Living Behind the Veil

I'm often asked what I wear in Afghanistan and what it's like to wear a veil. It's freedom. Freedom to have a bad hair day, freedom to arrange my chadar to conceal the curve of my breasts and backside, freedom to not be an expatriate for a little while. It means freedom to hide even on the street from the Afghan men's eyes which seem to strip me naked.
When I relax my shoulders and walk less purposefully, less confidently, my eyes downcast and covered by sunglasses, I pass for an Afghan woman. I hear the men whisper in Dari, "Is she a foreigner or local woman?" I chuckle but am silent. On the street, I'm also a free target....freely exposed to groping, sexual innuendos whispered to me as a man bicycles by, free to have stones thrown at me, freely seen as no one's wife, daughter, sister, mother, friend, or boss. I step inside my gate, and remove my chapan and chadar. Now I'm someone's boss, motherhood returns to me as little steps run to greet me, and I receive a kiss from my adoring husband. Now I'm free to his loving and gentle eyes which know and enjoy my curves, free to once again be under the protective umbrella of being a wife, mother, friend, colleague, boss, niece, sister, daughter, woman.

Monday, May 26, 2014

Idol of Might

ISIS crucifies Christian Teen


Name the Idol: Violence and Might1

We live and work in a region with idols of different strength and ancient lineage that many from the West are less acquainted with.  How do we form historical-Biblical-perspective which sustains and encourages us to persevere when the black veil hiding evil violence is torn away, when we see pictures of 10-year-old Syrian Christians  being crucified in front of their parents in the name of the regional god because the parents wouldn’t renounce Him?

Understanding history and the Biblical view of history is one key to maintaining the perspective which will carry frontline Message bearers in and through the tidal wave of evil sweeping the region. The prophets unequivocally and unanimously condemned violence (Hab 2:11-12, Micah 2:1-2; Amos 3:10).  The Bible is clear that “not by force shall man prevail” (I Sam. 2:9; Mic7:16; Zech 4:6).

Just as few voices were raised in the ancient world to protest the ruthlessness of man, so are our voices too quiet in the face of the scourge of violence sweeping across the region. The worship of might, power, the sword in the name of a god is nothing new.  The current powers aren’t called Anu, Molek, or Baal, and they aren’t more or less evil than the ancient powers. The prophets denounced the pride, boasting, arrogance (Isa 10:12) the angers, the oppressors (Isa 14:4-6), the destroyers of nations, those who inflict waste, ruin, death (Jer. 4:7), those whose own might is their god (Hab 1:11, ).1

Mary, the sweet teenage mother of Jesus, shows us the way. The young, unwed, pregnant teenage girl courageously faces a society normally intent on stoning her to death for her apparent crime…not unlike the modern day Middle East and Central Asian cultures do.  She sings, “…He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble state…” Her song shows us the historicall informed perspective of a God who acted in history to use the young and the weak to bring forth the One who would conquer all empires of all time through the greatest act of sacrifice. 

Mary repeats the promises of God through the prophets.  His heart goes out to the humble, to those who are not prideful in the thoughts of their hearts (Luke 1:50-52).  God will restore, He will heal, He cares, He gives refuge to the refugees, He give fresh joy (Jeremiah 30:17; Isa 14:32; 29:19).  Eventually the Assyrians, known as the greatest and most ruthless killing machine of the ancient world, were brought to an end. 

The governments and ruthless men in power in 2014 will also eventually give way to the Kingdom proclaimed by King Nebuchadnezzar: “How great are his signs, how mighty his wonders! His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion endures from generation to generation” Daniel 4:3, 34-37.  There is hope, for “They shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; national shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.” Isaiah 2:4

The Prophets, Abraham Heschel, Chap 9.

Fear and Power Distance in Central Asia



Fear and Power Distance

Power distance is one of five major dimensions describing culture. “This dimension expresses the degree to which the less powerful members of a society accept and expect that power is distributed unequally. The fundamental issue here is how a society handles inequalities among people. People in societies exhibiting a large degree of power distance accept a hierarchical order in which everybody has a place and which needs no further justification. In societies with low power distance, people strive to equalize the distribution of power and demand justification for inequalities of power.1 Because historically “most empires have disintegrated from the inside,”2 it is those cultures with the greatest historico-traditional power distance which tend to last longer.

Central Asian cultures are not all the same.  Fine nuances define the moral boundaries of each culture, and morality is usually nationalism, religion, and superstition mixed together in one big “bowl.” The power distance is greater among those cultures with a higher level of national xenophobia (closed towards outsiders).   There are varying power differences between genders, between age and generational groups, between religions, between political groups, socio-economic levels, between families, villages, tribes, and nations. 

But there are key similarities of Central Asian cultures: they are characteristically often fear and shame based, utilize shame, violence, and fear as a means to enforce the appropriate level of power distance in relationships and at each level of society.  The use of fear pervades at all levels, either fear of man or fear of supernatural powers – the jinn, curses, divination, amulets, and animistic traditions.  Research shows that national culture and national personality are not independent but statistically related.

So what does this mean for those bringing the Good News?  It means internally accepting that we will forever be the “outsiders”, even those with the best language skills among us.  There are limits to changing identities.  At the same time, realizing as Paul did that we need to do whatever we can to “cross cultural lines in the name of Christ. But only when we are deeply rooted in our own culture can we risk reaching out across a cultural chasm to people on the other side.”3  

It is imperative to not quote I Cor 9:22 in isolation.  We must be both a slave and free, depending upon the situation. Finally, at a time in history when it would be easy to allow fear to paralyze us, that is the time to move forward with humble boldness, calling what is evil “evil” and what is good “good”, to do justice and love kindness (Micah 6:8). “The primary way of serving God is through love, justice, and righteousness.”4

1.                1. http://geert-hofstede.com/dimensions.html
2.                2. Cultures and Organizations: Software for the Mind, by Geert Hofstede
3.                3. Kenneth Bailey: Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in I Corinthians.  
4.                4. The Prophets, Vol II. by Abraham Heschel, chapter 2