there are also differences based on what I value the most. These differences are harder to reconcile. If I truly value abolishing slavery, then I will reflect that in my choice of friends. I probably won’t be close friends with people who totally disagree with me and are not willing to engage in civil conversation about it. In the values category not all preferences are equal.
I think we should take an example from Jesus when he talked to the women at the well. He was not put off by her cultural background and engaged with her freely, but he also did not shy away from telling her the truth. As a person she was equal and loved, but her choices in life where based on a faulty understanding of important truths.
Really interesting article! Not sure how I stand on it, but it's something to think about.
ReplyDeleteLike Donald says people don’t have to be taught to emphasize differences – that is a normal human tendency. I disagree that emphasizing differences is wrong. Jesus does not ask us to pretend that we are all the same. All too often the result of reading this kind of article is a fake feeling of fuzziness toward humanity as we imagine that they are all “just like us.” People in Africa or Central America are not just like us. They share some things with us; but their culture is, in fact, radically different than what I am used to.
ReplyDeleteThere are also several categories of differences. Some differences are cultural and superficial like how I cut my hair, what I eat, or how close I stand to people in conversation. These preferences make no difference in my spiritual life and in these categories everyone’s preferences are equal.
But there are also differences based on what I value the most. These differences are harder to reconcile. If I truly value abolishing slavery, then I will reflect that in my choice of friends. I probably won’t be close friends with people who totally disagree with me and are not willing to engage in civil conversation about it. In the values category not all preferences are equal.
I think we should take an example from Jesus when he talked to the women at the well. He was not put off by her cultural background and engaged with her freely, but he also did not shy away from telling her the truth. As a person she was equal and loved, but her choices in life where based on a faulty understanding of important truths.