Acculteration

2006-10-07

Each of us has been enculturated with certain values and behaviors since we were born. The ways we think and act are all products of our enculturation, blinding us to other ways of thinking and behaving. In cross-cultural missions, this is an enormous barrier to overcome. Tribal peoples’ thought processes are often diametrically opposed to western thought processes. Yet Paul, throughout his life, became all things to all men so that some may be saved (1 Corinthians 9:22; cf. Acts 17:16 ff at Athens). The modern missionary has no different challenge, and must become acculturated into the target people’s society. This discussion on acculturation will include the definition and process of acculturation, how it affects one’s ability to communicate cross-culturally, and what the implications of acculturation on cross-cultural ministry are.

Acculturation is learning a culture from the outside. It is the process of moving out of the culture in which one was enculturated (i.e., the culture one grew up in) and becoming “at home” in another. The process includes many different facets. One must be able to identify one’s own cultural baggage. We need to find the true balance of abandoning what we feel is culturally correct without compromising Biblical fact and truth. Making observations, inquiring of, and listening to the people are all imperative, and all of these things require patience. Learning the language, and speaking to the people according to their knowledge and experience is important in communication. Then one can establish rapport among people of a different culture.

When we attempt to communicate cross-culturally, we face many barriers. In order for one to communicate with another, one must encode the message based of the other’s language, knowledge and experience, so that they can decode the message with the least difficulty. The missionary needs to put the message in a form that recipients can understand. Even in the most ideal situations, there can be miscommunication. Being acculturated into the new culture will help bridge the wide expanse that exists between the western and the tribal minds.

When thinking about the implications of cross-cultural ministry, one must use an Incarnational model. God bridged the gap between humankind and Himself by becoming one of them, and the same is true for the missionary. Unlike the Lord, the missionary does not have His incommunicable attributes, so we must maintain a learner’s attitude. We must be dependent on Him, maintaining an ability to welcome people into our presence, to communicate value, regard, worth and respect to others, and to trust them. This is not an easy task in the midst of the effects of culture frustration and fatigue, but by trusting in Him who sent us and is with us, we will see more success. It is for the sake of the Gospel that we go through this otherwise very uncomfortable process.

This brief discussion included three facets of acculturation: its definition and process, how it affects communication, and what are its implications for ministry in another culture. It is an imperative part in missions, beginning with antiquity up through the modern era. Only when we become at home with the tribal people will we earn their respect and be able to communicate to them all about Jesus effectively.