When you hear a word "faith," what is the first thing that you think of? A majority of people would say religion, unless they really have a strong opinion about other type of faith. Faith that I will discuss, however, is not necessarily confined to the religious one. It could be faith in certain statement, faith in rituals practiced by a culture, or faith in the morality of a person.
I am not a Christian and I don't believe in any religions. Does that make me a person without any faith? Not necessarily. I believe that eating other human beings is unethical. I believe that betraying other people for the sake of their own tribe is not right. To me, faith is more like a belief that someone holds on a certain statement. Because faith of a person gives me an idea about what that he/she is like, faith seems to be a good measurement of a person.
For this reason, I often judge people by their faith - not only what they believe in but how strong their beliefs are. (although we shouldn't be, we always tend to make some kind of prejudice on a person) The way people believe in something definitely tells us how they think of the society and what kind of person they are in the community. Therefore, people with the same faith or belief sometimes create a community of themselves, which may have positive effect and negative effect on the society as a whole. And what group a person is in often tells us who he/she is.
For instance, say one of my friends is an atheist, the one that does not believe in the presence of God. Just knowing that he does not believe in God tells me his personality: dubious, insubordinate, and indifferent.
In this sense, faith gives people something to rely on and an opportunity to be involved in the community with others. Faith does not just end up believing, but rewards people for their strong beliefs.
Friday, February 2, 2007
Thursday, February 1, 2007
How did Christianity change the Sawi culture?
Don Richardson changed this barbaric, primitive culture that was prevalent in the Sawi tribe. What stroke me the most was "how come does this primitive culture accept the idea of Christianity so easily?" And I found that the answer was so not too complicated; since they were primitive, they could not find how to gain peace and love within their community. God, who represents love Himself, was the ultimate answer of their struggle, and that was how they accepted it so readily.
However, the extent to which Christianity changed the Sawi culture was not very noticeable. Although spiritual tranformation is a big part of their lives, not everything became perfect after Don Richardson visitied the Sawi. For instance, if Sawi people, who used to eat human flesh and assualt on other tribe for fun, are suddenly kept from doing those, how would they survive? Their perception of their lives is probably much more optimistic than it used to be, but what about the reality? Christianity cannot feed them and protect them physically from other tribes.
For this reason, although Christianity gave Sawi people a meaning of their lives and opened their eyes to God, it failed to change the whole culture, as it fails to change their lifestyle all of a sudden.
However, the extent to which Christianity changed the Sawi culture was not very noticeable. Although spiritual tranformation is a big part of their lives, not everything became perfect after Don Richardson visitied the Sawi. For instance, if Sawi people, who used to eat human flesh and assualt on other tribe for fun, are suddenly kept from doing those, how would they survive? Their perception of their lives is probably much more optimistic than it used to be, but what about the reality? Christianity cannot feed them and protect them physically from other tribes.
For this reason, although Christianity gave Sawi people a meaning of their lives and opened their eyes to God, it failed to change the whole culture, as it fails to change their lifestyle all of a sudden.
What concepts in the Sawi culture intrigued / reviled / saddened / angered / surprised me?
The most astonishing idea in the novel was probably the practice of cannibalism. Though I knew that the Sawi were primitive and barbaric people, I never thought that they would actually consume human flesh.
To be honest, I never believed that there were people who eat human flesh. Human being, I thought, was instinctively repulsive to eat human flesh. After I read this book, however, I found myself too narrow-minded. If people believe in ideas of river spirits and resurrection (except Jesus Christ) that have practically no reliability, why wouldn't some people believe in the seemingly least reasonable thing in the world?
Don Richardson describes cannibalism on page 33:
This showed how cruel and organized the Sawi people are, just like we are about some traditions like marriage. The point is that they strongly believe in their traditions that they merely take it granted. Although we are the same human beings, it's astounding to see how different we are from other cultures, with distinct rituals and beliefs.
To be honest, I never believed that there were people who eat human flesh. Human being, I thought, was instinctively repulsive to eat human flesh. After I read this book, however, I found myself too narrow-minded. If people believe in ideas of river spirits and resurrection (except Jesus Christ) that have practically no reliability, why wouldn't some people believe in the seemingly least reasonable thing in the world?
Don Richardson describes cannibalism on page 33:
"Meanwhile Maum began excavating the brains from inside the skull by way of the
opening he had forced. His friends brought leaves and wooden platters of various
kinds to collect their share of the brains, to be eaten with the flesh when it
was cooked. Maum himself would not eat of the brains."
This showed how cruel and organized the Sawi people are, just like we are about some traditions like marriage. The point is that they strongly believe in their traditions that they merely take it granted. Although we are the same human beings, it's astounding to see how different we are from other cultures, with distinct rituals and beliefs.
What reflections and connections can I make with this novel?
As I read this novel and saw how Don Richardson had to deal with an extreme cultural difference, I sort of felt an empathy with him. Like he did, I also experienced change from one culture to another, even though the degree of difference was not as huge as the one presented on the novel.
When I came to TCIS at first, I found myself struggling because of sudden changes in my environment. Since a majority of TCIS students consist of Korean students, language wasn't the most difficult issue there (yes I violated language policy very often). But subtle differences in perception of certain behaviors embarrassed me more than obvious ones.
For instance, when I have to talk with grownups, (this does not often take place in Korea by the way, because the only time I get to talk with them is when I'm in a trouble) I am not supposed to look directly at their eyes; it's considered rude. However, in American culture, it is rather a sign of insubordination or guilty not to look at people's eyes when I talk to them. Although I know that I should look at their eyes when I am talking to them, I'm so used to looking down that I almost unconsciously avoid that.
This probably does not even look like a problem, but it sometimes frustrates me, because when I try to become like people who can communicate without any problem, it keeps me from becoming like them. I'm sure Don Richardson would have felt the same thing. He tries be like a Sawi, not for his whole life but just during his visit, to communicate with them more perfectly as a missionary. It is hard to become a native person, because there is certain "subtlety" that one can't just acquire. It is something that grows with the person living in the community. This connection between Don Richardson and me helped me with understading this novel better and feel what the author had to deal with.
When I came to TCIS at first, I found myself struggling because of sudden changes in my environment. Since a majority of TCIS students consist of Korean students, language wasn't the most difficult issue there (yes I violated language policy very often). But subtle differences in perception of certain behaviors embarrassed me more than obvious ones.
For instance, when I have to talk with grownups, (this does not often take place in Korea by the way, because the only time I get to talk with them is when I'm in a trouble) I am not supposed to look directly at their eyes; it's considered rude. However, in American culture, it is rather a sign of insubordination or guilty not to look at people's eyes when I talk to them. Although I know that I should look at their eyes when I am talking to them, I'm so used to looking down that I almost unconsciously avoid that.
This probably does not even look like a problem, but it sometimes frustrates me, because when I try to become like people who can communicate without any problem, it keeps me from becoming like them. I'm sure Don Richardson would have felt the same thing. He tries be like a Sawi, not for his whole life but just during his visit, to communicate with them more perfectly as a missionary. It is hard to become a native person, because there is certain "subtlety" that one can't just acquire. It is something that grows with the person living in the community. This connection between Don Richardson and me helped me with understading this novel better and feel what the author had to deal with.
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