What makes faith so important?

Faith is important because we live based on faith. We also have faith that our bungee cord will keep us from hitting the floor, 100 meters below us. Without faith, we would be paranoid, cenophobic, having the fear of new things or ideas, scared people. Faith gives us a purpose to live and move on in life. It also gives us a sense of what will happen to us, after we die. Death is inevitable and we may fear it because we are unsure of what will happen to us after death. The concept of life after death, though not believed by everyone, is out of our understanding. When I think about life after my death, I feel like a country eighty-year-old grandma trying to conceptualize the internet. It is too abstract for me to imagine.

I think sometimes people find it hard to have faith in a certain religion because nothing is really proven. I, personally find it hard to believe in a spirit that is so powerful that it could make the universe with one word because there are no hard facts in which God is real. I didn’t witness Moses splitting the Red Sea or Jesus’ resurrection; the closest thing to a miracle that I’ve witnessed is seeing a baby through a sonogram in Laos. For me, seeing a fetus in a woman was watching a miracle happen. Something as tiny as two cells were forming new life that would someday, in a few months, come out into the world that we are living in. but even with witnessing such a miracle, I feel like an infant that is around one or two months old. I don’t comprehend object permanence, which is the understanding that objects continue to exist, even when it is no longer in view. The hardest part about faith is believing in something or someone with no proof or reason as to why you believe it.

Having a friendly conversation with a taxi driver, we ended up talking about faith. As a Christian, the taxi driver said that faith should be the most important thing in life. Neither wealth, nor education should matter; one should live on faith. He seemed very content with his life, and surprised me when he said “God has given me this job to be a taxi driver, and I accept it as a gift, asking nothing more of Him.” His conviction seemed so strong and though I appreciated the faith that he had, it also made me dubious if it was really true. However, as I reflected more about my thoughts, I realized that I shouldn’t doubt him. I don’t know this man well enough to judge what he says that comes from his heart. This taxi driver’s faith is important to him, therefore, I should respect it.

The Sawi may have experienced the same doubt I have. This new concept of a God that loves is brought into their culture by a white man yet slowly, the Sawi converted to Christianity. This simply amazes me how they can have such faith even though Don Richardson used the analogy of a Peace Child, which has been part of their culture for centuries. I still struggle with faith, even though I was born into Christianity. I truly respect them and every person who has conviction. Someday, hopefully, I’ll experience that kind of passion for God.

What reflections and connections can you make with this novel?

Many European nations were interested in the land that protruded out into the ocean from Manchuria, referred to as the Hermit Kingdom. Little was known about the people that lived there but that they were barbaric aggressive people. When the ship, General Sherman, with a missionary on board, entered into the mysterious kingdom, the Koreans attacked the ship killing missionary and all the crew members. The king that was ruling Korea at the time feared of foreigners and other gods coming into his nation. Later, the European countries and missionaries were able to step onto the mysterious land and minister to the people.

The Sawi reminded me of Korea when we were also considered as barbarians.

more to come...

How different is your modern culture from the Sawi tenants?

I don’t believe that we are much different from the Sawi. We do pretty much the same things that the Sawi do. Of course we don’t go out into the wild for our food, but we are hunters and gatherers; we hunt and gather our food at grocery stores. Above hunting and gathering, we are treacherous people. Treachery is not revered in our culture like it was in the Sawi’s but we are just as treacherous as they used to be. We fatten with friendship for the kill in our daily lives. For example, though may not be done intentionally, we fatten friends by being nice to them, only to later reject and hurt them. We, as students, often do this to teachers; we suck up and act angelic in front of them. When they leave the classroom, our angelic side disappears.

more to come... :)

Are primitive cultures, like the Sawi, necessary in our present world?

Honestly, I would say that primitive cultures, like the Sawi, aren’t necessary in our world. They don’t have any impact on the world; many of our lives would still remain the same even if we hadn’t learned about the Sawi. This may sound selfish but primitive cultures don’t really offer us anything. Though this is impossible, if America went extinct because of an unknown sickness, the whole world would go into a stage of chaos. Even if a smaller country, like the Philippines, went extinct, the impact wouldn’t be as big, but people would defiantly be devastated. Not many people know about primitive cultures, like the Sawi. The commercial world would agree with me. Like Don Richardson mentioned in his essay, if he hadn’t gone in first, others would have gone in to take the land. Isolation has caused the Sawi to be of no worth to the rest of the world.
As a Christian, I should think otherwise. God has called us to love others and make disciples. The Sawi matters to Him for they are a part of His creation. God cares about every man living on this earth; therefore, we should care. God wants everyone in his creation to be with Him in His heaven but because of sin, it is inevitable that some will experience his wrath in Hell. As believers, God commands us to go out and preach the Good News so that those, who haven’t been informed, may know where they can go after their life on earth. It is a Christian’s duty to spread the Word of God so to them, all cultures, whether primitive or not, should matter.
My beliefs are in a God who created the universe but my faith still hasn’t been grounded. I am still learning more about my God, trying to understand his ways. But there will never be a point in my life when my faith has reached its max because in Christianity, I believe there is only growing. That is why my thoughts sway between the worldly and the Christian point of view.

How would uncivilized cultures react upon receiving technology beyond their comprehension?

I’m not sure if everyone in a single culture would be able to receive technology. First of all, this question states “receiving technology beyond their comprehension.” Beyond their comprehension already confirms that not all people will be able to grasp that kind of knowledge.
Psychosocially, older people have a harder time comprehending new, abstract ideas. The reason for this is because as people grow older our fluid intelligence, the ability to think and solve abstract problems, declines. This doesn’t mean our brain turn into vegetables as we grow old because our crystallized Intelligence, the knowledge gained from experience, is still in tact. With this knowledge, I assume that the elderly in the uncivilized culture will have a harder time comprehending new technology. We see this happening even in our own “civilized” society. If someone said “My grandma has a cell phone and occasionally texts me,” most people would respond, “Wow! Your grandma is awesome!” This shows our prejudice against old people.
With everything said above, I’m still uncertain of the answer to the question. Looking at Korea’s past, we’ve overcome from being at the bottom of the economic class to the top within about sixty years. Even in the late 1800’s to early 1900’s Korea may have been considered as an “uncivilized” culture. However, I would consider Korea’s state to have worsened during World War II. Coming out of annexation, Korea was socially worn out and seemed like we wouldn’t be able to stand back up even if a century went by. Surprisingly, Korea responded conversely and has become a powerful country. Different cultures have their own way of receiving technology; therefore, answering this question is quite difficult.

What does God expect us to do for other cultures and faiths?

As Christians, we are to be emulators of Christ. Jesus had been sent down from heaven to not only die on the cross for the fallen people, but also to be an example to the believers. If he had been sent down for that reason, isn’t it our obligation to follow in his foot steps? Jesus’ commanded his disciples in the Great Commission “19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20) Relating this to other cultures and faiths, God expects us to be a witness to them. There is nothing more important to Him than saving the lost people.
“4Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Does he not leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.' 7I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” (Luke 15:4-7) We are all morally depraved and deserve to perish in hell but Jesus’ death on the cross allows us a different rout; therefore, we must share the good news to those who may not have access to this knowledge, or to those who have different beliefs.

Before doing anything mentioned above, we must love the people. Loving is crucial when doing missionary work for without it, we are hypocrites. If we profess about the love of God and do not love, we may be just as good as the Pharisees. The Pharisees did not love the people; therefore, they did they have any interest in saving them. The Pharisees wanted the acknowledgment and the pedestal to stand on. My point is, although our attitude may not be the same as the Pharisees, without love, we shouldn’t be out there teaching the Word of God.

How does Faith relate to the world in which we live?

Faith is one’s personal trust or belief in something with or with no proof of its existance, and takes action accordingly. Everyone has faith in something whether it is tangible or metaphysical. The connotation around “faith” is “oooo… religion,” but people don’t realize that faith does not always mean religion; we inquire faith in our everyday lives. A hackneyed example of faith is sitting in a chair; you don’t know that the chair will hold your weight but you sit in it anyways, by faith.

Faith is something I personally struggle with. I have a problem with doubting everything. I doubt in myself, others, and eventually God too. My mind becomes disturbed when I read the verse, Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” What if I THINK I have faith but truly I don’t? If God is omniscient and our life story was written by him before we were even born, then where do we have free will? Our faith is what takes us to heaven and if our destiny has already been decided by God, what are we supposed to do? What is our point in life? These questions puzzle me. If you have any thoughts or answers to my questions, please comment because I want to see life from someone else’s perspective.

I admire those who have strong faith in God. Religion wise, there is a difference between those whose faith is real and those whose are fake. Though I have no right to judge others, for when I judge people, I judge based on perfection, which I am not, I am bothered by those who try too hard to be ostentatious about their “faith.” Usually, they are the people who are very emotional and “HALLELUIAH!” at Church or Bible camp but when they leave the building, their life is not the reflection of a true believer.

My thoughts may be scattered or even confusing in this post so I apologize. Faith is a hard topic for me and with too many questions I have about faith relating to life, I had a hard time gathering my thoughts.