Reflections on the Need for Ethnic Specific Ministries
Ethnic
identity, as a social phenomenon, is not going away in the foreseeable
future. As we look around the US in every major metropolitan area
people cohere and develop ethnic communities.
In the African American,
Asian American, Hispanic and Native American communities there is a
strong and steadily increasing expression of ethnic identity and
commitment to teaching this identity to the next generation.
Even a
cursory reading of ethnic-oriented magazines like Ebony, Essence, Black Enterprise (African American), Hispanic: Business, Career, Politics & Culture (Hispanic), A: Inside Asian America (Asian American) and American Indian Review, Whispering Wind, Indian Life
(Native American) will reveal a significant focus on developing and
instilling the beauty of ethnic identity in the current generation and
then passing it on to the next. The Native American expression of
ethnic identity is even more obvious with 350 Nations with their own
languages and their own lands within the US.
If our vision is to
see the gospel advancing among people of these communities, we will
need to understand them and engage in effective "insider" ministry both
to and within these communities. This challenges our view of the nature
of the Gospel. In Matt. 13 the gospel is represented as a seed.
The
gospel is a spiritual genetic power that becomes visible when it
becomes active in the life of an individual and a community. A seed
draws in building blocks from the soil and from it constructs a plant
from the blue print contained in its genetic code. The building blocks
for the expression of the seed come from the soil. Likewise the gospel
becomes visible in a cultural context and draws from the distinctive
building blocks in that setting to construct an expression of the
kingdom of God. The form the gospel takes in a given place will be
conditioned by the culture of that place.
The issues the gospel
must address, for example, will be different in different ethnic
settings. For example, currently the Nation of Islam is more effective
in many African American communities than is the church. Why is this?
It is because Islam is answering, in word and action, the burning
questions the culture is asking and the Church is not. Other examples
could be raised from the other ethnic communities. We must be poised to
expose men and women to the gospel in such a manner that it addresses
the deep needs and issues aroused by their social and cultural worlds.
Often
ethnically diverse people are involved in a Navigator ministry, then
disappear or just leave. This is often because what is imparted does
not help them to walk with Christ and effectively minister in the
worlds where they live. For others, they do not feel valued in their
experience around the Navigators, and that experience that grates on
their sense of personal dignity and respect. This is why in Cultural
Affairs we speak of Navigator ministries Embracing, Empowering and
Engaging ethnic minority people in our ministries. Some feel like they
have to leave their ethnic identity to become a real Navigator. Others
may feel that they just don't see anyone else around like themselves,
someone who can understand them.
Before discussing the
contribution of ethnic ministries and entities, it may be helpful to
consider that living as a minority in a majority world requires the
minority to continually adjust his or her social and interpersonal
dynamics to fit the 'normal' or dominant culture setting. This
continual adjusting has a tiring and stressing component, even in
situations where both parties are exercising sensitivity, respect and
understanding. This dynamic creates a series of needs that ethnic
ministries meet.
Ethnic ministries and entities serve as a
'dynamo' within The Navigators that will provide several functions.
Let's look at them:
- Critical Mass Visibility. The ethnic ministries and entities
provide an important sense of belonging for new comers to the
Navigators that would be otherwise missing. It is said often in
diversity training materials that people must be able to see themselves
in an organization to feel at home. The ethnic ministries and entities
provide such a visible community of ethnic men and women within the
Navigators.
- Relational Capacity. Ethnic ministries and entities
provide a special relational capacity for the whole work. Often times
issues will arise with ethnic minorities in the other entities that the
ethnic entity staff will be able to help give perspective to or engage
in helping understand or resolve. Just to be able to talk to a real
Navigator from a person's ethnic background is a special encouragement
in most cases. There is a need to be able to talk to someone who
understands you in the uniqueness of your ethnic identity.
- Learning Environment. Advancing the gospel in ways
that yield generations in the ethnically diverse cultures of the US
will require understanding and sensitivity that take time and effort to
develop. The other entities are not equipped, nor can they afford the
time needed to develop the understanding and contextualized materials
and approaches that will set the stage for generations of spiritual
fruit within these communities. Because of the diverse cultural
dimensions, and unique history of woundedness and healing in our ethnic
communities, ethnic ministries and entities will provide a place where
new styles of leadership and models of grace emerge. These new styles
and models will likely help the whole Navigator ministry develop
effectiveness in ministry and leadership into the 21st century. This is
a significant part of our US Vision.
- Safe Place. The ethnic entities will be a 'safe
place' for many ethnic minorities who find the broader Navigator
organization too' dominant culture feeling' for them to function. This
is a case of 'different is not wrong, it's just different.'
Eddie Broussard
May 2003
