I read this in a book recently.

"One of the lasting influences of the Crusades is the necktie as a symbol of Christianity. Those leaving on the Crusades were often given a scarf as a remembrance by those left behind. When the Christians went into battle in the Holy Land, they knotted the scarves around their necks, enabling them to tell friend from foe. Over time, the Crusaders' scarves became today's neckties. Although most christians are unaware of the historical significance of the necktie, many Muslims are. That is why the leaders of many Arabic nations wear open-necked shirts today."
(Intercultural Communication pg. 10, paragraph 3)


I know that there are many different stories about where exactly ties come from and their cultural significance, that is not why I put this in a post. This makes me think about what I am holding onto as sacred but in reality is merely tradition. I am not a tie guy personally and I never held that wearing a tie on a Sunday morning is mandatory. What aspects of Christianity, beyond the super obvious (music styles, dress, buildings, paid staff) do we hold as sacred when in reality it is just tradition. One that comes to mind is the Sunday morning sermon. Is the way that the teaching presented in the majority of churches tradition? Are there more meaningful ways to teach and communicate information that are not done because the tradition of a Pastor preaching for 30 minutes become sacred? And just because things are tradition, does that make them bad?

Like most things the idea of tradition in the church makes me think about small groups and how those groups can incorporate what the real essence of the church is. Obviously there is teaching involved, but what is the best forum for the teaching? There will be community and the living out of the "one anothers", but what exactly does that look like? If a small group can capture the essence of what church is supposed to be, aAre weekly small group gatherings enough or should believers be a part of a larger body worship on Sunday mornings and a small group gathering of the saints at another time? If someone were to be only a part of a small group, would they develop seperatist attitudes that would be a catalyst for division among believers? Would that person also miss out on the beauty that is the macro church by focusing only on the micro church? Just some questions that I have been asking myself lately.

This week I happened to be looking through some of my old syllabi from college and I came across some very interesting things that are relevent when compared with Bruce's message last Sunday.

I studied missions in college and ended up taking alot of classes related to understanding culture and how to live and communicate not only to your own culture but also to other cultures around the world. One of the first steps to understanding other cultures is to learn how your own culture affects you. Milton Bennett, a researcher in the area of Anthropology, has written "Americans must become more conscious and knowledgable about how their own culture has conditioned their ways of thinking and planted within them the values and assumptions that govern their behavior."

American culture has deeply embedded the the values of time, youth, individualism, materialism and beauty in the hearts of those of us that are living in this culture. Lets take a moment and think about how this affects Christianity, specifically related to Bruce's message from Galatians 6 last Sunday. There were very clear implications from the text about the need for Battle Buddies and the idea of living in community with one another. Having a battle buddy means giving up the value of individualism. Christ has made it very clear that we as Christians need one another for support, encouragement and accountability. These battle buddies can be peers, individuals, members of a spiritual family or even mentors. Think about how your relationships in your spiritual family, friendships and discipling relationships can be promoting a Biblical culture which is counter cultural compared to American ideals. I encourage you to think about the ways in which Galatians 6 can be put into action in your own life in such a way that the light of Jesus shines as you live out your theology!!!!

Currently I am a part of several spiritual families. Two of them are official spiritual families and the others are informal relational networks that make up the system of spiritual support and encouragement in my life.
As I think about my spiritual families what strikes me is how different each one of them are, yet how they are each full of strengths and importance. The leaders are different in each group, as well as the members of the group, the activities and personalities but each group has its own strengths and unique abilities that contributes to the overall strength of the group.
I am thinking about these things today because I have been privileged to visit and be in discussion with people of other small groups alot recently and it has been exciting for me to hear the many different perspectives and personalities that a small group can take on.
Recently Nandi Mayathula-Khoza, the portfolio head for community develpment in South Africa said, "We need to recognise that a diverse population is a strength and opportunity in itself as this diversity can be harnessed to enhance people's choices." For the small group setting this quote still stands true, the word 'choices' could even be exchanged for perspective, or perception of who God is. This diversity in small groups should certainly be encouraged, I feel that one of the most exciting things about Christianity is that even in the midst of diverse personalities and interest there is the common glue of Jesus Christ that holds us all together.
This unity in the midst of diversity is something that is to be celebrated! Remember to be thankful for the uniqueness of your spiritual family.