Since its foundation nearly two thousand years ago, Christianity has grown from a small sect of Judaism to one of the largest, most followed religions in the world. This growth has been the result of disciples, missionaries, and believers traveling to distant lands to spread the word of God, converting people to Christians. As said in Matthew 28:19, believers should “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. In order to accomplish this, the Church must engage and interact with the cultures that they encounter so that they best understand the teachings of the Church.
As Christianity encounters new cultures, it invariably must alter its presentation, teachings, and traditions to best appeal to the local culture and convince prospective Christians. In this video, the beliefs and traditions of Japan’s clandestine Christians are shown.
Japanese Christianity is juxtaposed with the symbols and values of their culture. An example of these juxtapositions are the two Virgin Mary's displayed, alongside Shinto and Buddhist shrines, the values of honoring one’s ancestors within the religion is also a major component. These beliefs and traditions are not in mainstream Western Catholicism but are an Eastern derivation of traditional beliefs. This begs the question how should the Church work with different cultures?
To this, Gaudium et Spes says that the Church is a flexible institution, “the Church, sent to all peoples of every time and place, is not bound exclusively and indissolubly to any race or nation, any particular way of life or any customary way of life recent or ancient… she can enter into communion with the various civilizations, to their enrichment and the enrichment of the Church herself”(58). The Church enriches and strengthens both itself and its flock when it accepts the cultural traditions of others, and supports the endeavors to find a common purpose. As seen in the video, the Vatican formally supports Japanese efforts to win World Heritage status for hidden Christian sites in Japan. The opportunity for dialogue between the two cultures of East and West has resulted in a more diverse, larger, and stronger Church.
I think this is an interesting post and can be directly related to the novel we read, Silence. Something global like the Church can be different in other cultures, which is why it is important to understand other cultures. If we do not have tolerance or respect for other cultures, we can never have a peaceful world. Promoting intercultural dialogue is super important and I think the Church is a good way for it to happen since we share the same religion even though the culture is different.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ashley that the post seems to reflect what we talked about when we studied "Silence." I think you did a good job of trying to use Gaudium et Spes to answer the question of what the Church is supposed to do when faced with other cultures; in that quote it states that the Church can help enrich other cultures but it is also clear in saying the Church herself can be enriched by learning from other cultures. All of this goes to show the importance of Church properly communicating with the various cultures of the world and not just restricting herself to a western or archaic culture.
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