For about a decade, I spent my grade-school age years as a student of a Christian-based private school. It was here that I learned that Christians determine their values based on the bible. Subsequently, they hold strong belief that the bible is correct. In addition, they believe the choice to lead a God-fearing life was correct. Thus, everyone—who was not a god-fearing Christian—was wrong. These beliefs and tendencies of the Christian community were conducive for thinking and behaving ethnocentrically.
During my time studying at Christian school, it was unbeknownst to me that our curriculum was tailored to omit certain secular topics—that students in public school were learning—only because these topics did not align with the Christian faith. In other words, information that could give a student an opportunity to learn how to choose for themselves what they want to accept or disregard, was being withheld. Moreover, this practice was justified based on the premise of Christian values. Students were taught to avoid the secular world as it was comprised of sin and temptations, 1 John 2:16 (B., 2015). In other words, students were obtaining single-sided values at a very venerable age and according to Lesson 2, a person’s values are formed during this time (The Pennsylvania State University, 2017. Massey, 1979).
Ultimately, the Christian school’s practice of withholding certain theories or certain recorded events in history was generating ignorance among its enrollees. Students were subjected to becoming intolerant of people who have ideas or practices that are different or of the secular world. Breaking it down, it is apparent that the students were not only part of the Christian culture, but they were also part of an anti-secular group. Interestingly, the student’s learned intolerance of secular worldly ideas is relative to the cultural situation of ethnocentrism.
To expand, ethnocentrism is covered in Lesson 2 and defined as “exaggerated tendency to think the characteristics of one’s own group or race is superior to those of other groups or races” (The Pennsylvania State University 2017. Drever, 1952). This subjective perception the Christians have that the bible’s teachings are superior to the teachings of other religions, scientific facts, and the followers thereof is an example of ethnocentrism, per this definition. Meanwhile¸ secular, an abundantly used term throughout teachings of the Christian faith, is defined as “denoting attitudes, activities, or other things that have no religious or spiritual basis” (Secular – Google Search. n.d.). In comparison, the terms ethnocentrism and secular both describe a perception about a group of people or ideas.
In retrospect, I realized that the best way I remained open-minded after the rigid Christian upbringing I endured, was with education. Aristotle said, “It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it” (Aristotle n.d.). I feel if we just could educate people to be more receptive to listening, we could make great strides in global communication.
Works Cited
B. (2015, July 28). Three Temptations of Sin: Lust of the Flesh, Lust of the Eyes, and the Pride of Life. Retrieved January 20, 2017, from http://www.revelation.co/2015/07/28/three-temptations-of-sin-lust-of-the-flesh-lust-of-the-eyes-and-the-pride-of-life/
The Pennsylvania State University (2017) Overview of Diversity and Culture. Retrieved January 19, 2017. https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1826457/modules/items/21654072
Massey, M. (1979). The people puzzle: Understanding yourself and others. Reston, VA: Reston Publishing Co.
Drever, H. E. (1952). A dictionary of psychology. Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin.
Secular – Google Search. (n.d.). Retrieved January 19, 2017, from https://www.google.com/search?q=%2Bsecular%2B&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8
Aristotle Quotes. (n.d.). Retrieved January 19, 2017, from https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/aristotle100584.html
There are so many different Christian colleges here in the United States, many with different religious affiliations that incorporate their faith into the curriculum. In my opinion, this is simply to be expected. It’s also been my experience that within different religious groups that I’ve encountered, its not uncommon to meet someone who believes their faith is the “correct” faith. However, not all Christians carry this belief and not all are as you’ve described, “This subjective perception the Christians have that the bible’s teachings are superior to the teachings of other religions, scientific facts, and the followers thereof is an example of ethnocentrism, per this definition.” (sqf5216, 2017) This statement and many others included in your post look more pointed towards Christians as a whole rather than a specific institution of higher education.
That being said, your post is very thought provoking, Religion has long been a very sensitive topic of discussion as it is apart of a person’s cultural and personal values. Religion can be especially tricky to navigate in this context because “while individual and cultural values overlap a great deal, there also are people who don’t hold the same values as the culture they belong to.” (PSU WC, 2017) Your overall post topic is intriguing as I was born and raised in the South and it was rare to ever come across anyone who had a different faith than I. Religious and moral values were hard pressed and done so with the best of intentions. My perspective broadened when I moved to California when I was seventeen, it was the best gift that I could’ve given to myself. I have continued to travel to anywhere I can, as often as possible. Traveling has broadened my scope of the world and instilled a deep appreciation and awareness of the many, many different perspectives and values that are around me at any given time.
Christianity or any preference of faith, isn’t a connotation of closed-mindedness, many people of faith choose to believe in a deity that they cannot physically see and to me, that’s abundantly open-minded. Moran, Abramson and Moran insert that ” One’s values are the basis for judging whether actions are considered “right or wrong.” So, failing to understand predominant values within a society as well as failing to concede that an individual person has a particular set of beliefs will both lead to poor communication.” (Moran Ph.D., R. T., Abramson, N. R., Ph. D., Moran, MA., S. V., 2014) In lesson 2, it’s mentioned that, “traveling abroad is the best solution, as the experience of actually interacting with people from different cultures allows one to see the world from other perspectives. One can also interact with others from different cultures via the Internet or other technology to gain more knowledge of those cultures. However, this only works if you approach the experience with an open mind.” (PSU WC, 2017)
By way of my own deductive reasoning, I would add that open-mindedness is found through genuine curiosity and maybe some humility. The stories from individuals that justify their reason for following any certain faith, can be absolutely profound thus opening the listener’s mind to new ideas, giving way to a new frame of understanding. Acceptance and appreciation of differences within cultures and value sets, separate from our own is paramount in gaining a global perspective.
References:
sqf5216 (January 20, 2017) OLEAD 410: Leadership in a Global Context. Cultural Leadership Blog.
Retrieved on January 21, 2017 from
http://sites.psu.edu/global/2017/01/20/christianity-and-ethnocentrism/#respond
PSU WC (2017) Leadership in a Global Context. Lesson 2. Introduction to Culture. Pennsylvania State University. World Campus. Retrieved on January 22, 2017 from
https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1826457/modules/items/21654083
Moran Ph.D., Robert. T., Abramson, Neil. R., Ph. D., Moran, MA., Sarah. V. (2014) Managing Cultural Differences. Ninth Edition. (Chapter 2). Abingdon, OX. Routledge. New York, NY. Routledge.
I grew up very similar. I didn’t go to Christian school, but my family-life was wrapped up in the church. I agree that being that involved in religion that deeply can develop tendencies for thinking ethnocentrically. But don’t get me wrong, I’m not knocking religion at all. People find meaning and purpose in worship, and they teach practices of being a good person and being good to one another. These are good values to have.
Values determine behavior because they are formed in the earlier years of life up until about age of 21 (PSU, 2017). I think everything in life should be in moderation, and it sounds like that wasn’t the case in your and my experiences. There is a lot of good in religion, but there can also be a line in some cases where those vertical and horizontal identities that are learned from our cultural and family traditions, and from peer groups (Moran & Moran, 2014) that can become unhealthy. Wouldn’t you agree?
Reference:
Moran, R. T., Abramson, N. R., & Moran, S. V. (2014). Managing cultural differences. London: Routledge.
The Pennsylvania State University World Campus. (2017). Lesson 2: Introduction to Culture, screen three. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/1826457/modules/items/21654083