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Understanding Cultural Differences in the Chinese American Church
// Presence Annual Newsletter 2012
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2012/ feb
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01/ Cultural Differences and Interpersonal Dynamics between Two Generations in Chinese American Churches
05/ Two Common Scenarios of Cultural Misunderstanding in the Chinese Church
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Christianity and a Three-Dimensional Culture
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A Biblical Perspective on Relational Dynamics within the Immigrant Church
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Cultural Differences and Interpersonal Dynamics between Two Generations in Chinese American Churches by Agnes Ip
Mrs. Chen, 50 years of age, an immigrant from Taiwan not speaking much English, comes across Justin, 20 years old, a youth leader from the English Congregation in the hallway at church. Mrs. Chen walks towards Justin with a smile. However, he does not say a word and quickly passed by Mrs. Chen. Feeling disrespected, Mrs. Chen was very upset. “What kind of family did this impolite young man come from?” She thought to herself. “Didn’t anyone teach him any manners? He should know to greet his elders. I already initiated the greeting, yet he did not even respond to me. He is so condescending. With character like his, how can he be a leader? He would set a bad example and impact our children negatively!” Does this sound familiar? Chinese churches in America are primarily comprised of immigrant parents and their first generation American-born children. The newly immigrated families still speak the native dialect at home, and they tend to hold on to the Chinese cultural family values. For the second generation Chinese, English is the primary language and are highly influenced by the majority culture in which they live. Regardless of the background, bicultural families come together in churches, striving to maintain the best of both cultures. However, the ethnocentrism of leaders of the churches as well as parents coming from traditional Chinese culture are driving a large number of the younger generation away, making church leaders and parents feel very helpless and results in a lot of heartache. The second generation in the church, in a constant struggle to adapt to both the traditional Chinese and mainstream American cultures, has its own set of challenges that cannot be understood by their parents. It is my hope to provide insights through this article to help the first and second generations Chinese Americans understand the underlying values of each culture that, if not understood, could lead in conflicts and bitterness over time.
// Value Differences of the Two Generations According to a study done on Asian American families, four major characteristics of traditional culture are identified (Yee, DeBaryshe, Yuen, Kim, and McCubbin, 2006) /01 Collectivism The family is the whole. The needs of the family are above the members’ own personal needs and development. /02 Relational Orientation A person is defined by the relationship established with others, not as an individual alone. /03 Familialism Family is the most important entity/organization in the society, males are perceived as having a higher status than females, respecting the elderly, as the basis of the different levels of hierarchy. /04 Family Obligation Manifested between parents and children, there is an intense sense of intimate connections. Let’s apply this to the scenario with Mrs. Chen and Justin. The emotional reaction of Mrs. Chen reflects how traditional Chinese cultural values affect how she perceives the world.
/01 Collectivism “What kind of family did this impolite young man come from?” Mrs. Chen ties together the action of Justin to his family. The family is the whole and one’s action represents the family’s character. /02 Relational Orientation “He is so condescending.” Mrs. Chen makes a value judgment based on the behaviors of others towards her. /03 Familialism “He should know to greet his elders. I already initiated the greeting, yet he did not even respond to me.” Typically the familial hierarchy grants deference and privileges to the elder. The young ones are obligated to greet the elders. Mrs. Chen nobly sets aside her social status and greeted Justin proactively to find no response from him. She is upset at being patronized and losing her status. /04 Family Obligation “With character like his, how can he become a leader? He would set a bad example and he would impact our children negatively!” In the mindset of Mrs. Chen, the church is one big family. Since Justin is the leader of the youth, he is accountable to the whole church. The lack of respect for the elder members teaches wrong values to the children.
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Now, let’s take a look at the same scenario with someone holding typical American values.
from others. His non-responsiveness had a simple explanation.
Mrs. Feng came to the U.S. at the age of 10, receiving her education from the Western culture. Though she has the influence of two cultures, her mindset leans towards individualism and democracy. The same situation happened to Mrs. Feng with Justin, yet this is how she perceives the incident.
What does Justin think when he found out Mrs. Chen got upset over his silence?
“Why does the young leader not say a word to me? Did something happen that is bothering him? If he does not want to communicate with me, then I will let him have his space to handle his issues.” Unlike Mrs. Chen, the reaction of Mrs. Feng is influenced by the American values of individualism and equality. /01 Equality “If he does not want to communicate with me, then I will let him……..” Mrs. Feng sees no difference in generation or hierarchy between Justin and herself. She does not see the need to define who is supposed to initiate the greeting. Justin’s reactions to her do not affect how she values herself as an individual. /02 Individualism “Did something happen that is bothering him? If he does not want to communicate with me, then I will let him have his space to handle his issues. “ Mrs. Feng treats the incident as the expression of Justin’s need to have his own space to handle his personal business and emotions. Therefore, this thought process warrants no reason for Mrs. Feng to get upset. Even though she has her worries about Justin since he is not acting like himself under normal circumstances, the influence of individualism prompts Mrs. Feng not to bother Justin and his personal business. Let’s understand the situation from Justin’s point of view. With many unfinished tasks overwhelming him, Justin was feeling down, and was not in the mood to either talk to strangers or receive disruptions
/01 Puzzled, Justin Ignored The Incident. “I have always been like this. When I am happy, I would talk to anyone who approaches me. When my mood is down, I just want to hide from the crowd, giving myself some room. Whether it is at school or work, never has anyone expressed any dissatisfaction towards my behavior. Why did Mrs. Chen have such a reactive emotion?” /02 Later, he heard Mrs. Chen judging him as setting a poor example for the children, Justin felt very troubled and feels negatively towards Mrs. Chen. “Don’t we all have the freedom to say or not say “Hello”? Why does this group of Chinese always have the need to make people do things against their will? Why would they make a big deal out of a small issue? Why are the elder group in such need to have the respect of the young yet they themselves do not respect others?” In Justin’s mind, he thinks, “Please leave me alone! The more these parents make such unreasonable demands, the more uncomfortable I am to interact with them.” Next time when Justin passes by the hall of the church, he intentionally looks down onto the floor, keeps on going, and has no desire to have eye contact with anyone. /03 Traditional Chinese culture is not a high value for Justin. “I agree there should be a certain level of courtesy in a social setting, but individualistic freedom should
be set above the group or traditional Chinese culture. If I am not violating the law or hurting people intentionally, each person has the right to choose. I understand if the other party feels offended, but it does not mean that I have to change my behavior in order to make others happy. If that were the case, I would always have to do things just to please others.” The way Justin thinks reflects today’s individualistic ideology in the next generation of Chinese Americans. // Struggles with culture begins in childhood Traditional Chinese culture is the minority culture here in America. The youth live daily under the influence of the mainstream culture. Not only do they find their own culture not practical, the children feel peer pressure in social settings. For instance, Hua, in the second grade, brings the bento lunch his mom prepares daily for him. His friends make fun of his smelly lunch. He told his mom, “My friends eat pizza, sandwiches, and fries, and I want to eat the same thing.” Being very unhappy, Hua’s mom scolds him, “That junk food is unhealthy for you!” In order to be accepted by his peers, Hua throws away his lunch every day. He would eat off others’ plates, or even go hungry all day. Children renounce their own family culture after continuous cognitive struggle, rejection, or hurt in their growth experience. Some react by completely negating their own ethnicity, clinging only to the mainstream society, seeking for its acceptance. For instance, a ten-year old Asian girl despises her flat
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nose that she sees in the mirror. Every evening she would clip her nose bridge, wishing her nose would be as tall as the Caucasian girls. However, no amount of assurance from the culture will resolve the struggle of cultural disparity. Children must first receive understanding and support from their parents. If their struggle with their bicultural identity is met with criticism, negative labeling, and constant bombarding of pressure to submit to traditional cultural standards by parents and church leaders, their developmental process is hindered, thus their feelings of rejection by both cultures lead to psychological pain. // Generation Gap Aggravated by Negative Labeling Tradition Chinese parenting tend to emphasize the discipline of children’s behavior, training them to be polite and to follow rules. In their social decree, the two commonly used words are “should” or “should not.” Often parents would exaggerate the negative consequences of behavior categorized as “should not” along with negative labels. For example, “If you do not greet your elders, you are impolite, immature, and disrespectful. You act superior to others and no one will like you. Who will offer you help in the future?” In order to please their parents, and fearing the consequences, children unwillingly obey. However, when they are in school in the majority culture of Americans, they suffer no negative consequences for not greeting their teachers. In fact, the teachers continue to be on friendly terms with the children. Adults of other ethnicities do not expect such mandatory greeting ritual either. The Chinese children begin to wonder, “Why are there so many rules at home and at church?” They discover that their parents’ conservative mentality is shared only by older generations of Chinese, and that there exist a gap between what they are taught at home and what they experience in the mainstream society. As a result, they have reservations towards the teachings from the school of traditional thinking. When they reach adolescence with its characteristic rebelliousness, they refuse to uphold the “should” formality. They turn away to do only what they believe to be right, with no regard for those who hold traditional values.
Further dividing the generations, parents unwittingly undermine their children’s value for autonomy when they discuss with other parents comparing the school grades of their children, the way they dress, and other behaviors. The teens are upset having their private space invaded, but they would not confront the parents. Some youth leaders are unhappy with the parents as they try to overprotect the autonomy of the youth at church. Some youth leaders would take extreme measure to not allow parents to participate in the activities of the youth. Given this condition of a lack of open communication, a wall of intergenerational psychological barriers build up, destroying any harmonious interactions between them. // Applying Empathy to Resolve the Difference between the Generations It is not within the scope of this short article to explore all the solutions to resolving intergenerational conflict. But I propose that the first and foremost step is to apply empathy, defined as the identification with or experiencing the feelings, thoughts, or attitudes of another. People’s natural self-defense mechanism when faced with rejection and pain is protectiveness. They become more adamant and insistent about their own personal views. To stop the cycle of pain, defensiveness, and withdrawal, leading to bitterness, we must be willing to let go of our perceived “right” and to think of other people’s needs. The two generations need to acknowledge that all of us come from bi-cultural or even multicultural backgrounds. Expect to encounter different values and standards of behavior. Everyone’s ability to adjust to differences varies. It is also essential
to make efforts to know one another’s history and experiences in adjusting or preserving one’s cultural values and to appreciate the challenges that had to be overcome. Negative labeling and blaming the youth is counterproductive to bridging the gap. Replace with empathy, listening to what the young generation has to say and acknowledging their struggles in a dual cultural context. In turn, they will be more open and warm to respect the elder generations. When language is a barrier, appropriate body language such as a sincere smile can shorten the distance between people. While there will still be differences in viewpoints or unintentional hurt, the goodwill leads to forgiveness more easily. Let’s claim the words of Colossian 3:1214 as our standard. “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”
// REFERENCES Yee, B.W.K., DeBaryshe,B., Yuen, S., Kim, S.Y., & McCubbin, H. (2006). Asian American and Pacific Islander families: Resiliency and life-span socialization in a cultural context. Handbook of Asian American psychology (2nd ed., pp. 69-86). Thousand Oaks,CA:Sage Publications.
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Two Common Scenarios of Cultural Misunderstanding in the Chinese Church Rev. Ken Carlson
Cultural diversity is usually thought of as differences in language, food, and customs. But there are many subtle differences that are often not recognized. Unfortunately, they surface in the church as a wellspring of misunderstanding, often leading to broken relationships or sometimes even resulting in church splits. The OBC (Overseas Born Chinese) and the ABC (American Born Chinese) in the Chinese churches often experience conflicts arising not from disagreements on biblical issues, but from underlying cultural misunderstandings. The different approaches to ministry are misconstrued as “unspiritual” or even unbiblical when the background of the different culture is not considered. Pastor Ken Carlson, having served as the English pastor of a Chinese church for 17 years, shares below, two instances in which the church experienced misunderstanding stemming from cultural diversity. Seemingly small conflicts could lead to much hurt and arguments if there is a lack of cultural sensitivity.
ABOUT PASTOR KEN CARLSON Pastor Ken Carlson sensed God’s call to cross-cultural ministry while he was a student at Talbot Seminary. After spending four years serving in Taiwan with OMF, God led him to a Chinese church in Berkeley, CA, where he served as the English Pastor for 17 years. While working on his Doctor of Ministry at Western Seminary he wrote his dissertation on effective English Ministry in Chinese churches. Some of his articles on this topic are available on his blog at http://reflections. cyberpastor.net/chinese-churches. He is currently writing a book based on his dissertation.
DECISION-MAKING FOR LARGE GROUPS Few areas bring cultural differences into sharp relief as much as the way that leaders make decisions. A more American approach makes use of open debate, competing proposals, and majority rule. A more Asian approach makes use of private consensus building, acquiescence to those with seniority and a public display of harmony. Biblical arguments could be made for the value of each approach, and both approaches have strengths and weaknesses. Both can be helpful at times, but both can be abused. The problem comes when leaders from different cultural backgrounds try to make a decision together. Private consensus building is seen by the more Americanized leaders as secret political alliances and a lack of honesty. Open debate is seen by the more Asian leaders as a painful disruption of harmony and a lack of love and humility. Is deference to older leaders a denial of our fundamental equality in Christ or an appropriate expression of humility and respect? I experienced some of these differences when we were studying Mandarin in Taiwan. At the time we were attending a small Baptist church, and we were invited to attend a members meeting after the worship service. As we watched, several proposals were brought up for a vote, and to my amazement every one of them passed unanimously! Later I realized that the decision had really been made before the meeting by discussions among the more influential leaders. Once the respected leaders voiced their opinion, everyone else went along with it. The vote was a mere formality.
of funds, but we had different ideas about how to solve that problem. In the end we compromised by meeting in the middle, still offering some scholarships, and taking some offerings. There is a danger of spiritualizing our cultural practices in order to win the debate. In the example above, the CM could have said that they have more faith because they trust God to provide part of the retreat cost through offerings. The EM could argue that they were being good stewards of God’s money by not risking having the church stuck with a large deficit as sometimes happened in the past. Happily, in this case neither group tried to spiritualize the discussion. It is better to explore the cultural factors behind each position and see how we can work out a compromise that respects both cultures. To do this successfully requires a healthy dose of humility on the part of all concerned. Used with permission from http://reflections. cyberpastor.net/chinese-churches
Was this a beautiful expression of Christian love and harmony, or was it underhanded political manipulation? The way that you view it depends on your cultural background. APPROACH TO SHARING COSTS Another example of cultural difference came up when we were trying to determine the pricing structure for our church retreat. Some of the EM (English Ministry) co-workers wanted to charge the full cost of the retreat and then offer scholarships for those who couldn’t afford it. But the CM (Chinese Ministry) co-workers said that OBCs wouldn’t want to ask for a scholarship because it would be too embarrassing. Instead, they simply wouldn’t attend the retreat. The CM preferred to charge a lower price and take special offerings during and after the retreat to raise the money to cover the difference. The EM co-workers felt that repeatedly taking offerings to pay for the retreat would be offensive because it would make it look like the church was pressuring people to give. Everyone agreed that we didn’t want anyone to miss the retreat because of a lack
These two examples show us the need for church leaders and congregants to exercise caution when it comes to making judgments on another’s actions. It is often not appropriate to label an action as “unspiritual” unless there is clear violation of Biblical teachings. Since it is practically impossible for someone to shed his cultural skin to see things from another person’s viewpoint, patience, love and grace need to be exercised when differences arise.
T S o M in C
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Integrating Christianity and a Three-Dimensional Culture
person hanging out with a bunch of Asian people or Hispanic people, what would that look like? There are generational, ethnic, and kingdom values that are all intermixed there.” Epicentre offers an example of how these three cultural axes intersect. Epicentre was planted in November 2003, and the congregation initially consisted of about 140 people from FEC Glendale. Since then, the church has grown in number to over 200, with approximately 70 percent of those in attendance being Asian American. But John has been intentional about not labeling Epicentre an Asian American church.
by Natalie Quan
AN INTERVIEW WITH PASTOR LO IJOHN grew up in a Chinese church. As a child, I was expected to address
adults as “auntie” or “uncle.” The cross that hung on the wall in the sanctuary was flanked by the same biblical truism on both sides, one version in English and the other in Chinese. Inter-congregational dinner potlucks, held during Christmas, Easter and the Lunar New Year alike, predictably consisted of an assortment of noodles, stir-fried vegetables, and hardboiled eggs saturated in soy sauce. After service, people milled around the hallways drinking tea and exchanging bags of home-grown fruit. Two thirds of the conversations eluded me since I speak English but neither Mandarin nor Cantonese. My monolingualism proved particularly frustrating during combined services. I could never decide which required more patience: not understanding Chinese and thus having to tune in and out, always missing the jokes based on Chinese words or tones, or to understand the Chinese and essentially hear the same sermon two or even three times over in one morning. Of course, the Chinese aspect of the church influenced more than my taste buds. Chinese culture, and Asian culture in general, can profoundly shape one’s experience of Christianity.
This is a phenomenon that John Lo, the pastor of Epicentre church in Pasadena, California, has explored for decades. John’s father, Eddie Lo, was the lead pastor at First Evangelical Church (FEC) of Glendale for some 30 years beginning in 1966, about the time that Chinese churches began cropping up in the United States following the relaxation of immigration policies. Early in his career, Eddie had a vision to pass on the ministry to the next generation. He made a point of preaching and conducting board meetings in English, aiming to bridge the gap between the first and subsequent generations. He studied and wrote articles about migration patterns from Hong Kong and Taiwan to North America, articles that John helped to proofread as early as his teenage years. Most discussions about the interplay of faith and culture is oversimplified, John says. The topic cannot be reduced to, for example, Chinese versus Asian American culture. There are other forces at play—not only ethnic culture, but also generational culture and church culture. Together, these three cultural dimensions affect one’s personal faith journey and the operation of a church as a whole. “I read all kinds of articles about Asian American Christian culture and Chinese culture—which one is ‘kingdom culture’—and I don’t think it’s quite that simple because you can never take a person out of their skin. But we can be intentional to bring in kingdom values that are not against culture, but infused within it,” John explains. “If Jesus was a 25-year old white
“I didn’t want to plant a church with a Chinese congregation because it’s too complicated and because I don’t even speak any Chinese,” John says of Epicentre’s inception. Nor did he target Asian Americans when planting and growing the church. “What we told people was simply to reach out to whoever was in front of them,” he describes. “We never called ourselves an Asian American church and I never use language like that because it turns off our non-Asian American people.” “You could put us alongside a lot of Asian American churches, or churches that have the same percentage of Asian Americans as we do, and we look very, very different in a lot of ways,” he continues. “There are Asian American characteristics which are present, like an emphasis on food, but there are also lots of
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generational characteristics, like the volume of our music. And then there are a lot of characteristics that don’t have anything to do with that: our theology, our ecclesiology, our understanding of the doctrine of the church and what the identity of the church is. These things are somewhat related to ethnic culture, but they’re not nearly just that.” “I think it would be an injustice to try and describe the process we’ve been through solely from an ethnic cultural lens,” he says. “What we’ve tried to do at Epicentre is create a church culture that’s not simply Asian American and not simply generational.” Taking a step back to examine the bigger picture, John explains, “When Jesus showed up, he showed up as a first-century Jew. If he was born in China, he’d be a lot different than he was. Any expression of the spirit of God at a particular time is always going to have cultural features. There’s no such thing as an a-cultural faith. And what that means is that the spirit of God that’s working through 50-year-old Jews is going to look very different than when it’s working in a bunch of Hispanics in East LA, a bunch of 25-year-old Asian Americans or multiethnic, educated people in Pasadena.” Though there are multiple forces at play, the question to ask with respect to ethnic, generational and church culture is the same: Are these dimensions of culture influencing our faith in a way that is consistent with the Bible? John emphasizes, “Culture is not a positive or a negative thing. It just is what it is. It’s important for Christians to think back and reflect and ask, ‘Is that biblical? What does the gospel say? What does it mean to be a child of Christ?’” For example, with regard to the ethnic dimension, Asian culture offers many biblical values. “One thing I really appreciate about the Chinese or Asian culture is the focus on community as opposed to simply the individual. Asians are communal people, and I think that’s a very positive thing,” John says. “Secondly, I think Chinese churches especially are very good at focusing on truth and understanding of the gospel. The Chinese are really cognitive people—just a high value for education. So what that means is, in your classic Chinese churches, there’s good, solid theology.” Relatedly, John observes, “Another thing they pass on is the value of hard work.” At the same time, some aspects of Asian culture may have a detrimental impact on one’s faith. For instance, the same value for education that produces sound theology can also result in overemphasis on knowing biblical truths as opposed to applying them. “The negative of this kind of apprehension of truth is that it can be very non-holistic,” John says, encouraging Asian churches to be intentional about taking the Bible beyond head knowledge for a more comprehensive spirituality. He elaborates, “What that means is, we’re trying to tie in truth and cognition with emotional content, with community, with obedience, and accountability and action. So it’s not just what I think. It’s what I do. It’s how I’m relating to people. We want to have ministry. We want to have
people working through their inner healing issues. It’s about thinking it through, talking it through, and having accountability for the action you want to take.” Another aspect of culture, Asian and generational, that can come into conflict with Christianity is a tendency to avoid risk. “We’re what I call antibacterial,” John explains. “Asian culture can be very high in risk aversion, very high in control, and that makes people fearful. That’s partially ethnic, but there’s a bunch of it that’s also generational. This tends to be a real problem if we’re believing that the church is supposed to go out and affect the world. The church is the heart of God, and God’s not fearful of crazy things happening in the world. We believe that the gospel is light and that it’s not afraid of the dark. So there’s a lot of work we have to do to pull the risk aversion and anti-bacterialism and control out of our people.” A third facet of Asian culture that often clashes with the Bible is how to deal with interpersonal conflict. “We want to keep the peace, so we repress things. We don’t talk with people when we have issues with them; we talk to uncle so-and-so or auntie so-andso,” John points out. “One of the places where the scripture is very clear is, if you know someone has something against you, you go talk to them. If you have something against somebody else, you go talk to them. Asians don’t do that, and it’s just not biblical. There are all kinds of crazy relational dynamics because people do not do conflict resolution in a biblical manner. You’ve got all these passive-aggressive people.” Cultural values affect not only the individual, but the church as a whole. For example, varying expectations with regard to transparency and leadership styles can cause conflicts in Asian churches. “There’s a whole focus—and this is not simply Asian American versus Chinese, this is a generational thing—this whole focus on authenticity,” John says.” Young adults today have a nose to sniff out when somebody’s not being authentic. If you hear a person or pastor talk about their weaknesses you think, ‘Oh, this person’s real.’ The older generations don’t think about that; nobody’s asking that question.” He continues, “There’s a very different sense of what it is leadership is supposed to look like and what it
does. In the younger generation, there’s got to be a high focus on authenticity. There’s got to be a focus on ownership and group process. Things can’t be too hierarchical. As a leader I can’t just tell people what to do. Young Asian Americans respond very, very poorly if they don’t feel listened to, if they don’t feel appreciated, if they don’t feel ownership of the situation. Again, this is largely a generational thing, not simply a cultural thing.” These expectations often cause tension when it comes to church governance. John explains, “When you put all these things together, in classic immigrant churches, there’s a huge variance in the expectation of what a Chinese congregation is thinking the English pastor is supposed to look like, sound like, the way they lead, the way they do things, versus what the English congregation actually wants. A lot of Asian Americans end up feeling very, very disempowered by Chinese congregations. A lot of English pastors can’t make it because after all these years they still feel disempowered by their Chinese congregations because they don’t listen, don’t take the time to ask you how you’re doing.” So how can we address these differing cultural values and expectations? Being intentional about untangling those layers of culture is essential, John says. “We can’t uncritically take on any piece of culture. We’ve got to use the theological grid to look at ethnic culture and generational culture as well as church culture, and decode it,” John emphasizes. “There are these three dimensions of culture and we just have to be aware of them, and then be able to evaluate which ones are appropriate and which need to be changed.” “I think the real key is for us to develop a rich, vibrant, wholehearted relationship with God so we are getting biblical conviction from God about the kind of people we’re supposed to be and how we’re supposed to live on the Earth. And then work in culture and practice in light of that vision and destiny.”
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A Biblical Perspective on Relational Dynamics within the Immigrant Church by Joanna Wu
AN INTERVIEW WITH DR. ANTHONY SO
Similar to Paul’s desire to reach the Gentiles, Dr. Anthony So has a heart for the second-generation Chinese church, what he considers a mission field. So, assistant professor of practical theology and former director of the Asian American Ministry studies at Logos Evangelical Seminary, is convinced that the second-generation Chinese church needs focused attention, greater encouragement and an opportunity to grow. Second-generation Chinese church refers to American-born Chinese, the children, or younger generation of overseas-born, immigrant populations. Today’s Chinese churches are typically bicultural and bilingual, and some are multicultural and multilingual as populations continue to diversify. Conflicts often arise as generations and cultures clash, and the relational dynamics start to look similar to the relational issues recorded in the Bible between the Jewish and Greek Christians. No church, of course, is without conflict, including today’s Chinese churches with first- and secondgeneration congregations. How does a church handle
diversity, especially one that doesn’t look so diverse at first glance? Why would So call the second generation a whole different “animal”? So helps us in examining how to approach diversity in our churches by looking into the Scriptures for comparable examples. There are more than 1,000 Chinese churches now in the U.S. and Canada, according to historian and theologian Dr. Rev. Samuel Ling. The development of English ministries in Chinese and Asian American churches did not grow overnight but developed over decades. Some Asian American or multiethnic churches in the Los Angeles area include Evergreen Baptist Church of Los Angeles, Epicentre Church in Pasadena, or Newsong churches throughout southern California and beyond. Some conflicts that arise in immigrant churches with first- and second-generation congregations are cultural issues, though many may mistake them as disobedience, or biblical defiance. One of the dominant issues is the first generation’s desire to maintain the dominant culture and role as elder and leader, and the second generation’s desire to be autonomous, or independent in conducting worship services and having ownership of their expression of faith. So began by considering a theological question from Genesis 11 when at the Tower of Babel, God scattered the peoples, having them speak in many languages. So asked if God’s intention is to have a homogeneous or heterogeneous world, a world with a dominant culture, or one that is diverse and multicultural. In Genesis 12,
Dr. Rev. Anthony So is an assistant professor of practical theology at Logos Evangelical Seminary in El Monte, California. He has pastored churches for about 20 years and has focused his ministries and studies on second-generation Chinese churches.
The Apostle Paul devoted his life to spreading the Gospel with a mission and purpose to make known that salvation was not for the Jews only but available to all. He yearned to share this faith so that Gentiles would be an “offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.” He would stop at nothing to spread the Good News, proclaiming, “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some” (1 Corinthians 9:22b).
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God promised Abram that he would make him into a great nation and that “all peoples on earth will be blessed through [Abram]” (v. 3). If God’s promise is true, we can interpret and understand God’s desire is to bless all peoples, not just one people, or one nation. Jesus’ last words to his disciples, recorded in Matthew 28, were a command to go into all the nations and make disciples of all people groups. Furthermore, in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit fell upon the early believers and each one spoke in a different language comprehensible to others, another indication of God’s mission for the early church to spread the Gospel in all parts of the world. “For the sake of the Gospel, we need to understand that we should not let cultural issues come before our missional calling,” So said, echoing the Apostle Paul’s speech when he wrote about not letting anything hinder him from preaching the Good News. “That’s why I see this as a mission endeavor.” A Confucius way of thinking and doing still greatly influences how Christian faith is lived and practiced in Chinese culture. For example, going to church and worshiping “together,” as in the same church building, is important in Chinese Christian culture. To have their children, or second-generation youth worship in a separate church may run counter to this important part of their faith – but is this a biblical or cultural issue? “We hold strongly to our Chinese culture. I think that it supersedes the kingdom, so to speak, and so if that’s the case, it’s a big problem,” So said. “We are bringing in the mentality of preservation philosophy.” When Chinese churches allow culture to lead, rather than “Kingdom” values, churches begin to look and feel more like social and cultural centers instead of places of worship. Clashes also occur when secondgeneration children want to assimilate to Western culture, while the older immigrant population wants to preserve their ethnic roots and identity, culture, habits and customs. So further explained how churches are sometimes viewed as identification centers, or places to affirm one’s cultural identity, and how the older generation may have no intention to assimilate or acculturate.
Though generational and cultural issues are in play, so also is our biblical understanding of what God desires for his people to grow as a community of believers. To understand more fully diversity and cultural clashes inside intergenerational, crosscultural Chinese immigrant churches today, So cited three examples in the New Testament that provide insight on how to approach these conflicts. In Acts 15, Paul and Barnabas entered a debate when some were teaching that one could not be saved unless he was circumcised. After much discussion, Peter explained to the people that God made the Gospel available to all who believed and proclaimed, “We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they [the Gentiles] are” (Acts 15: 11). So compares this debate with the expectations some first-generation congregants have for the younger, secondgeneration; and in some instances, the firstgeneration’s expectations beg the question, “Does one need to be Chinese to be Christian?” “Does God require people to put on a certain cultural identity before they can become a Christian, or can the Gospel reach them in their own culture so that they don’t have to cross so many cultural barriers in order to actually know Christ?” asked Dr. So as he considered how we often expect believers to look and act a certain way before we accept them as true believers. Asking if one needs to be Chinese to be Christian may sound ridiculous, but is manifested by cultural expectations we may have on how one conducts a worship service, leadership meeting, or manages church ministries.
So looks back at the Reformation, which took place during the 1500s, and identifies the cultural revolution that occurred when Martin Luther wanted to make the Bible available to all. The Catholic Church, at that time, read the Scriptures in Latin and most people were illiterate, having to rely on stained glass images to understand the stories; their spiritual growth was limited and dependent on church authorities and leaders. “By translating the Bible, by actually identifying with the language of the common people back then, they began to turn around and started to understand the truth and the Gospel and they began to grow in their faith,” So said. “I think it’s the same in secondgeneration ministry. We need to have a drastic change in how we look at the second-generation ministry from the cultural perspective that they are foreigners. They need to have the language, setting, and approach that’s comfortable in order that they might be able to experience God.” The second example is from the book of John, where we can see how far the Gospel reaches when “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14). Jesus, the Word, enters the world as an infant child; Jesus, the One and Only, the King of Kings, the Prince of Peace, the Lord of Lords, humbles himself by coming to earth to not only die on the cross for the sin of the world, but to live among his people and to connect with man as a Teacher, friend and “servant of all” (Mark 9:35). “The Word became flesh and dwelled among men,” So said. “Man did not cross the barrier to reach the Word.”
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Finally, in John 4, we see Jesus again demonstrate His love and call to cross cultures when he sparks a conversation with a Samaritan woman at the drinking well. Though Jews and Samaritans did not interact with each other because Jews viewed Samaritans as “unclean,” Jesus did not separate himself; instead he initiated a conversation and ultimately revealed himself to her as the Messiah. Through this interaction, Jesus reveals more about his mission to reach the lost, not just the Jews, but also the sick, the weak, the sinful and the marginalized. So how can first- and second-generation congregants better understand each other, and thus work together in building God’s kingdom? “Both groups need to learn each other’s culture. Without education, it will only lead to frustration,” So said. “We all need to learn from one another about the cultural issues. We need to communicate and learn from each other.” In addition to taking time to learn each other’s personalities, So encouraged churches to consider several M’s: Mentality, Mission, Management, Model, as well as Manpower and Money, which all impact the potential for a healthy relationship between firstand second-generation ministries. Mentality refers to the paradigm shift that’s needed among first-generation leaders. The first generation does not know everything. Leadership does not have to be hierarchical; in fact, it should be horizontal. “In the post-modern age, what is passed
on doesn’t have to be from older to younger,” So said. “We live in a global village and community knowledge is what counts.” Mission is to build God’s kingdom, not to have more power than another group or congregation. From a first-generation perspective, So said, “If we see each other as a mission field, then we want to learn so that we might be effective and help [the second generation] grow in Christ, rather than try to control them or assimilate them into our way of thinking.” Management concerns different structures of leadership. Does there need to be a senior pastor at the top, or could other leadership structures be put in place to help lead the congregation? Model refers to different ways English ministries or second-generation churches can be supported; some may function within the same church as the first-generation but have their own governing board; some may function as their own entity in the same building; another model is to build two churches with one that’s geared to the first-generation and another for the second-generation. Looking at the future of Chinese churches, So said that unless something is drastically changed, the future appears grim as more and more secondgeneration individuals leave the church.’
“Are we preparing our children to face the challenges ahead of them as Christians, or not? Are we just trying to keep them in our church, and as long as they’re here, everybody’s happy?” “There is an urgency for us to really come together and face the music and recognize the decline of the second generation Christians,” So said, calling leaders to spend time vision casting and intentionally building up second-generation leaders. “I think Asian American churches do a lot of good to absorb those who have run away from the Chinese church so I think we should continue to encourage people to build and start Asian American churches.” “We need to let them go and also help them develop because we see it as a mission endeavor,” So said. With a missional perspective and desire to reach all peoples, particularly second-generation churches, So concluded with this vision from Revelation: “There before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb” (Revelation 7:9, my italics).
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Presence Family Magazine Report The publication of the Presence Family Magazine originated from a dream. It began when readers who loved our newsletters suggested and encouraged us to extend the reach of our articles to benefit others in the Asian community. This challenged the coworkers of Presence Ministry to pursue a bolder dream. We envisioned a Presence Family Magazine that would reach out to the community with the values and service of Presence. Writing has been a dream of mine for the past few years. I feel so blessed that I am able to contribute in the publishing of this magazine. While the dream of the Presence Magazine is being realized, my personal dream of writing is also coming true. The transitioning from newsletter to magazine was far more complicated than we had anticipated. However, the results and the response to the magazine were indeed far greater than what we had expected. The magazine brought Presence Ministry into families we had never reached before; it also helped us serve some churches we did not know. It has even spread Presence Ministry to places far away. The potential of where the magazine can penetrate is unlimited. Some readers called us recently, telling us how much they liked our magazine and how it helped both generations in their families. We also received a request from an out-of-state church to distribute our magazine in conjunction with their family ministry. We printed and distributed 5,000 copies of the first issue of Presence Family Magazine, while the second and the third issues were increased to 10,000 copies. If our Lord permits, we hope to gradually increase the circulation to 20,000 or 30,000 copies. To continue to build this ministry, we urgently need support in many areas, such as financial donations, advertisement sponsorships, writings and opinions contributors, and promotion and distribution in various districts. We invite you to join us as a volunteer in this publishing ministry. Your support is the anchor for Presence.
Answering the Atheist
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On April 15, 2011 about 200 youth represented by more than 10 different churches gathered at Southlands Christian School for an evening of worship and learning the answers to tough questions of the Christian faith. The event, Answering the Atheist, featured Troy Lee as worship leader, and Brett Kunkle of Stand to Reason as the main speaker. The responses were extremely positive. “It answered a lot of questions I had about Christianity,” said one high schooler. Another student said, “It was very good, everything was great, the information was so clear.” Presence ministry holds an annual event aimed at reaching youth. This year’s event will be on the topic of “Understanding Islam and Other Worldviews”. If you are interested in bringing your church group to participate at this event, please contact Presence.
Presence Fundraising Banquet DYNAMICS 2 & 2+ Last year’s Thanksgiving and Fundraising Banquet, held on March 27, 2011 at the Arcadia Community Center, was well attended by 198 people from different churches. Agnes Ip, Presence founder and president, spoke on the nine characteristics of a resilient family that is useful for building a more united and powerful family bond. The personal testimony by a family with an autistic son exemplified the principles of successful stress management in the face of challenges. The evening concluded with Rebecca Kan giving witness on how God answered her prayers in leading Presence Ministry from a start with meager resources to today’s wide influence. By God’s grace and the generosity of our supporters, a total of $15,060 was donated towards the ministry of Presence at this event.
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Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Seminars
Presence held two seminars in June and September to present Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for mild behavioral health issues. The seminars were led by Ms. Agnes Ip, Presence Founder and President. The Cantonese seminar took place at Chinese Evangelical Free Church in Monterey Park on June 25, 2011, and the Mandarin course in partnership with the Evangelical Formosan Church of Rowland Heights, was conducted on September 24, 2011. There was a total of 195 in attendance coming from more than thirty different churches. To demonstrate the practical applications of CBT, Agnes analyzed some of the participants’ real life situations using CBT strategies. She showed them the underlying cause of their behavioral problems, and helped them discover ways to build a healthy and positive perspective. The seminars received many positive comments. One said, “The practical life situation discussions helped me to resolve my daily problems with tact. It helped me to build my confidence and overcome my negative behavior. The seminar was very valuable!” Another participant, who decided to join Presence as a volunteer after benefiting from this workshop said, “This seminar helps me to realize my inner anxiety and depression. The concept of CBT is very helpful.” The audience learned that CBT strategies are both useful and effective in managing behavior. “It corrects my irrational assumptions and helps me to learn positive and logical thinking,” said another participant. Many who came to the workshop expressed interest in taking part in future Presence’s activities.
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Presence Ministry conducted two retreats at Mandarin Baptist Church of Los Angeles (in Cantonese) and at Rowland Heights Community Christian Church (in Mandarin) in early October. The main speaker is well-known Christian financial consultant, Mr. Sau-Wing Lam. The retreats were one day conferences with 160 in attendance. Using Biblical teachings, Mr. Lam presented topics that included the various identities of a man and the difficulties faced by men in the 21st century. He used several characters from the Old Testament as models to exhort men on how to be a man who is loved by God and his wife. One of the most popular sessions of this retreat was the guest interviews. We invited James Lau, Phillip Lowe and Steve Hsu to share their life experiences, and discussed about how to maintain a balance between God, career and family. The audience raised relevant questions and many concerns were resolved during the discussion. While many husbands came to the retreat as a result of their wives’ strong influence, the conversations afterward showed that the men were glad they came. Many found their stress relieved and their spiritual minds renewed. Not only was this retreat effective in helping the head of the family, but the benefits will in turn positively affect the entire family. Following the success of this men’s retreat, we received requests for Presence to conduct a “How to be a Good Woman” retreat!
How to be a Good Man // A Retreat for Men
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Introducing New Staff
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It has been said that Christianity is always just one generation away from extinction. This is an urgent call and challenge for us to lead our young people to an enduring faith in Jesus Christ, and Presence is responding. By faith, we are launching RE:NEW, a Presence outreach to youth. Our vision for RE:NEW is to develop a community movement of teens in the local areas and on the web. Faith-provoking content and events will connect these youth to each other and build a community that strengthens their Christian faith. We seek to partner with churches and other Christian organizations to provide services that challenge youth to RE:NEW their RESPONSE to Christ. It is our hope to bring the relevance of Christ and the Bible to the teen setting through various forms of media and technology, so that every teen will be able to utilize and celebrate the gifts they have been given in a corporate declaration that Jesus Christ is Lord.
Our first connecting point is the website www. RENEWtheRESPONSE.org, a place for teens to participate and give their input with testimonies, music, artwork, and other creative pieces as they both encourage and are encouraged by the community of authentic individuals. Along with that, RE:NEW Magazine is a backpack-friendly size publication that can conveniently be used by the teens to introduce Jesus to their friends. Furthermore, a live event on the topic of “Understanding Islam and Other Worldviews”, similar to last year’s very popular “Answering the Atheist” is being planned for the fall. We envision RE:NEW to be the springboard of change for the leaders, laborers, and gospel-bearers that God will surely raise up to impact our schools and communities with His message of peace. However, there is so much more to be done towards that vision. We need your help. If you would like to partner with us, or if you just want to find out more about RE:NEW, please contact info@ RENEWtheRESPONSE.org.
Michelle Tam is our Administrative Manager. She felt very inspired by Presence’s dedication in serving the family and youth ministry and decided to join Presence in August 2011. While managing the daily operation of Presence, she hopes to contribute her expertise in accounting and entrepreneurship and assist Presence in becoming one of the stronger and better organizations in the community. She is enthusiastic about sharing Presence’s visionand looks forward to spiritual growth with other coworkers at Presence.
Phoebe Ng, the Project Manager for Presence’s new youth ministry, RE:NEW, is excited for the opportunity to inspire youth to a deeper and renewed faith in Jesus Christ. She is passionate about helping individuals to discover their unique purpose in Christ and loves to see people excel with their God-given gifts. Equipped with a strong writing background and familiar with start-up ministry, Phoebe will focus on managing RE:NEW’s volunteer team as they continue to develop and launch youth resources in the coming months.
Leslie Tam, the Public Relations & Event Coordinator for Presence’s new youth ministry, RE:NEW. Leslie is studying Liberal Studies (Education) at UC Riverside. She loves interacting with children that her wish is to become a teacher. As a Christian, teacher, or student/worker, she hopes to make a difference in children’s lives so that they may feel or see God’s love.
Michelle Tam (譚李建明), 是我們的行攻 Phoebe Ng (吳純恩), 是活現青少年事工“ Leslie Tam (譚慧嫻), 是活現青少年事工“新 經理。她被活現專注於家庭及青少年的事 新生”的企劃經理。她十分興奮能ં有機會 生”的公關及活動統籌。她在UC Riverside 工所感動, 在2011年8月加入活現團隊。除 參與“新生”的成立，藉此激發青少年在主基 主修教育系。她喜愛孩子，志願成為一位老師。 了負責活現的日常操作, 她希望將自己在財 督裡重獲新的信心，幫助他們打穩信仰的根 她希望透過不同崗位的事奉，使孩子們能認 政及企業管理方面的專業知識應用於活現 識神的大愛，建立美好的將來。 基。她熱衷幫助别人發揮屬靈恩賜，並明白 事工，使之成為一個運作健全的非牟利機構。 主在他們身上的旨意和計劃。吳純恩具備豐 她熱衷與人分享活現事工的異象，並期望與 富的寫作經驗，對籌劃成立新事工駕輕就熟。 活現一同成長。 在新的一年裡，她將會全力以赴領導“新生” 的義工團隊，為發展青少年事工不斷努力。
New Staff Profile Kristen Li /
李雅文 Multimedia Coordinator 多媒體統籌
Sue Wong / 黃許淑清
Yumi Tsang / 曾自如
Volunteer Staff 義務同工
Office Assistant 辦公室助理
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2011Presence Ministry Activity Summary DATE
Jan – Jun
EVENT 活動
“Wise Parenting” Seminar 「健康家庭」系列研習班 Mandarin Baptist Church of Los Angeles 洛杉磯國語浸信會
02/12
Improving Children’s Self-Esteem 如何提高孩子的自尊心 Chinese Evangelical Free Church 羅省華人播道會
02/12
Chinese New Year Lantern Festival Booth 迎新春燈會 Chinese-American Parents Association of the Walnut Valley Unifed School District 核桃學區華裔家長會
活現事工活動記錄
ATTENDANCE 32 12 open about 1,000
03/27
Presence Fundraising Banquet – Dynamics 2 & 2+ 活現籌款晚會 Arcadia Community Center 亞凱迪亞社區中心
198
04/15
Answering the Atheist 回應無神論者 Southlands Christian School
207
Apr – Jun
Improving the Marriage Relationship 夫妻關係 First Evangelical Church of Diamond Bar 鑽石吧羅省基督教會
36
06/25
Cognitive Behavior Therapy-Self help Seminar (Cantonese) 認知行為療法自助訓練（⩳） Chinese Evangelical Free Church 羅省華人播道會
60
06/17 & 07/15
In Group Vs Out Group; Comforting Each other 圈內圈外人際關係; 彼此安慰的藝術 First Chinese Baptist Church of Walnut 核桃市第一華人浸信會
28
07/09 – 07/10
Understanding Emotions, Effective Listening Skills & Faith in the Digital Era 了解情緒、有效的聆聽技巧，與及電子時代和信仰 FCBC-LA Retreat (from Kindergarten to High School) 洛杉磯第一華人浸信會退修會
68
活動預告
DATE
EVENT 活動
Jan 14
Christian Leadership Conference, L.A. 2012 (Cantonese) 僕人領袖大會（⩳） Sponsor: Traditio nal Family Coalition & Chinese Christian for Justice 主辦：傳統家庭促進會、華人基督徒義顯社 Co-Sponsors: Presence Ministry & Culture Regeneration Research Society (CRRS) 協辦：活現事工、美國文化更新研究中心
Mar 24
Marriage & Family Seminar (Mandarin)「幸福就在轉角處」婚姻家庭研討會（國） Sponsor: Logos Evangelical Seminary 主辦：正道福音神學院 Co-Sponsors: Presence Ministry & other organizations 協辦：活現事工及其他多間機構
Mar 25
09/03
Later Life Transitions 活出彩虹:生命的成就與停滯 San Gabriel Valley Chinese Alliance Church 羅省東區宣道會
09/24
Cognitive Behavior Therapy -Self help Seminar (Mandarin) 認知行為療法自助訓練（國） Evangelical Formosan Church of Rowland Heights 愛鄰台福基督教會
135
Sep – Oct
Improving the Marriage Relationship 夫妻關係 Evangelical Formosan Church of Rowland Heights 愛鄰台福基督教會
24
Sep – Nov
Mom’s Growth Groups (Mandarin) 媽媽成長小組 Home of Christians Eastern LA 東洛杉磯基督徒之家
10
Sep – Nov
Mom’s Growth Groups (Cantonese) 媽媽成長小組 Presence Ministry Office 活現事工辦公室
10/08
How to be a Good Man (Cantonese)「做個好男人」弟兄退修會（⩳） Mandarin Baptist Church of Los Angeles 洛杉磯國語浸信會
93
10/09
How to be a Good Man (Mandarin)「做個好男人」弟兄退修會（國） Rowland Heights Community Christian Church 羅蘭崗基督徒禮拜堂
60
11/05 – 11/06
How Asian Parents Raise Childern in the U.S.? 亞裔父母如何在美國培育子女 Metro-Phoenix Chinese Alliance Church 亞利桑那州鳳凰城區華人宣道會
55
12/04
Understanding Your Adolescent Child 認識青少年的心理需要 LA Chinese Alliance Church 羅省華人宣道會
25
2011 Total Attendees 參加者總數
2012 Event Calendar
56
5
Thanksgiving & Vision-Sharing Banquet (Mandarin/Cantonese) 活現事工感恩及異象分享餐會（國、⩳） “Can two cultures in the church work together harmoniously?” 「教會兩代之間和諧相處」
Apr 28
RE:NEW Youth Ministry Vision-Sharing Banquet (English) RE:NEW 新心青少年部籌款晚會（英）
Sep
Clinical Training Series: Personal Growth for Caring Ministry Workers (Mandarin) 自我成長營 ─ 給關懷和輔導者的訓練（國）
Oct
“Building a Successful Family” Marriage Conference (Mandarin/Cantonese) 「幸福家庭」婚姻研討會（國、⩳）
Oct
Youth Conference: “Understanding Islam and Other Worldviews” (English) 青少年信仰研討會: 了解伊斯蘭教和其他世界觀（英）
Presence Ministry Financial Report
2012 BUDGET PROJECTION // 2012 年度開支預算
$340,067
2011 ANNUAL FINANCIAL REPORT (as of 11/22/11)
AMOUNT $113,040 $ 9,383 $103,658
Total Gross Receipts 總收入 Total Expenses 總支出 Total Net Income 淨餘
活現事工財政報告
Total Assets 資產總值
2,104
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$ 20,393
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Presence Ministry Resources Order Form PRODUCT’S TITLE 資源
SUGGESTED DONATION 建議奉獻價
QUANTITY 數量
AMOUNT 金額
PARENTING AND FAMILY 親子家庭教育系列
⩳語 CD/DVD PAC001: CD (⩳) 幫助孩子建立自尊心 PAC002: CD (⩳) 訓練孩子處理衝突
PAC003: CD (⩳) 孩子行為的危機訊號 PAC004: CD (⩳) 協助孩子面對災難 PAC005: CD (⩳) 如何與孩子談性
PAC006: CD (⩳) 孩子的道德智商 ＭＱ
事
PAC007: CD (⩳) 孩子不同的學習風格
PAC008: CD (⩳) ⩳語親子教育系列優惠套裝 (共7片) PAC009: CD (⩳) 健康家庭須有的基本心理概念
PMC001: 2CDs (⩳) 父母與青少年子女溝通之難，難在？
PMD001: DVD (⩳) 父母與青少年子女溝通之難，難在？
⩳語 CD/DVD PMB301: BOOKLET (bilingual/雙語) 克服與青少年子女溝通的障礙 PMB301: BOOKLET (bilingual/雙語) 健康家庭須有的基本心理概念 國語 CD/DVD PAC102: 2CDs (國) 培養孩子處理困境的能力
PAC102: 2CDs (國) 青少年領袖訓練與親子培育課程 Please send your completed order form to Presence Ministry. Make check payable to PRESENCE ﹐ 事 :PRESENCE Mailing Address 20651 Golden Springs Drive #104, Walnut, CA 91789
PAC103: 2CDs (國) 親子互動與情緒管理
PAC104: 2CDs (國) 愛的語言與家庭界線
PAC105: 2CDs (國) 中年人的婚姻危機與處理 PAC106: 2CDs (國) 家庭暴力與輔導
SUGGESTED DONATION 建議奉獻價
PRODUCT’S TITLE 資源
QUANTITY 數量
GENDER EDUCATIONL SERIES 性別教育系列 English CD/DVD $10 $10 $10 $10 $10 $10 $10 $55 $10 $15 $15
$15 $15
$20 $15 $15 $15 $15 $15
PAC107: CD (國) 個人自主權與家庭壓力的處理
$10
PAC108: 11CDs 國語家庭教育系列優惠套裝 (共11片)
$70
REFUND POLICY // Any item return or exchange must be made within 10 days of receipt. Any defective, incorrect, or damaged item may be returned or exchanged. Any media products may only be returned for refunds if unopened. If opened, only replacement of the same item may be allowed. For further assistance, contact Presence at 626-810-5200.
Pastoral Care for People with Gender Issues 性別輔導的理論與實務 CMD301: 4DVDs (Eng / 國語翻譯) CMS201: 4DVDs + Power Point CMP201: Power Point only HLC201: CD Hope and Love HLD201: DVD Hope and Love ESB201: Book The Exodus: From Slavery Into Sonship
$40 $65 $35 $10 $12 $12
INTERNET ADDICTION SERIES 網絡沉溺系列 English CD/DVD CMC301: 2CDs (Eng / 國語翻譯) Internet Addiction in Teens: How to Avoid and Overcome CMC201: 2CDs (Eng) Clinical Session: Internet Addiction – Basic Principles for Causes & Treatment
$15
$20
CMC201: DVD (Eng) Clinical Session: Internet Addiction – Basic Principles for Causes & Treatment
$25
INC201: CD (Eng) Confessions of a Gaming Addict
$10
IKC201: CD (Eng) Parenting Our Children in the Age of the Internet
$10
⩳語、國語 CD CMC001: 2CDs (⩳) 青少年網路沈溺: 如何避免和勝過 CMC302: 2CDs (⩳/ 國語翻譯) 成人網路沈溺: 認知與解構
$20 $20
CLINICAL SERIES 心理健康系列
⩳語、國語 CD CAC001: 3CDs (⩳) 認知行為療法：給輕度抑鬱和焦慮者的自助訓練 CAC001: 3CDs (國) 認知行為療法：給輕度抑鬱和焦慮者的自助訓練
$20 $20
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AMOUNT 金額
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Conference info from Phoebe
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Offering Form 奉獻表格
新心事工 簡介
有人說再過一個世代，基督教就要從世上消失了。我 們的信仰委實已經響起了警鐘，如何帶領年輕一代持 守信仰成了我們的挑戰。活現願意回應！ 憑著信，我們成立了RE:NEW新心行動，成為活現的 青少年事工。RE:NEW新心事工將在社區和網域內建 立一個獨特的青少年社群，藉著激發信心的活動來連 結年輕人，從而幫助他們打穩信仰的根基。我們期望 與教會及基督教機構合作，把青少年重新帶到主的面 前。透過科技和媒體，將基督和聖經真理帶進青年人 的世界，以至他們能善用自己的恩賜，向世人宣告耶 穌基督是主。 我們為青少年推出的第一個聚點是網站www. renewtheresponse.org，青少年可以在這裡分享 見證、發表他們在音樂、美術方面的藝術創作。配合網 站的推出，我們還會出版RE:NEW 新心雜誌，大小適 中，可以隨身放在背包內，讓讀者在適當時機向朋友介 紹福音。此外，繼去年廣受歡迎的「回應無神論者」活 動，今年秋季，我們計劃再籌辦一場名為「了解伊斯蘭 教和其他世界觀」的活動。 我們展望 RE:NEW新心行動能為青少年領袖、同工、 及對福音有負擔者帶來銳變，願上帝興起他們，使他 們能以神平安的信息來影響學校和社區。然而要實現 這個異象，我們需要您的幫助。如果您願意與我們攜 手合作，或想多了解RE:NEW新心行動，歡迎與我們 聯絡：info@renewtheresponse.org。
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2012/ feb 活現年刊
活現
內容
出版
活現事工團隊
活現事工 20651 Golden Springs Dr., #104 Walnut, CA 91789
創辦人及總幹事 Agnes Ip 同工 Kristen Li / Lily Ma / Phoebe Ng / Leslie Tam / Michelle Tam / Janice Teng / Yumi Tsang / Christine Wu 辦工室義工 Cindy Eng & Vicky Ly
電話 傳真 電郵 網址
626 810 5200 626 810 5220 info@presenceministry.org presenceministry.org
編輯總監 Wai Yan Ip Ngan (Agnes Ip) 執行編輯 Katy Lee 編輯部 Jinny Chow / Phoebe Chow / Cindy Eng / Jean Jou / Alice Lin / Lily Ma / Phoebe Ng / Sue Wong / Christine Wu / Sherry Yu 封面及版面設計 Annette Lee 廣告設計 Ada Tran 攝影、插圖 Sam Kwok
書頁
01/
以同理心誇越華裔教會兩代文化差異
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華人教會中文化誤解之兩個普遍現象
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基督教信仰與三方文化面面觀
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從聖經角度分析移民教會內人際互動的現象
活現董事 主席 Agnes Ip 秘書 Jenny Lee 財政 Patricia Wong 董事 Rev. & Dr. Timothy Tin / Elsa Tsang / L. Ma
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2011活現事工報告
26/
介紹活現同工團隊
30/
2012活現事工活動預告
33/
2011活現事工財政報告
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活現事工資源推介
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以同理心誇越華 裔教會兩代文化 差異 // 葉顏瑋茵
陳媽媽，50多歲，來自台灣，英語不大靈光。Justin，20 來歲，英文堂青少年領導。一天，陳媽媽在教會的走廊上 䈌見Justin，面帶笑容主動跟他打招呼。沒想到，Justin 卻一聲不哼地，急速與她擦身而過。 陳媽媽感到不被尊重而氣憤。心想： 「誰家的孩子這樣無 禮，一點家教都沒有；見到長輩也沒反應，我主動打招呼， 還不回應；這麼看不起別人的人，還有甚麼資格當領導， 這種壞榜樣，只會教壞我們的小孩！」 以上是一個常在華裔教會內發生的例子。 目前，美國華裔教會大多由移民 家長和他們在美國土生土長的子女組成。移民家長主要講母語，多以傳統 文化和家庭觀念為思想主軸；在美國成長的華人二代，以講英語為主，受本 地文化影響至深。不論來自任何背景的華人，多多少少已將美國文化和傳 統中國文化融合一起，集兩者的優勢，並試圖取得平衡，問題在兩代人的側 重點各有不同。今天不少教會領袖及家長，都感到年輕的一代十分自我，並 對教會青少年大量流失深感痛心；而教會中的第二代，在適應新舊文化中， 有著上一代不能了解的挑戰。我希望透過這篇文章，幫助大家了解彼此的 不同，明白長期以來造成心理隔閡的一些原因，並增加兩代的同理心，以互 相體諒為出發點，踏出化解兩代衝突的第一步。
兩代間的文化差異 有專家曾對亞裔家庭的文化進行研究，發現了 四大傳統特式 (Yee, DeBaryshe, Yuen, Kim, and McCubbin, 2006)。 /01 集體觀念 家庭是個整體，家庭的需要高過個人的追求 和發展。 /02 關係取向 以與他人的關係來界定自己，而非以自己作為 核心標準。 /03 家族主義 家族為社會中最重要的架構組織，以男尊女卑、 年長為尊作為階級分層。 /04 家庭義務 反映在父母與子女之間的強烈情感依付，在身 體和行為上，彼此有密切的連結。 我們可從以上陳媽媽與 Justin 的例子，嘗試 探討兩代間文化的差異。陳媽媽的情緒反應讓 我們看到傳統文化價值觀對她的影響。
/01 集體觀念 「誰家的孩子這樣無禮，一點家教都沒有。」 她把Justin個人的行為與他的家庭拉上關係。 家庭是個整體，個人的行為代表了家庭的表現。 /02 關係取向 「這麼看不起別人的人」 她的個人價值因別人行為而自覺受到損害。 /03 家族主義 「見到長輩也沒反應，我主動打招乎，還不回應」 按著年長為尊的階級思想，一般該是年輕人主 動向長輩請安，陳媽媽已放下身份主動打招呼， 怎知Justin一點反應都沒有，她感到身分面子 被對方踐踏，因而生氣。 /04 家庭義務 「還有甚麼資格當領導，這種壞榜樣只會教 我們的小孩！」 陳媽媽心中，教會是個大家庭，Justin既是青 少年領導，就有義務注意自己的言行，他無禮 的行為會影響其他的小孩子。
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現在我們嘗試把這個例子轉到馮媽媽身上。馮媽媽10歲移民來美，接 受西方教育，雖然成長於雙重文化下，但她較為接近美國的文化和價值 觀，偏重於個人和平等主義。同樣的情況發生在她身上，她對Justin則有 以下不同的看法： 「這個青年人為甚麼不哼一聲？他在想別的事，還是發生了甚麼事？他不 想跟我講話，就讓他有點空間處理自己的事情吧。」 從馮媽媽的反應中，我們可以看到個人和平等主義的痕跡。 /01 平等主義 「他不想跟我講話，就讓他..」 她不覺得自己和Justin有長幼之別，並不計較誰該向誰先打招呼；而 Justin的表現與她個人價值的高低，扯不上任何關係。 /02 個人主義 「他在想別的事，還是發生了甚麼事？他不想跟我講話，就讓他有點空間 處理自己的事情吧。」 馮媽媽把Justin沒有回禮一事，看成他個人需要空間處理自己的事情或 情緒，她自然沒有生氣的理由。雖然她會擔心Justin不尋常的反應，但在 個人主義的觀念下，她不會干預別人的事情。 那麼Justin究竟為甚麼不打招呼呢？原來，他只是心裏記掛著一大堆還 沒做好的事情，心情有點低落，不想跟一些不熟識的人講話，也不希望 別人打擾他。 當Justin知道陳媽媽因自己沒有跟她打招呼而感到受傷，他的想法如 何？ /01 莫名其妙，不以為然。 「我素來都是如此。高興時會與人交談甚歡，心情不好時，就離開人羣，讓 自己有多點安靜的空間。多年來，無論在學校或工作場所，從未聽過因此 有何負面意見，為甚麼陳媽媽有這麼大的情緒反應呢？」 /02 後來聽說陳媽媽批評自己不是好榜樣，就更感困惑和反感。 「每個人都有願意打招呼和不想打招呼的自由，為何這群“CHINESE”家 長老是喜歡強人所難，小事化大？為何他們需要別人尊重，卻不懂得尊 重別人。」他心裏想，“PLEASE LEAVE ME ALONE!”「這些家長越是 這樣要求，我越不想和他們交往。」下次當Justin再走到教會的走廊上， 他就故意低下頭來走路，誰都不想看見。
/03 傳統的中國文化觀對 Justin 並不重要。 「人與人相處當然要有基本的禮貌，但個人的自 由比遵守一般社群慣例與風俗更加重要。若沒 有抵觸法例或刻意傷害別人，個人就該有選擇 的自由。若對方因此不悅，可以理解。但並不代 表為使對方高興，就要改變自己。」 Justin的想法，反映出新一代華人個人主義的 思想形態。 // 次文化帶來的同儕壓力 在美國, 傳統的中國文化是主流社會中的次文 化。年輕人每天生活在主流文化中，對他們來 說，次文化不僅沒甚麼價值，更給他們帶來不 少同儕的壓力。例如，二年級學生小華，每天帶 著媽媽所做的中式愛心便當上學。可是，同學 說他的午餐味道奇怪，不願跟他一起進餐。他 告訴媽媽： 「其他同學都吃Pizza，三文治和薯 條，我也想吃那些東西。」媽媽不高興地說： 「那 些東西沒有營養!」小華為接近同學，不被人取 笑，便丟掉自己的午飯，吃同學們所帶的食物， 有時甚至寧願捱餓。 年輕人對傳統家庭文化的反抗心理，大都經 過長期的掙扎，或因多次被拒絕和傷害而造成， 也有部分對自己民族身份否定，極端趨向主 流，渴望得到社會的認同。例如，一位十歲亞裔 小女孩討厭自己的長相，特別是她扁平的鼻子。 她每天深夜偷偷地用衣夾夾在鼻樑上，希望自 己的鼻子能像白人同學的一樣高。無論小孩追 求那種程度上的認同，他們都需要得到家長的 諒解，以舒解在文化差異中被壓抑的情緒。若 他們在極度需要被老師和同學認同時，卻因此 遭到家長對他們作出人格上的批評和否定，或 是高壓地說教，這只會加重他們成長中的負擔， 使他們受到雙重文化的否定，給他們的心靈帶 來無人理解的痛苦。
// 負面標籤導致兩代間的隔閡 一般傳統家長對小孩子的要求很嚴格，希望他 們有禮貌守規矩，常以「應該」和「不應該」作為 社交條約，並誇大「不應該」帶來的惡果，以負 面標籤冠之。 比如說：「這樣做代表你不乖，沒 有禮貌，不成熟，不懂得尊敬別人，是一個自高 自大的人，沒有人會喜歡你！以後誰會幫你？」 孩子為了討好父母、不被攻擊，勉強為之。可是， 他們在學校，就算不跟老師打招呼(「沒禮貌」) 也不會被老師責備。其他族裔的家長也不一定 嚴格要求同學遵守這些所謂特定的規矩。孩子 心裏會想「為甚麼教會和家裏這麼多的規矩？ 」而且發現父母所說的惡果， 只有那些傳統思 想的人才會認同。孩子感到家長與主流社會 脫節，慢慢形成對傳統教導有所保留。到了青 少年反叛期，再也不願持守這些「應該」的禮儀， 也不再顧及別人的感受和想法， 只照自己認為 是對的去做。 有些家長甚至在教會公開討論青少年的成績、 衣著打扮，且互相比較，不自覺地侵犯了個人 主義者的私人領域，青年人敢怒不敢言。有些 青年教會領袖，因他們本身對傳統家長的不滿， 在教會中變得過度地保護青少年的個人自主 權。甚至部份年輕導師，不容許家長參與少年 人的教會活動。這使本來已缺乏正面對話的兩 代更形對立，嚴重影響兩代間的和諧相處。 // 以同理心來化解兩代的差異 不同的人會嘗試用不同的方法來化解兩代衝 突的方法，但最重要的前提是大家必須具備同 理心，即是設身處地去考慮別人的感受、想法 和反應。當人遭拒絕而受到傷害時， 自然會保 護自我、固執己見，甚至產生苦毒。要停止這些 因為痛苦、抵抗、迴避甚至苦毒所產生的惡性 循環，我們必須願意放下自己所謂的權益，多 為別人的需要著想。要培養這種同理心，兩代
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須了解各自所處的雙重或多重文化背景，而每個人的適應程度都有不同。 通過正面的溝通，理解對方在文化適應和保存的過程中，曾經遇到的難 處和所付出的努力。如果長輩們能ં體會年輕一代在雙重文化衝擊下 所面對的掙扎，認同他們的難處，學習放下負面的標籤和責怪，聆聽他 們的心聲，青年人會得到安慰，更尊重他們的長輩。其實溝通也不只限 於言語，一些身體語言如點頭和微笑， 已足ં化解溝通上的誤會，拉近 兩代之間的距離。 活現事工致力為教會兩代之間提供一個互相溝通的平台，今期的活現 年刊藉著兩代不同作者的分享，各自表達他們的心聲和立場，喚醒大家 對文化差異的關注。縱使大家存在不同看法或受過無心的傷害，也容易 以一顆寬容和恩慈的心，來彼此包容、接納，以愛來化解文化上的衝突。 讓我們以歌羅西書3:12-14 節為榜樣： 『所以你們既是神的選民，聖潔 蒙愛的人，就要存憐憫、恩慈、謙虛、溫柔、忍耐的心。倘若這人與那人有 嫌隙，總要彼此包容，彼此饒恕。主怎樣饒恕了你們，你們也要怎樣饒恕 人。在這一切之外，要存着愛心，愛心就是聯絡全德的。』
// 引用 Yee, B.W.K., DeBaryshe,B., Yuen, S., Kim, S.Y., & McCubbin, H. (2006). Asian American and Pacific Islander families: Resiliency and life-span socialization in a cultural context. Handbook of Asian American psychology (2nd ed., pp. 69-86). Thousand Oaks,CA:Sage Publications.
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華人教會中文 化誤解之兩個 普遍現象 Ken Carlson 牧師
多元文化通常被理解為在語言、食物及習俗上 的不同，但當中有很多微妙的差異卻往往被 忽略了。不幸地，這些文化上的差異卻可引起 教會內部很多誤解和紛爭，甚至造成教會分裂。 在華人教會中，美國土生的華裔與第一代移 民不時會產生衝突，但問題並非在於對聖經 真理的分歧，而是由於文化差距上的誤解。在 商議教會事工時，若忽略了文化背景的因素， 不同的做法可能被雙方誤解為『不屬靈』或不 合符聖經。 Ken Carlson牧師在華人教會當了十七年英 文部的牧師，他分享以下兩個在教會內因文 化誤解而產生矛盾的例子，顯明如果缺乏對文 化背景的敏銳觀察力，微小的衝突都會釀成莫 大的傷害和爭執。
教會的決策 說到文化差異帶來的矛盾和分歧，不得不提到領導層的決策。傾向美 國化的處理是採取公開討論來收集不同甚至相反的建議，以多票數來 通過一個議案。而亞洲人的作風則選擇私下達成共識，傾向對資深者默 許和認同，並用以和為貴作為大前提。由於兩種手法各有不同的價值觀， 因而在怎樣做才合符聖經的觀點上產生爭議，他們都各有其優點及缺點， 這些做法有些時候很湊效，但也很容易被濫用。
藉著以上兩個例子，我們明白到教會領袖及會 眾在判斷別人行為時要非常小心，除非有人明 顯違反了聖經的教導，否則斷不能隨便把他人 的做法標籤為『不屬靈』。每個人對事情的看法 和解讀，都基於不同的角度和文化背景，要轉 換角度去理解另一個文化的表現並不容易，我 們需要以忍耐、愛心和恩慈去化解彼此的矛盾。
當兩種不同文化背景的領袖需要共商決策時，問題往往便會產生。美國 式領袖會認為私下達成共識的處事方法缺乏透明度，這種黑箱作業的 方式有如秘密政治聯盟，欠缺忠誠；而亞洲式領袖們會認為公開辯論有 傷和氣，缺乏愛心和謙卑。尊重年長的領導人究竟真的否定了基督裡的 基本平等，還是一種實踐謙卑與互相尊重的應有行為呢? 當我在台灣修讀普通話的時候，就曾經歷過這些文化差異。當時我們在 一間規模較小的浸信會參加崇拜，有一次被邀請出席敬拜後的會友大會， 當時有幾個提案須要投票表決，使我驚訝的是每項提案都能一致通過。 後來我才發現原來在表決之前，一些具影響力的領袖們已經進行內部商 討並作出決定，在會上他們發表意見後，所有會友便自動和議支持，投 票程序不過是一種形式而已。究竟這是基督徒相愛和睦的美好表現，還 是一種幕後的政治操控？答案很在乎於你所出生和成長的文化背景。 教會活動收費的原則 另一個文化差異的例子是發生在討論退修會收費的方案上。一些英文 部的同工認為要收取全額費用，然後以助學金形式資助有經濟困難的 會友。但中文部的同工卻考慮到一些新移民會因為申請資助而感到ಊ尬， 寧願放棄參加退修會，因此他們建議徵收較低的報名費，然後以自由奉 獻去彌補不足。但英文部同工卻反對為退修會設立奉獻，認為這樣會帶 來一種錯覺，令人覺得教會事無大小都要求會友捐獻，帶來不少無形的 壓力。其實雙方目標一致，不想會友因為經濟問題而錯過退修會， 只是在 解決問題的方法上大家持著不同的意見。慶幸最後大家能互相妥協，達 成一個折衷方法，通過助學金資助形式之餘，也收取特別奉獻。 文化差異下可能會出現一種危機，就是為了意氣之爭而將文化差異屬靈 化。就如以上的例子中，中文部可以將他們的意見屬靈化地解釋為他們 的信心更大，深信神會藉奉獻供應不足的經費；英文部也可以反駁，認 為他們才是神的好管家，不使教會陷入財政虧損。幸好他們雙方都沒有 將他們的論點屬靈化，其實最理想是大家願意去了解和尊重彼此不同 的文化背景，用謙卑的心去達成妥協，完滿地解决問題。 蒙允許使用，內容錄於：http://reflections.cyberpastor.net/ chinese-churches
作者簡介 Ken Carlson牧師在Talbot神學院時已感應 神呼召他在跨文化聖工上事奉，他在台灣中華 基督教內地會牧會四年後，神帶領他到美國加 州柏克萊一間華人教會任職英文部牧師，達十 七年之久。 Carlson牧師在Western 神學院攻讀博士學 位時，他的論文主要討論如何在華人教會內有 效地發展英文事工。在他的網誌上有其他相 關的文章：http://reflections.cyberpastor. net/chinese-churches/，他的論文亦即將 會出版成書。
華 化 普
基督教信仰 與三方文化 面面觀
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採訪：Natalie Quan
羅折文牧師 專訪 「我從小在華人教會中長大，對長輩要禮貌地稱呼；教堂內十字架
兩側常常放著中英對照的屬靈標題；每逢節日聚餐都有中式粉麵， 蔬菜小炒，鹵水蛋等。在崇拜結束後，會友們喜歡圍在走廊上喝茶 寒喧，及餽贈家中種植的水果，我們這群只懂英語的一族，感覺上 與他們格格不入，這些困擾在聯合崇拜時更為顯著，證道時的中英 語傳譯使我不能集中精神，有關地方語言的笑話我更一竅不通；即 使我能明白中文，要重覆聽著翻譯也會不是味兒。 當然，以上的個人體會只是冰山一角，中國文化或概括為亞洲文化 其實非常深遠地塑造出一種獨有的個人宗教觀。」 以上是羅折文牧師 (Epicentre 教會牧師) 對傳統華人教會的童 年回憶。在深受父親羅文牧師的影響下，羅折文牧師對華裔教會的 文化差距現象探討多年，他父親自1966年開始，在格蘭岱爾羅省 基督教會當了三十年主任牧師，當時正值美國放寬移民政策，華人 教會紛紛興起，羅文牧師已看到發展下一代事工的需要，於是他開 始以英語講道和組織英文部執事會， 目的為了縮窄第一代移民與美 國土生後代之間的鴻溝，他努力研究並編寫了很多有關香港和臺灣 兩地新移民遷移北美模式的文章。 自少年時，羅折文牧師已幫助他 父親進行有關撰文的校對工作，以下是他從三個不同的領域去剖 析美國亞裔教會的文化特徵。
// 種族、兩代、教會三方不同的文化觀 羅折文牧師認為大多數有關文化與信仰的理論都流於簡 化， 只局限於對傳統中國文化與美籍華裔文化的比較，其實 除了種族文化以外，還要考慮到兩代之間和不同教會傳統 上的文化因素，這三種文化領域同時影響著個人的信仰歷程， 甚至教會整體的運作。 羅牧師更認為從中國傳統文化和美國華裔基督徒文化中， 要釐定那一種才是「天國文化」並非易事，因各人都不能從 本身的文化背景抽離出來，但可嘗試將沒有抵觸文化的天 國價值觀融合其中。 比如說，如果耶穌是個二十五歲的白人， 周旋於一群亞裔或西裔之間，結果將會如何呢？其中表現一 定夾雜了種族、兩代傳統和天國價值觀的各項因素。 // 巴沙典那Epicentre 教會 Epicentre教會是三方文化交錯滙聚的一個好例子，教會 在2003年11月成立，早期會友來自格蘭岱爾羅省基督教會， 人數由140人增長至超過200人，雖然其中百分之七十屬 於美籍亞裔，但羅牧師卻刻意避免把Epicentre標籤為一 個美籍亞裔的教會，他不認為美籍亞裔是教會發展的主要 路線，以免排斥了非亞裔人士的參與。他教導會眾要無分種 族，向任何人都當傳好信息。 雖然Epicentre與其他亞裔教會一樣喜愛聚餐，實質卻有 很多不同之處。從敬拜詩歌、神學教導、以致對教會信條的 詮釋等，Epicentre 都有其獨特之處，受亞裔文化感染，同 時亦追求超越種族文化、甚至兩代文化的一個教會模式。
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// 信仰與文化 耶穌當年道成肉身成為第一世紀的猶太人，假如祂所選擇的出生地是中國， 祂的言行舉止一定會大不相同，神的靈怎樣在某個時地出現，與當時的文化 背景不能分割。雖然信仰並不局限於任何文化，但聖靈的工作在不同年紀、不 同族裔的身上會產生不同的迴響，例如聖靈顯現在一個五十歲的猶太人身 上，必然有異於在一群東洛杉磯的西裔，或是二十五歲的美籍華裔或其他族裔、 在培城受過高等教育的年青人身上。在種種不同文化的處境下我們只須問同 一個問題： 『這合符聖經的教導嗎？』文化本身沒有對錯，最重要是信徒能抓緊 聖經的原則，配得神兒女的身份。 // 亞洲文化的剖析 從種族文化因素來看，亞洲文化蘊含了很多寶貴的聖經價值觀念，例如亞裔 重視群體多於個人，這是羅牧師最欣賞亞裔文化之處。中國人非常重視知識 和教育，華人教會因此十分注重研經，典型的華人教會一般都具穩固的神學 根基。與此同時，華人文化亦在灌輸勤勞的觀念。可惜，亞裔文化在個人信仰 上也存在一些不利因素，例如過份強調知識而容易忽略了實踐，傾向欠缺全人 的屬靈追求。換言之，知識和實踐需要平衡，不論在處理個人情緒、人際關係 和教會的事奉上，都要把真理活現出來。因此，在信仰上我們期望看見真誠的 服事、心靈的醫治，裡外一致的信徒生活。 其次亞洲文化缺乏冒險精神。亞裔一般喜歡平穩不變而抗拒嘗試和冒險，希 望事情都在自己掌握之中，無形中為一些勇於嘗試的人帶來不少阻力，甚至引 起教會兩代之間的衝突，背後亦顯出了種族和不同輩份之間的文化矛盾。其 實上帝並不怕冒險，福音是世界的光，光中毋須懼怕黑暗，因此我們大可勇往 直前，誇越文化的包袱來克服對冒險的畏懼和抗拒。 第三，在處理人際衝突上，亦是另一處亞洲文化未能實踐聖經教導的地方。是 為了不傷和氣，亞裔教會往往把問題壓抑，當事人不會把心中的不滿明講，反 而向周邊的人傾訴。聖經明確的教導卻說，被人得罪時，當直接勸戒他；若自己 虧欠別人，就趕快道歉。若未能依照聖經的教導去緩解衝突，會容易造成心病， 甚至養成一種被動卻具侵略性的性情。
// 對教會牧者的不同標準 文化價值觀不單影響個人，也影響全教會。不同文化背 景的會友對教會的決策透明度和管理手法，有著明顯不 同的期望。這分歧不只是出於美國土生亞裔與中國移民 之間，也存在於兩代之間，尤其對於誠信的看法，青年人 很執著於真誠坦率的相處，如果一位牧師勇於承認自己 的過錯和弱點，他們會很欣賞他的真誠，但年長的一輩 卻不認同，認為牧師的過錯是忌諱，不能公開討論。由此 看到兩代之間對教會牧者不同的看法和期望。年青的一 輩很重視坦誠、個人權利和具透明度的政策，他們不能 接受階級觀念。 身為領導人並沒有特權去向別人發施號 令，當年青人覺得自己的意見被忽略或不被尊重時，他 們會變得抗拒和冷漠。這是一個典型兩代差別的問題。 當這問題發生在教會運作和決策時，很容易會造成一個 僵持的局面。正如今日很多典型華人移民教會對年青英 文部牧師的期望，與英文部年青一輩的實際需要有很大 距離，他們用上一代傳統的標準來衡量一位牧師的衣著 打扮，言行舉止和處事態度等，這對年青一輩的牧師造 成很大的壓力和挫敗感，也因著文化和溝通的障礙，使 他們感到不被教會信任和重用。 //融合文化和真理 為要化解不同文化價值觀所引起的矛盾，必須以神學的 標準去審查和徹底剖析族裔文化、兩代文化以及教會文 化三大因素，不能有所偏廢，這樣才能辨出那些觀念真 正合符真理。 總括來說，關鍵在於我們須全心全意地愛神，從聖靈的 光照下明白該如何行事為人，才合符聖經的教導。再加 上協調不同的文化的努力，就能活出一個豐盛活潑的屬 靈生命，完成神所託付的呼召和異象。
從聖經角度分析 移民教會內人際 互動的現象
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採訪：Joanna Wu
蘇炳甘博士專訪
蘇炳甘博士對現今華裔教會第二代事工的使命感，正如昔 日保羅對外邦人的負擔一樣。蘇博士是正道福音神學院實 踐神學的助理教授及前亞美事工系主任，他認為這一代青 少年極需要關心、鼓勵和成長的空間。華裔教會的第二代主 要包括新移民後代，在美國出生或海外出生的青少年，隨著 種族多元化的發展，現今華裔教會的運作都以雙語、雙重文 化，或甚至多種文化和語言的形式進行。在兩代與不同文化 之間，很容易產生人際關係的矛盾和衝突，這與初世紀猶太 信徒和希臘信徒之間的人事問題相似。 教會內的矛盾幾乎是無可避免的，尤其是華裔教會內兩代 之間的衝突，有些分歧甚至從表面並不容易察覺，那麼教會 如何處理這些分歧呢？蘇博士形容第二代青少年為另一個 族群，是甚麽意思呢？為使我們明白如何面對這種分歧，蘇 博士帶我們從聖經中找答案。 據歷史學者兼神學家林慈信牧師的統計數字顯示，在美加 的華裔教會合共超過1000間，經歷數十年的努力，華裔及 美國亞裔教會的英語事工才逐漸發展完備，甚至成為美籍 亞裔或多族裔的教會，如洛杉磯Evergreen 浸信會， 巴沙 典那Epicentre 教會，和遍佈南加州的Newsong教會 。 教會內因兩代之間文化差異而起的衝突，往往被誤解為不
服權威或違背聖經的教訓，其中主要原因是上一代不願放 棄一貫文化及領導地位，而新一代卻要爭取自主獨立，要有 創新的敬拜風格和屬於他們一代獨特表達信仰的方式。 蘇博士首先引用創世記十一章來探討一個神學問題。在巴 別塔事件中，神變亂人的口音，使他們四散到各地去。神的 旨意是要創造一個單一種族或是多種族的世界呢？只有獨 一主流文化或是多元文化的社會呢？繼而在創世記十二章， 神應許亞伯拉罕必使他成為大國，萬族因他得福。如果神 的應許真實無誤，我們便可肯定神的旨意是要賜福給所有 人，並非一族或一國的人。主耶穌在馬太福音二十八章最後 給門徒的囑咐，是要他們去使萬民作主的門徒；更在使徒 行傳第二章記載，初期信徒被聖靈充滿，各人說起別國的 話來使眾人能接受福音，顯明早期教會的使命是把福音傳 到世界的每一個角落。 為了福音的緣故，我們必須明白不能讓文化習俗限制福音 的使命。蘇博士引申保羅的話說：沒有任何事能阻止他傳主 的福音。蘇博士認為化解文化衝突其實也是一種福音使命。 中國信徒深受傳統儒家的哲學思想影響，十分重視家的觀 念，認為全家必須在同一間教會聚會。他們的傳統信念不 能接受子女們參加其他教會，究竟這份執著是源於聖經還 是基於文化呢？ 蘇博士認為當我們堅守中國文化過於天國價值時，便產生 一個相當嚴重的問題。久而久之，我們會以一個保衛哲學的 心態來取代聖經真理。如果教會是藉傳統文化來帶領，而非 高舉天國價值觀，教會便會淪為社區文化中心而非敬拜神 之地方。另一項引起兩代間的衝突是，年青人傾向接受西方
蘇炳甘博士現任加州愛滿地正道福音神學院實踐神學科助理教授，擁 有廿年之久牧會經驗，多年來努力發展華裔教會新一代的福音事工。
使徒保羅奉獻一生在福音的使命上，他要將救恩傳給猶太 地以外的外邦人，務使外邦人也因着聖靈成為聖潔，可以 蒙神悅納。任何事也不能攔阻保羅傳福音的心志，就如他 在哥林多前書九章二十二節所宣告： 『向甚麼樣人，我就作 甚麼樣的人，無論如何，總要救些人。』
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文化，而上一代卻堅持保留傳統文化的根、種族身份及習俗，拒絕融合西方文 化，視教會為民族身份凝聚之處。 兩代文化對今日華人教會固然造成種種衝擊，但這亦是信徒學習實踐聖經、 合而為一的好機會。要化解彼此的分歧。蘇博士引用三個新約聖經的例子，解 釋如何面對這些衝突。 第一個例子在使徒行傳十五章，有人認為若不受割禮便不能得救，保羅和巴 拿巴因此與教會起了一番辯論，經過使徒和長老們的多方討論後，最後彼得 起來解釋，說明神的救恩是給所有相信的人；並宣告說： 『我們得救，乃是因主 耶穌的恩，和他們﹝外邦人﹞一樣，這是我們所信的。』(徒15:11) 『神有否規定人要擁有特定文化身份才可成為基督徒呢？抑或福音能在不同 文化背景中臨在，使人毋須跨越文化的阻隔都能真正認識神？』 蘇博士提出以上問題，是因為我們也常常要求別人做到某些標準，才接納他 們是真正基督徒。假如說只有中國人才配成為基督徒，大家都認同這說法很 荒謬，但當我們用文化標準來限制別人的敬拜模式，教會事工的運作等，豈不 是犯上一樣的錯誤。 讓我們回顧十六世紀宗教改革的時代，當時天主教廷只用拉丁文宣讀聖經， 大部分群眾都屬文盲，他們只能透過教堂內的玻璃彩畫了解和接觸聖經故事， 他們的靈命成長非常有限，完全操縱在教會領袖和掌權者的手上。當時，馬丁 路德為了讓所有人能閱讀聖經，他將聖經翻譯成當地的語言，使他們能明白 真理，信心得以増長。蘇博士認為新一代的教會事工同樣需要改革，我們應該 放棄以傳統文化來要求下一代，讓他們能有自由發揮的空間，以他們喜歡的 形式去經歷神。 第二個例子在約翰福音一章十四節： 『道成了肉身，住在我們中間。』主耶穌就 是「道」，福音藉著主耶穌的降生臨到世人，祂是至聖者，和平之君，萬王之王， 萬主之主，卻虛己來到世上為罪人死在十架，並且住在世人當中，成為他們的 教師，朋友和作眾人的僕人﹝馬可福音9：35﹞。是神成了肉身，住在人中間，不 是人跨越障礙去尋找神。
最後的例子載於約翰福音第四章，主耶穌與撒瑪利亞婦 人在井旁談道，祂再次顯明祂的愛與呼召是不分種族文 化。雖然猶太人認為撒瑪利亞人是不潔淨的民族，與他 們不相往來，但主耶穌卻不與他們隔離，主動與撒瑪利 亞婦人談話、並顯明祂彌賽亞的身份。從這個例子中，主 耶穌進一步證明祂的使命是尋找失喪的人，不單是猶太 人，更是那些患病的，軟弱的，有罪的，和被忽視的人。 那麼，兩代之間如何増進了解，共同攜手建立神的國度 呢？蘇博士建議彼此要學習對方的文化，好好溝通，才 能避免衝突。為了建立兩代健康和諧的關係，蘇博士鼓 勵教會要從以下各方面作適當的調整，並加上兩大資 源---人力 ﹝Manpower ﹞和財力 ﹝Money ﹞才能成功： 心態 / Mentality 上一代領導者需有心態上的轉變，不 能自以為是，要摒除階級觀念，彼此公平對待。實際上在 這後現代時代，知識觀念已不再是由上而下的代代相 傳，我們現今活在一個無分界限的地球村，知識是透過 互通交流而增長的。 使命 / Mission 以建立神的國度為大使命，脫離權力 的鬥爭。作為長輩應把下一代的靈命視為一個宣教工場， 盡力輔助他們靈命的成長，並非試圖控制他們或將自己 的想法強加諸他們身上。 管理 / Management 考慮實施各種不同的管理手法， 不一定要由一位主任牧師帶領，可以嘗試以不同形式的 架構來領導教會。 模式 / Model 用不同的形式去支持英語事工或第二代 附屬教會---可以同屬一個教會但各有獨立的執委；或 在同一會址聚會，卻以不同教會體系運作；甚至開展新 的教會，兩代不同的教會完全獨立自主。
蘇博士展望華裔教會的前景，他認為除非教會願意徹 底轉變，否則將會出現第二代信徒子女大量流失的悲劇。 讓我們反思是否已栽培下一代去面對信仰的挑戰，抑或 只是把子女勉強留在同一所教會便心滿意足了。 當務之急是大家該面對現實，聽取下一代的心聲，接納 他們的意見，並花時間去培育新一代的青年領袖。同時 我們亦期望見到更多美籍亞裔教會的成立，來吸納從華 人教會流失的一群年青人。 最後蘇博士再次呼籲我們要把培育新一代的信徒為我 們的使命，務要將福音傳給萬民，特別是發展第二代華 人的福音工作。他以߸示錄七章九節作為總結： 『此後我 觀看，見有許多人，沒有人能數過來，是從各國各族各 民各方來的，站在寶座和羔羊面前。』
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活現家庭 雜誌簡報
回應無神 論者
活現家庭雜誌的面世本是源於一個夢。過去活現出版的通訊內容，得到各方 的認同和鼓勵，不少人給我們建議，認為值得將這些文字推廣至亞裔社群當 中。我們幾位同工便大膽一起來做夢，期望透過這份雜誌，把活現的精神和 服事，在社區中延伸出去。
2011年4月15日在Southlands Christian School舉辦了一個青少年敬拜晚會，參加人數約 200人，他們來自十多間不同的教會。晚會主題是「回應無神論者」， 目的為要裝備青少年在傳福 音時，如何回答基督教信仰的難題。當晚由Troy Lee帶領敬拜，主題講員是Stand to Reason的 Brett Kunkle。參加者對活動的回應極為正面：一位高中生回應說「這個活動回答了許多我對基 督教信仰的問題。」另一位學生則說「這個活動真好，每個環節都很棒！所提供的訊息非常清晰。」
剛巧文字工作又是我過去幾年以來揮之不去的夢想，能ં參與這雜誌的出版， 我個人感到很蒙福，在活現的夢一步一步實現之際，也同時圓了我自己的文 字夢。從通訊轉型為雜誌，當中所涉及的考慮比我們想像的複雜，但所產生 的果效和迴響，也確實比我們預期的多。 文字工作將活現帶進了一些我們從未曾接觸過的家庭中，也服事到一些我們 不認識的教會，甚至把活現傳到了遠方，其滲透的潛力可說是無限的。最近我 們接到一些讀者的來電，說很喜歡這份雜誌，認為對他們家中兩代都很有幫 助。另外我們亦收到一個外州教會的要求，希望能分發我們的雜誌，來配合 他們的家庭事工。第一期我們發行了5,000份，而第二、三期的發行量增加至 10,000份。主若許可，我們希望把發行量逐步增至20,000份或30,000份。 我們深感要推廣這項事工，仍需要多方面的支持。無論是金錢的奉獻、廣告 的贊助、文字的貢獻和意見、各區的推廣和分發等，對我們都十分重要。假如 您願意以任何形式參與這項出版事工，歡迎隨時與我們聯絡。
活現事工每年都會舉辦一次青少年活動，今年的活動主題將會是「了解伊斯蘭教和其他世界觀」。 如果任何教會有興趣與活現事工協辦或鼓勵團契小組參與這項活動，歡迎與我們聯絡。
活現籌款 晚會 活現事工於2011年3月27日在Arcadia Community Center舉行了感恩籌款晚會。感謝牧長 及肢體的支持，當晚共有198名來賓撥冗光臨。會上，活現創辦人及總幹事葉顏瑋茵女士講述家 庭生活各階段的重要性，並且分享她個人在不同角色和責任下所面對的種種壓力。她更介紹家庭 能處變而不驚的九種特質，以及如何營造幸福的家庭關係等。其中亦有一對夫婦分享他們培育自 閉兒的心路歷程。最後Rebecca 姊妹見證神在過去多年如何垂聽她的禱告，帶領活現的同工隊 伍，從荒涼到豐富的事奉過程。感謝神！當晚共籌得奉獻 $15,060。
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「 認知行為療法 」 講座
活現事工於2011年舉辦了兩次「認知行為療法」的講座， 這是個為期一天的研討會，由活現事工創辦人及總幹事 葉顏瑋茵女士主講， 目的是給輕度抑鬱和焦慮者一些自 助訓練。⩳語講座於6月25日在蒙市羅省華人播道會舉 行，而國語研討會則於9月24日與愛鄰台福基督教會合 作。兩次講座參加人數共195人，學員來自三十多間不同 的教會。 講座中葉女士根據學員現場提出的實例進行分析，幫助 大家了解自我、分析思想、學習正確的理性思考及情緒對 行為的影響等，許多學員都感到很得幫助。這次研討會讓 更多人認識活現事工，學員們亦給與許多寶貴的建議，他 們希望活現能舉辦更多的輔導訓練、團契分享、研討會等 活動。以下是部分的回應： 「我參加這個講座後才發現，原來自己有些憂鬱。這個講 座幫助我了解『認知行為療法』的概念，我覺得非常有幫 助。」 （這位學員在此次培訓後，成為活現事工的義工。） 「培訓中有很多實例和討論，幫助我們找出處理不同境況 的方法，讓我看到自信以及克服負面想法的重要，非常實 用，物超所值！」 「幫助理清自己的思考模式，改變自己的非理性思考。」
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「做個好男人 」 弟兄退修會
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今年10月初活現事工舉辦了兩場專為男士而設的退 修會。我們邀請到理財專家林修榮先生主講如何「做 個好男人」，⩳語和國語講座分別於洛杉磯國語浸信會 和羅蘭崗基督徒禮拜堂舉行，參加者十分踴躍，合共 160人出席。 這個退修會最具特色的地方是只歡迎男士參加，女士 們謝絕旁聽。林修榮先生以生動有趣的手法來剖析現 今男性的多重身份，及要成為一個好男人的難處，他 引用聖經的教導和古往今來的人物為例子，說明如何 才能做個被神和人都喜愛的好男人。其中使退修會生 色不少的環節是嘉賓訪問，被接受採訪的嘉賓有劉漢 杰、劉慈謙和徐亮三位主內弟兄，他們與大家分享個人 的人生歷程，如何在事奉、工作和家庭中適當地分配時 間，做個榮神益人的男子漢。講座中參加者非常踴躍發 問，很多難題經過討論都能迎刃而解。 由於這次退修會的主題多少會帶給丈夫們一些壓力感， 很多男士都是在妻子愛心的催逼下才報名參加，但結 果他們卻獲益良多，在同儕的共鳴下， 男人之苦得以舒 解，心靈經歷更新。藉著這個純男性的活動，不單造就 了一家之主的男人，妻兒們更是最大的受惠者。在回應 當中，收到男士們的一些建議，希望活現事工舉行另一 場『做個好女人』的退修會。
// 活現年刊 2012
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