Different Shells; Embracing ethnic Christianity

A friend of mine sells chicken eggs to about half the bus drivers. Though I am particularly fond of the freshness of his farm, the chicken eggs are only half the treat. Accompanying my dozen usually comes a handful of guinea eggs or duck eggs. The texture and taste resembles an egg of a chicken but yet has it's own consistency and flavor. However the fact remains as different as the shell is it's the same yoke inside.

Hayward Wisconsin is about as Euro dominant as a rural community gets. If you weren't born with Swedish or Norwegian ancestry the kind folks of Hayward would make sure you knew you didn't fit the mold. This is observed by the chronic mistrust and hostility toward the nearby Ojibwe reservation. I once attended a Bible study at my local church witnessing a dear friend and pastor ethically debate for following minorities in super stores. He argued it's only a business strategy and nothing personal. This was shockingly absurd and offensive but to add insult to injury the entire group of white men around the table seemed to agree and condone what the pastor just said. Now that I've grown to understand the ethnic heart of God, I'm absolutely ashamed that I didn't rebuke him.

The south isn't immune to racism either though. Yes where I currently live is a melting pot of ethnicity but the stew is being stirred by a rather large European chef. The code looks something like this "we will tolerate you so long as you conform" this in my opinion has been the overarching attitude of America for several decades and only now is being challenged. The progressive southern Christians like to put on cultural shades, squint their eyes, and pretend we're all the same. Though I agree that we are all more alike then different,the problem of this approach is the same conflict Paul deals with in working with the Jews and Gentiles. Because Jesus was Jewish, the Hebrews pushed for the cultural assimilation of all the gentiles treating them as lesser Christians if they didn't act Jewish enough.

 Jesus desired to complete culture not abolish it. Ethnicity should be celebrated and respected not replaced with a white man's view of Christianity.  Just like each egg has it's own taste and texture, we are all made uniquely in God's image. Many good meaning Christians try to present ethnicity like McDonald's; there's lots of options but only a few choices are decent. But God's view of ethnicity goes much further it's like a five star buffet of cultural thoughts,insight, heritage,and traditions. It's humbling  but always nessesary to remember God made us in his image not the other way around. I'm pretty sure his images stretches further than Sweeds from Wisconsin or a Chicken's rear end. Just a thought.