Saturday, December 6, 2008

Sixth entry

5. What should society do for “uncivilized cultures” like the Sawi?

What is the true definition of “uncivilized cultures?” Can it be defined within the boundaries of common sense? What is moral or defected? The truth is that EVERYTHING must come into question, in the process of determining the genuine definition of “uncivilized cultures.”One of the benefits of being a Christian is that you have the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will guide you so that you would have the ability to determine right from wrong. The fact is that humans cannot decide if a culture is truly pure. Sure, universal truth and common sense of a “civilized culture” would help determining…but the question is, “is YOUR culture the only right way to define a way of living?” Even if you did know what is truly “right”, would you have the “right” to teach the other cultures how to live? Surely, to the Sawi their culture is their faith and their world. This fact is not an excuse for the treacherous culture to be accepted, but it is a fact that needs to be taken into consideration. What right do we have to change any culture, what right do we not have? Here is a Controversial question to the questions listed above, “Should any culture stop striving themselves in becoming something more right or Godly?” What I see as a constant struggle is that the word “culture” gives definition of everything. Some would say, “Cannibalism and head hunting should be left alone because it is a big part of the Sawi culture. But some might argue back, “Should culture stand between moral judgments?”Justice without Condemnation. What is the boundary between the two? DO we ever find out whether something should be transformed to what extent? It all comes back to the prompt above: What should society do for “uncivilized cultures like the Sawi?” For Christians, and as for me, I could give a simple answer and say “well, pray to God and do what he tells you to do.” But as for the world? But as for the world.

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