[guest post from thecuttingtruth]

The world today is shrinking. The era of globalization has been ushered in, and the surge of migration into America has vastly changed the urban landscape. The church stands in the middle of this gushing torrent, staring nervously at the rising waters. Where the waters once held a homogenous sheen, it is now a dizzying mosaic of colors.

In light of redemptive history, how should the urban church deal with this unprecedented multiplicity of ethnicities? Is the multiethnic church model commonly espoused today as the biblical paragon really the answer, or does the answer lie elsewhere? Or, in other words, does Pastor Wong of CCCCC (Chinese Christian Church of Californian Chinese) really have to cower in shame at his critics, feeling like his church is less than the biblical ideal?

It is my contention that because ethnic diversity is so biblically affirmed and valued by God, the multiethnic church model is – paradoxically – in fact less biblical than the monoethnic church model. Chin up, Pastor Wong!

God’s love for ethnic diversity is progressively revealed through Scripture, and is seen most dramatically in the multiethnic focus of his redemptive plan. From the very moment when his plan began to fashion itself (e.g., the call of Abraham), there is an embracing and exaltation of all the world’s ethnicities. See e.g., Isaiah 66:18, 21.

And by way of the redemptive work of Christ, there is an accentuation of the brilliance and color of each ethnicity. Rather than diminishing ethnic distinctives, the New Testament appears to exult in the contrasting tones of God’s people. During the Pentecost, for example, what is notable is the deliberate manner in which God reaches out to an ethnic potpourri. In the ensuing cacophony of diverse languages lies a singular harmony: a celebration of each ethnic group as important, valid and beautiful in God’s eyes. For God is no demolisher of the wonderful and unique aspects that make one ethnic group different from another. He rejoices in them, finds beauty in them, redeems them.

This celebration and heightening of the ethnic diversity among God’s people reaches a stirring climax in the book of Revelation. Revelation 5:9; 7:9; 14:6-7 intensify – and not diminish or dilute – the ethnic differences. Every “nation, tribe, people and language” cry out in worship to God; and the fourfold ethnic emphasis hammers home the sanctity of ethnic diversity. Far from being a soupy swamp of indistinguishable ethnicities, heaven will have a diversity of ethnicities that better reflects the richness and depth of God. A brilliant panoply of sparkling color and flavor, each ethnicity reflecting a different aspect of God’s multifaceted glory. Unity with diversity; diversity within unity. It is a glorious vision.

The multiethnic church destroys that wonderful diversity.

It is unintentional, yet inevitable. For the multiethnic church faces the difficulty of trying to be all things to all people. Cultures are so radically different from one another, that to accommodate all of them is like trying to squeeze a square peg into a circular hole. Indeed, cultural and linguistic differences are anathema to the functioning of any church which attempts to be multiethnic. Which language to sing in? preach in? fellowship in? What food should be served during lunch or church picnics? Sushi or spaghetti? Should we greet one another in a manner which is demonstrative and expressive, or one which is more restrained? Should we bow, shake hands, hug, or kiss? Should we take off shoes at the house of worship, or will our bare feet be offensive to those of another culture? These are practical – as opposed to theological – issues that the church can only futilely attempt to surmount. Only the pastor who is attuned to the vast cultural/ethnic differences and wishes to be sensitive to each group can appreciate the sheer impossibility of the task. Cultural/ethnic imperialism becomes almost a necessity.

What one usually finds in multiethnic churches is a dominant ethnic culture presiding over almost everything – the worship style, preaching style etc. – to which the minority ethnicities simply acquiesce to. And it is this acquiescing which is the most tragic since it results in a relinquishing of those very cultural and ethnic distinctives that are precious to God. The front door of the multiethnic church is, tragically, a ruthlessly effective ethnic filter.

It is ironic that the very ethnic diversity which the multiethnic church seeks to nurture suffers such a swift demise within its walls. Those in the ethnic minority may have a few token gestures thrown its way by the presiding dominant (ethnic) culture, but they are inevitably forced to assimilate to the presiding culture. This is not (usually) carried out with malice or racism; it is simply a fact of life. For it is simply impossible to impose upon the strictures of the church the heavenly vision of full integration as recorded in Revelation – which is probably why the only time the New Testament paints a picture of such a multiethnic congregation is at the idyllic beginning (Pentecost) and at the climaxing conclusion (Revelation).

Times Square Church, for example, has a congregation over eight thousand with over a hundred different nationalities represented. While many describe the worship experience as that of Revelation 5:9, it is, in fact, decidedly a niched Pentecostal and African American experience(notwithstanding its two white pastors!). While it inculcates a cultural fit for someone Pentecostal and/or African American, an immigrant from Fujian province in China will feel like he has landed on an alien planet. For him to fit, he will need to strip away all that is ethnically his. Redeemer Presbyterian Church has also been espoused as a multiethnic church which has somehow been able to reach out to the postmodern demographic. Yet its multiethnic reach is limited to white and second generation Asian Americans, and typically well-educated and professionally successful ones, at that. Although professing to reach out to a spectrum of ethnicities, it has actually only been able to (with great success, in any case) reach out to a decidedly limited niche.

Although proponents of the multiethnic church paradigm claim they stand on biblical ground, it is the monoethnic church which has a better stake to that claim. Of note, the New Testament church planters emerged with a decidedly monoethnic ministry paradigm targeting specific ethnicities. Paul was apostle to the Gentiles, while Peter was apostle to the Jews. The early church (certainly Paul and Peter, anyway) demonstrated a sensitivity to the wide swath of cultures, and of the need to approach each one differently. Paul spelled out his strategy by declaring that to the Jews he became a Jew, and to the Greek he became Greek. He understood that the diversity of ethnicities was not something to be tamed and diluted down, but something to be celebrated. And this celebration was reflected in his ministry pattern, one which gave due respect to each culture, gave it room to breath, and one which did not impose a dominant paradigm which would stifle the God-given ethnic distinctives.

Pastor Wong, chin up! Your church is more biblical. You have nurtured the very ethnic distinctives that delight God. Inasmuch as you have loved and delighted in your people and in your culture, the earth is all the better for it, the heavens all the more brighter for it, God all the more joyful for it. I salute you; no, I bow to you. Xie Xie.

Wow, I didn’t expect to be posting this many YouTube videos, but this was very interesting and I couldn’t help myself. But in all honesty, I shouldn’t be spending so much time on YouTube.

Basically, this is a series of interviews with Chinese young adults who were raised outside of the motherland. They describe their stories around the question of identity. Each interview is 8-10 minutes, so it takes a bit of time, but worth a view.

Check out the description here, the creator, and the series below:

As the world becomes smaller and more interconnected, old ways of thinking become less and less suitable. New ways of understanding things must be introduced to adapt to new phenomenons; this documentary attempts to do just that. For most people, ethnicity and identity are seen as one thing. However, I theorize that in the future these two concepts will grow further apart and at the same time become vague. This piece serves as a window into the future as well as into my own personal thoughts.

Part 1:

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUbEznINbPY

Part 2:

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2nXSvzwZGk

Part 3:

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSKFPJ1iQX4

Part 4:

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCu4UWeIMcg

I am going to make some bold statements here, that you will probably think are crazy.  But hear me out.

First, imagine something with me.  What would it have been like to be part of the Civil Rights Movement in America?  To see the Washington Monument towering above, and hear the chants of the hundreds of thousands of citizens and leaders — African American or not, Christian or not — gathering together?

What would it have been like to be on the outside, to look on with interest, wondering whether to participate or not?

And what is it like, for those looking back on it now, wishing they had done more than just observe?  For those who could have been part of something bigger than themselves?

Let me say first that I’m definitely not comparing the recent craze over Jeremy Lin to the Civil Rights Movement in terms of any of its underlying causes, like systemic racism, or the oppression and suffering of African Americans (which I could never pretend to truly understand).  I’m not drawing comparisons about any political aspect of fighting the government for equality and rights.  Jeremy Lin is a basketball player, and an entertainer — not a politician or a national leader.

But I do think it’s helpful to look to the Civil Rights Movement as another example of the empowerment and united voice of one people, that can arise in a moment in history.  I do think we can draw inspiration from it.

I’ve been thinking about this lately, because I’ve been wondering:  Are we underestimating the significance of this moment in history for Asian Americans, and possibly Asian American Christians?

After all, something is going on here, that is much bigger than Jeremy Lin.  Let me try to explain.

Over the past couple of weeks, the Internet has exploded with news, articles, blogs, music, and everything you can imagine about “Linsanity.”  For those on Facebook, the top of their newsfeed has been dominated every day with topics such as “Jeremy Lin,” “New York Knicks,” and “Asian American.”  Some have found that annoying, while others can’t get enough of it.  Regardless, this topic has been in peoples’ faces, and it’s something you can’t ignore, but have to contend with — like it or not.

That is power.  One fascinating thing about the Internet and social media, is that it has given people a voice, who have not historically had a voice in the matters of our times.  Whether you live in a position of great societal power and privilege, or on the margins of society, you can make your perspective and voice known.

And Asian Americans are doing just that.  They’re writing, singing, and bringing attention to not only Jeremy Lin, but so many issues related to him, like any movement of artists should do.  They’re sharing all of these works of creation with their friends.  In short, they’re not letting people overlook the significance of this moment.  And I love it.

I love that Asian Americans, and Asian American Christians as well, are being empowered to speak up.  I love that people are passionately debating and disagreeing about these matters.

I love it because in a way, this moment is more about the response to Jeremy Lin, than it is about the guy or basketball player himself. 

Here’s another question.  When Wat Misaka played for the New York Knicks in 1947, what was the response of the Japanese American, or Asian American community?  What about when Bruce Lee made headway as a pioneer in American cinema in the 1970s?  Does anyone know or remember?

The truth is, Asian Americans were not positioned in those times to be able to mobilize, to make their voice known to the larger communities and media, or to force others to contend with who they were.  There’s been a sadness behind that void, that’s been expressed by many in our community and broader culture.  Who are we?  What do we stand for?  Is our historical silence and passivity because we’ve been oppressed, or because we don’t know the answer to these questions ourselves?

But consider what’s been happening online, in a world where power dynamics can be equalized, or turned upside down, by the will and demand of the people.  People are mobilizing in a different kind of way.  Asian Americans are using their voice in powerful ways, as they have been online for a while now.  Leaders and artists are emerging in the public eye.

This is a significant moment for us.

Over the past year, I’ve had a number of conversations with Asian American Christian leaders, some of whom are contributors to Next Gener.Asian Church, and we’ve discussed our lack of ethnic or national identity.  We’ve looked with admiration to the Civil Rights Movement, at the collective passion behind nonviolent sit-ins in theaters and restaurants.  At those who stood side-by-side, backs to the wall, in the face of fire hoses and attack dogs.

At the same time, we suspected that any “movement of the people” would probably look different for Asian Americans.  Maybe it wouldn’t be as overt and visible.  Maybe it would take place in different venues, where we can be part of the same voice, though geographically separated.

Let me emphasize again: I’m not saying this moment is equal in significance to what the Civil Rights Movement meant to our African American brothers and sisters.  Their moment will forever be unique, and part of their national identity.  They endured suffering that no other race could possibly understand.  But I think there are lessons and inspirations we can draw from that event.

After all, Asian American history (and our understanding of issues) is still relatively young and immature, and there’s much for us to learn and grow.  There are far more leaders who will emerge in future generations, as the Asian American population continues to grow at high rates.  This moment could just be the beginning of greater things to come.  But that gives me hope, in what lies ahead!

In closing, let’s think back on the March on Washington in 1963.  It began at the Washington Monument, and ended at the Lincoln Memorial.  Did you know that the march failed to start on time, because its leaders were meeting with members of Congress?  Did you know that much to the leaders’ surprise, the assembled group of 250,000 began to march without them?

They weren’t waiting for anybody.  They knew they were a force to be reckoned with. 

Jeremy Lin is a person, but he is also a symbol and figure of so many things, which is part of why he’s generating such interest and discussion.  But instead of putting all our expectations and hopes on who he is, and what he does or doesn’t do, shouldn’t this be a time for us to be empowered to lead wherever we might be, as he’s doing in his setting?  Whether we’re writing, speaking up on social media, or whatever the case may be, those are our opportunities.  And so let’s keep doing that!

The march ended at the Lincoln Memorial, where there was a program of music and speakers.  When I think of that, all the articles and songs that we’ve created in the past couple of weeks come to mind.  Here are collections of articles and media that DJ Chuang and Angry Asian Man put together.

And here are some songs about Jeremy Lin: “Nick of Time” by Jin, and “Perseverance” by GOWE.

So what about you?  If you’ve heard of other articles, songs, or other pieces that you or others (especially, but not only by, Asian Americans) have written or created, but aren’t here… list the links in the comments so we can read and learn!  You can be part of what’s going on.

When Jeremy Lin scored his 38 points against Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers last Friday, delivering his most impressive performance on the biggest stage of his life, Angry Asian Man blogger tweeted, “Did tonight really happen?  Or did we all just have the same amazing dream?”

Those two lines captured so much of what many of us feel.  Every game for a while, we’d hold our breath and wonder, “Will Jeremy Lin prove himself to be a one-time fluke?  Isn’t he just one bad game away from going back to the Knicks’ bench?”  Part of us can’t believe this is happening, and deep inside we fear that we’ll all wake up and it’ll be over… not just for him, but for us.

At some point, the hype will be over, and the media will move on.  The social media news feeds will be quiet and focused on other subjects.  When that happens, what will have arisen out of this all?  What will we have taken from this?  I hope it’s more than just basketball and a few video highlights.  Hopefully it’ll be a body of work, of our communal voice, that will be forever recorded in the history books of our time.  Hopefully it’ll be something that will inspire others, and that we can build upon for future generations of leaders and artists.

Who knows how significant this moment will be, when we look back?  History and time will be the judge of that.  But when all is said and done, whenever our moment comes along, I hope we will be able to say that we as a people were ready for it… and we let it move us forward in ways we couldn’t have expected or envisioned.  That seems to be the way God would work.

A recent article was released in the Orange County Register featuring DJ Chuang.  Here’s an excerpt from the article, written by Jim Hinch:

“I’m an experimenter,” Chuang said. “My heart is in the church, the Asian American church. But church is not known for being a place of research and development.”

Chuang left formal ministry and became a consultant, working for churches, parachurch organizations and Christian nonprofits, always aiming to help Asian American Christians become more digitally savvy and culturally responsive.

He’s helping Brea’s Ambassador Church expand its network of sister churches and advising La Mirada’s Talbot Seminary as it develops one of America’s first doctoral programs in Asian American ministry.

Chuang is a manic presence, especially online. He was, he says, the first person in Orange County to sign up for Twitter seven years ago (a distinction confirmed by the rankings website Twitaholic). He tweets throughout each day, blogs, produces a weekly podcast and talks by phone, Skype and Google Chat with a nationwide roster of church leaders. Callers make appointments via an interactive scheduler on Chuang’s website.

Last year, Chuang traveled 35,839 miles in 74 days on 16 trips to conferences and meetings. This information comes from the Chuang family Christmas card, which also details the number of followers (7,000) Chuang has on Twitter and the number of reward points he earned last year at Starbucks (50).

Since 2005, Chuang has edited two books on Asian American ministry, produced a report on current trends in Asian American churches, written 23 magazine articles and made 28 presentations at church conferences and seminars – achievements tabulated, in chronological order, on Chuang’s website.

Chuang has bipolar disorder. He has been successfully treated for the condition since 2001. But he attributes his numerous career changes and intellectual restlessness, in part, to manic episodes.

His periods of depression, he said, brought him near suicide. And they convinced him that helping Asian American churches become more culturally inclusive is tantamount to a life-or-death calling.

“It’s very hard for Asians to talk about their weaknesses,” Chuang said, explaining why he waited years before publicly acknowledging his condition and seeking treatment.

Chuang said traditional Asian American churches are especially inhospitable to painful personal problems because many Asian cultures prize a veneer of stoic hard work and moral respectability.

“I want to bring churches into a place to deal more honestly with the real person,” Chuang said.

“I would like to see Asian Americans become more healthy and whole as people.”

To read the full article on the Orange County Register website, visit here.

Also, DJ gave an inspiring talk at Urbana 12’s PANA lounge, called: “Step Up, Speak Up, Live It Up,” which you can find in transcript and audio format on his website, or in video format on Intervarsity Asian American Ministries’ website.