Saint Patrick’s Day honors Patrick, a 5th-century missionary and Ireland’s patron saint. It became an official public holiday in Ireland in 1903, but it was celebrated as a religious and cultural holiday much earlier. As much as it generates excitement among Irish people in Ireland, a big part of Saint Patrick’s Day is promoting awareness of Irish culture internationally by celebrating Irish food, music, dance, etc. March 1-17 is also Seachtain na Gaeilge (Irish Language Week), when people in Ireland make more effort to use the Irish language. (The language suffered when Ireland was under British rule, and English is currently the most widely spoken language in Ireland.) On March 17, people of many countries—of Irish descent or not—wear green and sport shamrocks. Major cities “go green” with famous landmarks, like the Chicago River.
Saint Patrick’s Day is immensely popular in the U.S., and Irish is reported as one of the largest ancestry groups among the population of America. But it wasn’t always that way. The 1845 Potato Famine brought many Irish immigrants to the United States to find work and feed themselves and their families. These immigrants often faced discrimination and hatred because of their heritage, accents, and Catholic religion. To a largely Protestant America, the Irish Catholics seemed strange and different. And that made them seem threatening. Saint Patrick’s Day parades and celebrations were a way for Irish Americans to proudly and positively own their culture. Today,
Saint Patrick’s Day promotes Irish tourism, Irish culture in general, and a sense of shared identity among the Irish and their descendants worldwide.
Culture influences how people see the world. It determines how we behave, what’s considered polite, how we talk, what we talk about, body language, how we make decisions, and what we value. Culture can be based on geography. For example, there’s Irish culture, Korean culture, Mexican culture, Ukrainian culture, American culture, etc. There are also many subcultures under the umbrella of “American” culture. Subcultures can form around ancestry, language, geography, age groups, education, work fields, economic background, and even what we enjoy (such as music, sports, fandoms). We tend to feel a sense of belonging when we’re around people within our own culture or a similar one, and a sense of “other” when we encounter cultures that differ from ours. However, it’s critical to develop cultural awareness to relate to cultures outside our own.
Why Should Christians Practice Cultural Awareness?
Cultural awareness is when we seek to understand another culture, especially its values and worldview. For Christians, practicing cultural awareness is crucial for several reasons.
- To understand the Bible.
Cultural awareness is a fundamental skill for Bible reading. The history written about in the Scriptures describes a different time, a different geography, and a different way of life from ours. In fact, the Bible spans many years and many cultures, from ancient Israel and Egypt to 1st-century Rome. When we view the Bible solely through the lens of our own culture and time, we risk misreading or misapplying key principles. We need to understand everything in the Bible in the context in which it was written, and for that, we need cultural awareness.
- To share the Gospel.
In 1 Corinthians 9:20-22, Paul talks about how he adapts to share the Gospel with people of different cultures:
“To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” (NIV)
When Paul preached in the Jewish synagogue in Pisidian Antioch, he drew on his audience’s knowledge of Israel’s history and Scriptures (Acts 13:13-43). When he visited Athens, he used what he observed about the beliefs of the Greeks there to reason with the philosophers in the Areopagus (Acts 17:16-34). Like Paul, we should try to understand the different cultures we minister to and use ideas they’re familiar with to spread the Gospel to them.
- To love our neighbors.
God understands and loves people of every culture, and we should strive to love as He loves. We will have better empathy and compassion for others when we learn to see from their point of view. Furthermore, because the Gospel will be preached to all nations (Matthew 24:14), the Church is global. Cultural understanding is as vital for supporting our brothers and sisters in Christ as it is for reaching our unbelieving neighbors. Communication between cultures takes time and practice, whether it’s communicating across continents or between age groups. To best love and serve others, we need to put them first by learning how they might see the world differently from us.
- To understand ourselves.
We are as much influenced by our culture as everyone else is, and, like it or not, it affects everything we do. We must recognize our own culture and the beliefs, behaviors, and biases that shape us. When we only stay around what’s comfortable, assume our ways are normal or best, and close ourselves off from anything different, we become oblivious to our wrong assumptions and blind spots. For example, the Christian college I attended had a very tight-knit campus culture that we often referred to as a “bubble.” On one hand, it felt safe and comfortable in the bubble because everyone thought, believed, and acted alike (or was expected to). However, as time went on, that cozy bubble started to feel more like a cage. After I graduated, I realized I’d closed myself off from ideas that were valuable and would help me understand others better. Understanding ourselves and how culture shapes us is a key step toward cultural awareness.
Our world is more interconnected than ever before. Right now, international attention is on Ukraine and Russia. We’ve seen how what happens in one part of the world affects many others. Cultural awareness is a crucial skill for functioning in today’s world and understanding how to help and minister to others as a local and global Christian Church.
This Saint Patrick’s Day, I have a challenge for you: Practice cultural awareness by learning one new thing about Ireland. For instance, learn an Irish word or a fact about Ireland, read an Irish author, or listen to an Irish song. You can use a reliable source on Google, the travel/geography section at your local library, videos, podcasts, or whatever means you like to use to consume new information. Then, don’t stop there. Learn about other cultures—maybe one you’re very unfamiliar with or one that’s in the news a lot lately. As Christians, we build empathy and compassion and sharpen our communication and ministry skills when we practice cultural awareness.
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