Make Sure You’re Getting Through

by Norman Allison

Too often our telling the gospel fails to hit the mark because we don’t know what, how, and why people believe. How culture shapes belief systems should be required knowledge.

Too often our telling the gospel fails to hit the mark because we don’t know what, how, and why people believe. How culture shapes belief systems should be required knowledge.

I was living in a dusty Jordanian village. I had completed two years of language study, and although I felt far from competent, I began to try to communicate the gospel as well as I could. The village was divided between Muslim, Greek Orthodox, and Roman Catholic communities. We rented our small cement house from a Greek Orthodox family who watched over us like adopted children.

After some months we became well acquainted with many of our neighbors and their extended families. Although we were working to build a congregation in the small Protestant church in the village, we felt that we should start Bible studies in our home. We hoped this would help those around us to be more conscious of the reality of Christ, and perhaps their own churches would benefit, too.

I wanted to reach people who would never enter the Protestant church. They had some Bible knowledge, so I concentrated on the theological truths that had been so important in my studies. I know now that my reality was closely related to the "high religion" concepts in which I had been immersed in my last few years of college.

About 15 people filled our small sitting room one night each week. They seemed attentive and discussion was no problem. Strangely, I thought, they discussed things totally unrelated to the Bible study. Killing a lamb and placing its blood on the front of a new car to keep away the "evil eye" seemed to be a significant spiritual experience for them. In the case of a sick person, placing a book of Psalms under the pillow to speed recovery was very important. I now understand that their discussion centered almost totally around "low religion" issues.

Gradually, and with much less understanding than I wish I had shown, I began to learn that these people did not very often think abstractly about anything. Or if they did, it was connected with events that could be described and illustrated. The abstract theological truths that were so important to me were not easily taught to people who thought in concrete, sensory levels. Armed with this knowledge, I shifted my teaching to things like healing and the power of God over the spirit world. As we discussed passages about Christ’s control over sickness and death, I saw a greater interest and response. Now the discussion centered on our Bible study.

The confirmation that we were heading in the right direction came when our neighbor’s son asked me to come and pray for his sick father. Both of them had been in our Bible studies. I prayed for the father with fear and trembling. This was to me a power encounter. They were going to find out if what I had taught was true or if their animistic protection practices were more effective. Imagine my relief when the sick father appeared at my door the next morning to tell me that he was well. This was a significant breakthrough in that family, and in our work in that village.

I know that if I had been trained to look for such distinctives in belief systems I could have been a more effective missionary. God uses all we can learn about the "principalities and powers" we face (Eph. 6:12).

Belief systems are central to the world view of every people group. Therefore, we must be concerned with the study of beliefs. In this article I want to give some general, introductory thoughts. Actual events and case studies are given in the attached reading list. They are detailed and require more analysis than I can give in this article.

Information on Belief Systems. The study of belief systems is a subfield of cultural anthropology. Within the literature much can be found on religious belief systems. We can use the data from the various cultures, and, to an extent, the methods of gathering and understanding it.

Journal articles and books contain a wealth of facts about various types of belief systems. They also provide approaches to understanding them. Among these sources are some articles and books written by missionaries, especially during the past 20 to 30 years. Practical Anthropology and its successor, Missiology, can be compared with American Anthropologist, Scientific American, Natural History, and other journals to form a base of ethnographic materials for teaching prospective missionaries. A textbook in belief systems as such would be ideal, but in lieu of that these resource materials offer much-needed help.

The problem is that anthropologists take different approaches to religious beliefs. Generally, they hold psychological and sociological theories. Many of them are documented by E. E. Evans-Pritchard (1965). (For bibliographic information see the bibliography and suggested reading list at the end of this article.-Ed.)

Relating Religious Beliefs to "Cognitive Domains." Although at times we erroneously assume that they do, religious beliefs never stand alone. In complex ways they intertwine with other aspects of culture. Therefore, a religious belief system can only be correctly understood as part of the larger culture. What may seem paradoxical about a religious belief to theologians does not stem so much from the religious thought itself as it does from the religious belief’s integration with a cultural system. Religious meanings are real to believers who hold them to be true. For example, when we ask, "What does this animistic belief mean?," we are really asking, "What does this belief mean to the animist?" Actually, the belief will have entirely different meanings, if any at all, to the nonanimist.

Anthropologists say that each cultural group thinks in different categories. Although the brain functions in the same way, categories of thought are culturally determined. These categories are called cognitive domains. In the West, for example, people tend to divide the world into the supernatural and the natural. In the supernatural we include God, angels, demons, miracles, and the like. In the natural we include humans, animals, plants, natural laws, and so forth. It may not occur to us that people in other cultures may not divide up the world this way at all.

In religious beliefs, high religion is characterized by: (l) questions and answers that are cosmic, such as the origin of the universe, the ultimate meaning of life and death, etc.; (2) written texts fixing the authoritative body of beliefs; (3) specialization with various leadership roles having defined, orthodox positions; (4) central institutions such as temples, churches, mosques, and schools for training leaders; (5) moral systems in which the gods are good and are in conflict with evil spirits. High religion includes Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, and Hinduism.

Low religion is characterized by: (l) relationships to problems of immediate, everyday life (not questions of ultimate matters), diseases, drought, plagues, warfare, etc.; (2) informal organization. Leaders may even perform religious services incidentally to everyday work. (3) No written texts. Beliefs are found in myths, drama, ritual, and oral traditions. These forms are not "eternalized" in print and may therefore be reinterpreted for each new problem. (4) Few or no formal institutions. Special buildings are absent, and any training of leadership is informal, usually of the apprentice type. (5) Amoral systems. Attributes of the spirit world are closely analogous to those of people. The spirits usually harm those who forget them and help those who serve them.

The categories of high and low religions are themselves the creations of Western thought, but they are helpful, as long as various beliefs are not forced into a mold. The following model will serve as a reference point:

Western missionaries usually concentrate on high religion. Our heritage of Western thought, intensified by a long schooling process, reinforces this. In their theological preparation, students go further and further into abstract concepts. After graduation, they find it hard to relate to common people. Theological formulations are vital to the professionals, but very often they seem irrelevant to average people. "Scratching where it doesn’t itch" is more common to our communication of the gospel than we like to admit.

Western-oriented missionaries do not often distinguish low religion. Numerous books on Islam and other monotheistic systems deal exclusively with high religion concepts. "Witch-doctors," "devil worship/’ and "superstition" are simplistic tags put on tribal religions. The Western mind follows its own cognitive domain and treats supernatural elements of low religion as perversions of high religion.

The Process by which Belief Systems are Acquired. Taking another approach to belief systems, we must understand the process by which these systems are acquired and the depth to which they affect the lives of those who hold them. Religious beliefs are learned primarily through instruction, although experience also has an important part to play. Anthropologists believe that the meanings attached to these beliefs depend on the "psychological level" at which they are learned. Spiro (1967) spells out five levels: (l) The actors learn about the beliefs. (2) They understand their traditional meanings as written in authoritative texts or given by recognized specialists. (3) They believe they are correct or true. (4) They hold the belief to be cognitively salient, i.e., it structures their experiences and guides their actions. (5) They are motivated to action.

Distinguishing these levels is crucial to the understanding of religious belief systems. Failure to recognize them may lead missionaries into serious errors. We make mistakes when we assume that because a belief is part of the religious system of a particular culture, it is held at the deepest psychological level (fifth). Particularly, we teach in forms that are not understood.

Concluding Observations. Many non-Western groups are not hearing the gospel as well as we might think. Our high religion abstractions do not answer questions they are asking. Nominal Christians may turn back to the old religion because its low religion meets their needs. Also, they may attach low religion meanings to Christian ideas. We must meet the non-Christian on the right psychological level of learning beliefs.

The suggestions in this article serve as samples of what I teach. They are essential to the preparation of missionaries. Such a course not only examines other systems of belief, but makes the student examine his or her own beliefs. This may well help them to confirm their own Christian beliefs and values. They will begin to understand Western Christianity in relation to supracultural truth. They can start contextualizing the gospel in the belief system of a new culture.

Only when we are confronted with the alternatives to ethnocentric thinking, will we be able to implant the gospel effectively in a new culture and see it take root and grow. God has given us the job of evangelizing every tribe, tongue, and nation; may our teaching enable students to do this in the best possible way. The study of religious belief systems is an important link in the chain of preparation for the cross-cultural communicator.

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