It’s never appropriate to criticize another’s religion. Each of our faiths represent a personalized fusion of our family influences, how we were educated, the social, abstract and spacial conditions of our upbringing, and what we in all our autonomy have chosen to believe in. To criticize that is to throw into question the core of our existence. Religion in the private sphere must always remain sacred, unconditionally unquestionable. This is how we show respect to one another, live and let live.
On the other hand, when religion enters the public sphere, establishing institutions that become political, then it must, must, must be critiqued and scrutinized because, by its nature, when one religious faith dominates, others will feel or even be persecuted. Enter now a long, deeply-infiltrated history of Western imperialism in East Asia where Whites paraded through our motherlands waving Christianity like a banner symbolic of cultural superiority, and it becomes obligatory for self-respecting Asian Christians to interrogate themselves on how and why they are Christian.
Religion, like matters of love and personal relationships, cannot be interpreted solely through the lens of race politics. But when institutionalized religions break into the public sphere, religion, specifically Christianity, which is what this post will focus on, not only can but should be interpreted through this lens because if we don’t, we risk white-washing ourselves (often hypocritically as we proclaim “Asian Pride”).
Once upon a time, White Christian missionaries, good intentions and all, visited famine-torn villages in Asia, bearing conditional gifts of food and sustenance, which were given to the hungry villagers only after they agreed to convert from their native religions to Christianity. This not-so-holy seed then sprouted a score of Christian churches in Asia, many opting to merely mimic the Christian practices of White Westerners instead of fusing and adapting it to traditional Eastern culture.
Often, Asian cultures include a tradition of kow-towing or bowing in respect to deceased parents. This is not a form of worship, but a display of respect for our elders. White missionaries saw this and, in complete ignorance of Asian culture, interpreted it through Western culture as a form of worship. These White missionaries advised Asian Christians against kow-towing at funerals, who obeyed the White missionaries and stood arrogantly, declaring at these funeral ceremonies, “I worship only one God.” Nothing breaks my heart more than to witness such an unapologetic rejection of one’s own heritage.
If only it stopped there, but no: what’s more, Asian Christians are notorious for going out of their way to ostracize and even demonize Asian non-Christians, further implying that Eastern religions integral to our heritage are inferior to the White Western religion of Christianity. Asian Christians, even more zealously than White Christians, impose Western ideologies on East Asia, name-calling any Asian non-Christian who refuses to be indoctrinated a pagan doomed for hell. In effect we create amongst ourselves yet another fissure to Asian Unity. How, in God’s name, could we exploit our free will in such a way as to wield religion as a means of hurting ourselves and others instead of seeking it for private spiritual guidance?
No matter what our denomination, as Asians we need to look hard at how and why any of us came to be Christian in the first place. We need to integrate Christian religion, if that is our faith of choice, with Asian tradition in a way that does not betray our heritage. We do not and in fact must refuse to carry the White Man’s Burden. We should educate ourselves and our peers on the historical conspiracy between Christianity and Western imperialism. Above all else, we should never let our differences in faith divide us, which is exactly what too many Asian Christians do.
I’ll end this comment with a quote from David Park of Next Gener.Asian Church (though admittedly, I’ve taken this quote out of context):
“So many of us have been slaves for so long, we’ll take any master as long as he doesn’t look like us because we can hardly stand to be ourselves, much less to be concerned for ourselves. Why? Because every good slave knows that a child of the master is more valuable than the child of another slave.”
(hat tip to DJ Chuang for the topic suggestion, even though he will very likely disagree with this comment. Photo credit via Flickr: Aaron Olaf.)
Other posts you might be interested in:
Blog RSS Blog Comments RSS
Ernie wrote:
Hmm. So, quick background story for me: I went to a Chinese Baptist Church, then went to a white Presbyterian church in high school, then dropped out of the church completely in College after a falling out with God and/or other Christians. (Long story, maybe for another blog post.)
Anyway: you’re going to ruffle some feathers by saying that by being Christian, you’re kowtowing to the Western World, and thus, white man. In the case of me personally, my grandmother converted to Christianity when she was young, and I just grew up part of that. I imagine myself as the Christian from high school, and if you told me that being Christian was the work of “the white man,” I’d actually say “no, it’s because I love Jesus Christ so much and took him as a personal savior.” White man’s burden would even be a factor as to why I would be a Christian, and the thought that Christianity was part of some Western Imperialism-scheme wouldn’t make me turn un-Christian.
Being hated on for coming out of the closet made me turn un-Christian. (But again, for a different blog post.)
What I did find irritating was the NEED for an Asian-American spiritual congregations, instead of just an all-including church. That whole “What would Jesus Do?” thing. Did Jesus only want a Chinese American Christian Fellowship at UC Davis so Chinese Christians can hook-up with other Chinese Christians? Sounds pretty ridiculous to me. For me personally, all Christian groups, both the all-Asian ones and the all-white ones, were preachy and gossipy and hypocritical and a way to find a girl/boy friend, provided you aren’t homosexual, lest you burn in hell forever.
Posted on 04-Sep-07 at 7:51 pm | Permalink
John wrote:
Bravo akrypti. Well put and articulate piece. Believing and recognizing our past and present Asian heritage is key to current and future Asian generations. “Never forget where you come from”.
Posted on 05-Sep-07 at 5:35 am | Permalink
Bertie wrote:
Ah yes, those Asian Christians who would be so nice to you until you say “sorry, not converting, but thanks for the free cookies.” College. Good times. At some point, you just learn that you can get free lunches and candy if you just hang out with them a bit. If they have an ulterior motive in getting you to convert, I see no reason why I can’t have an ulterior motive that was spearheaded by my tummy. Okay, kidding aside, some of them were downright scary. A friend of mine was told by the group to drop us heathens as friends, because we would lead her away from Christ. One day, she was walking with us when the Asian American fellowship gestapo was approaching from the opposite direction, and she turned and fled, lest she be seen out with us. And when another friend had the nerve to have an alcoholic drink, a group swooped in and staged an intervention. It was a potent mix of Asian shame, Christ, Mean Girls, Heathers, and the Spanish Inquisition.
(Ernie, I never understood why there were Chinese Christian fellowships in COLLEGE either. I can understand our parents wanting to find people of the same culture and everything, but people our generation? Why? [Taiwanese inside joke] So they can repeat “Love Boat”? [/Taiwanese inside joke] Heh.)
Posted on 05-Sep-07 at 6:03 am | Permalink
Jesse! wrote:
yay a hornet’s nest!
Like what Ernie said, a good friend of mine is Filipino American and she has had to come to terms with the fact that while the Spanish conquered the PI’s in the name of Christianity and all but obliterated the matriarchal local culture and religion, she is Christian and loves God.
Another story: My anthro prof (a Chinese Diasporic) told us the story of his aunt who “converted” from Buddhism to Protestantism AND Catholicism. When her husband died, she had a Buddhist blessing, a Catholic blessing and a perplexed Protestant pastor who told she couldn’t have all three.
“Why not? How do I know which religion is the right one, this way, I’m covering all bases.” I love me some Chinese logic!
But the underlying argument, if one can be made, is your assumption that Christianity is a “white” religion. Sure that assessment can be made, but that would nullify the fact that it’s a faith and instead cast it as some sort of cultural artifact. I tend to make that assumption myself, but what has to be remembered is that most self-identified Christians do not see their faith as anything other than The Truth and will not accept that atheist point of view.
Posted on 05-Sep-07 at 9:00 am | Permalink
Claire wrote:
Akrypti, it’s too strange agreeing with you this much.
This is a great topic! Growing up Catholic, I always got to bow out of the Asian Christian fellowship mafias by shrugging and saying, “I’m Catholic, we don’t do that.” On the other hand, growing up Catholic = a completely different set of fun baggage! In a way I envy Jesse’s friend for coming to terms with the Catholization of the Phiippines. I certainly have not. Probably because unlike her, I don’t know if there is a God (in the sense of The Big Guy Above) to love (and that, everyone, is the sound of my mother’s heart breaking, sorry!). So let’s say I have kids: I am completely torn because of course I’d like to maintain the Filipino cultural identity…but what is that without Catholicism? I have no idea. That right there is the crux of why people should heed your post.
Posted on 05-Sep-07 at 10:01 am | Permalink
Chook wrote:
Alot of what Akrypti writes is true - European and American Imperialism co-opted the religious fervor of their Christian missionaries as a way to pacify, disempower, and divide Asian tribes and peoples from one another. Much inhumanity has been exhibited by the West in the name of Cristianity towards Asia - especially East Asia. However, I do believe that in the teachings and life of Jesus are “truths” and realities that Asians (particularly those living as “outsiders” in the West) can draw upon to find strength and motivation. The most potent weapon used by Christian imperialism was to portray Jesus as a meek and timid individual, and to hold this up as a model of how a “good” Christian should live. Of course the idea was to condition native peoples to be passive and not to resist colonization by other (European) “Christians”. In truth, the Jesus actually portrayed in the four Gospels is an extremely powerful and fearless revolutionary who wasn’t afraid to speak up against hypocrisy and injustice even if it meant his own demise. He championed the rights of the underdog and the outcasts. He upheld the rights of and treated as equals any woman who was in his company at a time when women were considered mere property of their husbands or fathers. He promoted the concept of equality amongst all peoples. In short, throughout his entire ministry he fought against the current, and against all the odds. East Asians face a similar experience to the outcasts of Jesus’ time - in many ways we are the unwanted and cast out minority. We are often swimming against a current of media hostility and misrepresentation that seems to represent the mood of the entire nation. Jesus shows us the ways that we can be strong enough to stand up to any seemingly overwhelming oppression or injustice.
I don’t see any shame or betrayal in drawing inspiration from the life of Jesus. It’s a powerful message of unrelenting will to see the rule of equality and justice in society.
I’m not trying to be a missionary but a good idea is a good idea whether it comes from a white, yellow or black person.
Posted on 05-Sep-07 at 11:16 am | Permalink
Xxxtine wrote:
Maybe it’s because I never went to university and never really participated in youth organizations much in my … youth … but I did go to All-Girl-Catholic-School which was actually situated right beside a convent of nuns. And while it was all there, there was never that pressure to follow Catholicism - particularly also because there were many people that attended that followed different faiths as well. In any case, we also learned about World Religions and were actually encouraged to question the faith - something I think Protestants frown upon - correct me if I’m wrong.
I once dated a guy who came from such a Baptist community that he was “one step away from churning his own butter” - Asian too - but had separated himself because he started to question his belief in God. Then, of course, when he met me, he got really confused because I told him that in my experience, you have to question your faith in order to find strength in it.
Generally when I come across someone like that, I can talk them into mind circles (which is kinda fun). But I like Claire’s answer - “I’m Catholic, we don’t do that sort of thing.” haha
Posted on 05-Sep-07 at 12:16 pm | Permalink
djchuang wrote:
akrypti, thank you for tackling this touchy and challenging topic. You may be surprised here, but I actually agree with most of your commentary about the colonialism of certain missionaries of the past (and present) and how negatively some self-professed Asian American Christians have impacted others. I do think personal religious convictions should be respected and yet I also think that religion can be and should be a topic to be discussed in the open public square in a civil manner.
While religion ties into passionate zeal for some of a religion’s followers, I believe that many are able to live out their religious faith with cordial respect for those of differing faiths. We live in a pluralistic diverse world, and I believe that one can be a follower of Christ and yet be respectful and caring for those who have a different faith, with no strings attached or covert intent to convert. And in that pluralistic world, I think increasing numbers of people are choosing their own religion rather than inheriting a religion from familial or cultural traditions by default. (Though, granted, a majority of people still learn their religious habits from their family of origin, just as they learn money habits too.)
Posted on 05-Sep-07 at 7:17 pm | Permalink
nemogbr wrote:
Thank you Akrypti for this post.
My family are strong Roman Catholics and they even attempted to get me to go to the seminary (priesthood)
The fact that my sister married a Muslim was a major scandal in the family.
Some of the research I’ve done considers the Zen teachings of Jesus and Buddhism in Christianity.
I am spiritual rather than religious and have tended to place myself as “Jedi” when answering religious questions.
Good for your well being and ensure you do not turn it into a crutch.
Posted on 06-Sep-07 at 1:33 am | Permalink
8 Asians » A Comment on Asian Christians: A Friend’s Response wrote:
[...] was talking to a friend about Akrypti’s article “A Comment on Asian Christians earlier this [...]
Posted on 08-Sep-07 at 11:12 pm | Permalink
Mike wrote:
@nemogbr, Hahaha! “Jedi!” That’s awesome!
Posted on 08-Sep-07 at 11:13 pm | Permalink
(Post)Modernity and (Post)Colonialism « Next Gener.Asian Church wrote:
[...] Check out this article on 8Asians.com, “A Comment on Asian Christians”. [...]
Posted on 02-Oct-07 at 8:17 pm | Permalink