I am writing this post in response to the recent Hooha where our fellow Christian group Campus Crusade for Christ posted Gen12 poster about Thailand.
Before I continue my post, i need to first state that I am not trying to be judgmental or so. Instead I will take an emphatic approach, though I do admit that my lens are biased since it's mostly based on Christianity's approach. But I will try to be as fair as possible to the other faiths.
I think I will speak up for Campus Crusade for Christ as I think the organisation has always been very evangelistic and enthusiastic in the sharing of the gospel to people in campus. From my observation, they usually take the 'Street Evangelism' style to share the gospel. In my opinion, it is indeed good to share the gospel because the gospel is literally 'Good News' in Greek. And as Christian, we personally discover that our Lord Jesus Christ has given us the gift of life and hence we desire that the whole world knows Him as the Messiah. I think that the reason why CCC is so compelled to send people on Mission Trips was because they felt a burden to tell the Good News to the people of other faiths. And usually the sole reason for sharing the Gospel was because of the fear that the people who do not know Christ will go to Hell.
So in summary, the GEN12 poster was put up with the intention of inviting people to go on a Mission Trip to share the Gospel to people.
However I think what really offended people was the insensitive comments of stating that ''Thailand is a place of little joy'. Thankfully, they have issued an apology and I personally think that all of us, Christian or Non-Christian should be forgiving people because everyone makes mistakes and we all deserve a chance to repent. However, I fear that this would leave a snare on Christianity. It's like the real Crusades who went around killing people in the Name of Jesus and living behind debris. Even though almost a millennium have passed, the scars and the consequences still remains. That's why i believe that as Christians, it is very important to study Church History and note that such events have already build up so much hostility. So when we desire to share the gospel, we must certainly do so with wisdom and sensitivity.
Actually in my opinion, it is not easy to just simply go on a Mission Trip just to share the gospel. When i went to Country A, I went to a place where there were many Muslims and Tibetan Buddhists and I once heard that religion is their culture and it is very intertwined with their lives. Displacing the religion is akin to asking them to commit suicide. One thing that made me really ashamed was how the Muslims there were so devoted people, having to bow their heads in submissions on Friday. They really worship in awe. On the other hand, I sometimes take my Lord God for granted. I also went to the Tibetan Buddhist temple and I was further ashamed about how the old frail lady prostates herself and slides her hands til she lies flat on the ground in front of the Buddha Statue and then repeats it again and again, despite the bad weather and her risk of falling ill. It really pained me that day. I really want to share the Good News of God but on the other hand, I don't want to be insensitive.
The best biblical character to look to best represent evangelism and Mission is none other than Jesus. Jesus gave up His equality with God to be a suffering servant on earth. As He was doing His 3 years ministry as a Human on earth, he did many great things like healing the sick. However one thing that he did not do was to force people into believing in Him i.e He did not send lightning or fire to scare people. What really impressed me was how Jesus invested His precious time being with people. He was compassionate to the oppressed and outcast of society. He touched a leper despite being at risk of being sick, he associated with the Samaritan woman who had many failed relationships, He wept when His friend died of an illness and revived him, he associated with widows and prostitutes and treated them with love and respect. He did many more things. From all this, we notice that Jesus build meaningful relationship with people, not simple as a rightful Master, but also as a Friend and a Brother. People believed in Him because they personally witness His acts and the way He treats people. Thus, in summary, evangelism is more than just giving out tracks or verbally sharing the gospel and Missions is more than just going for an overseas trip. They need great amount of investment on building authentic relationships with people and how to fulfill the Great Commission by making disciples of Jesus Christ.
In summary, it's not easy for a Christian to be in a multi religious world because of the complexity of this world. Thus one must make efforts to build understanding between different faiths. I suggest that since Christians loved to invite people to go to their church, why not request to be invited into a temple or a mosque and have them to share their faith to you? If it's inconvenient, I think there should be a Religious Awareness Week to be held for each faith where people will be informed through brochures or posters about what each faith is about. Even having a peaceful interfaith dialogue would be be a good form of interaction. Anyway it is my desire to also learn to be a more understanding person who try to learn about other faiths and not be insensitive or forceful. All in all, we know that Jesus is a Prince of Peace and He has come to reconcile with the World. Let us not create hostility with people but learnt to be sensitive and wise in our thought, words and action. Let us also learnt to strive to be authentic in our lives and admit that we are imperfect people who are capable of doing wrong. And ultimately let the people we build relationship with, be it family or friends, personally discover the Goodness of Lord Jesus Christ by God's Grace in His timing and that we Christians will continue to be salt and light in the World.
