Race, Religion and Culture

[Virtual_Cliff]

There seems to be an implication in this question that the choice of religion is purely an individual option. As such it is framed in the context of the prevailing materialistic / individualistic culture of modern Westernised nations.

This approach can give rise to a purely superficial and ineffectual take on religion. The full power of a religion can only be experienced when it is manifested through the spirit of a community or nation. For example, it is almost impossible to separate the Jewish faith from its people and its culture. We Christians have much to learn from Jews and Muslims in terms of the internalisation of the faith into every aspect of our individual and communal life.

[lunamoth]

Originally Posted by Virtual_Cliff

There seems to be an implication in this question that the choice of religion is purely an individual option. As such it is framed in the context of the prevailing materialistic / individualistic culture of modern Westernised nations.

This approach can give rise to a purely superficial and ineffectual take on religion. The full power of a religion can only be experienced when it is manifested through the spirit of a community or nation. For example, it is almost impossible to separate the Jewish faith from its people and its culture. We Christians have much to learn from Jews and Muslims in terms of the internalisation of the faith into every aspect of our individual and communal life.

VC! So good to see you here.
luna

[queenofsheba]

In my opinion, there was a strong relation between ethnicity, language and religion in the past, but today that relation is much vaguer. Religious borders are often different from ethnical are linguistic borders, because of all kind of historical events.

[YO-ELEVEN-11]

Originally Posted by Virtual_Cliff

There seems to be an implication in this question that the choice of religion is purely an individual option. As such it is framed in the context of the prevailing materialistic / individualistic culture of modern Westernised nations.

This approach can give rise to a purely superficial and ineffectual take on religion. The full power of a religion can only be experienced when it is manifested through the spirit of a community or nation. For example, it is almost impossible to separate the Jewish faith from its people and its culture. We Christians have much to learn from Jews and Muslims in terms of the internalisation of the faith into every aspect of our individual and communal life.

Good point.

[YO-ELEVEN-11]

Originally Posted by queenofsheba

In my opinion, there was a strong relation between ethnicity, language and religion in the past, but today that relation is much vaguer. Religious borders are often different from ethnical are linguistic borders, because of all kind of historical events.

Also a good point.
By the way Nice pic.

[RubySera_Martin]

My problem with responding to this question is that race and culture are thrown together as though race and culture automatically went together. Maybe they do in some cases but definitely not in all cases. I can probably count on one hand the people I encountered of different skin colour (race?) from myself in my first twenty-thirty years of life.

However, I was born into a minority culture. For our tiny geographical area (possibly a ten mile radius) it was the majority status but for the province in general it was a strict minority. I would guess the only reason Ottawa knew about us was because of the stink we kicked up whenever they passed a law that we didn't like on the grounds of religious belief.

I'm white Caucasian, mostly of German descent, lived in North America for close to three centuries, blazed trails in more than one geographical area, and think of this as home. Close to 150 years ago, due to the religious up-heaval in Protestant North America, my ancestors saw fit to set a distinct boundary between themselves and "the world."

Thus, I grew up in horse and buggy culture in Ontario during the latter half of the 20th century. We accomplished what most scholars would say is impossible. A distinct culture living in regular single-family farmsteads or homes in the midst of a very different culture. We would claim that we didn't change all that much but the rest of society definitely did. I have not yet fully exhausted my research on that claim but I have seen enough in my lifetime to know there is some truth to it.

By the time I came onto the scene in the mid-1950s we were a very distinct culture. And we retained it. We did set up our own church-operated school system in the mid-1960s.

However, a sister community still attends public schools and they retain their culture very well. The culture is so strong that the school where many of those children attend puts them into separate classrooms. All of us are pure white, mostly of German descent. We have our own language, but use the same economic and legal system as our next-door neighbours.

The tie that binds all of us together across time and geography is religion. After several centuries of in-breeding there is also family galore. But religion and culture is stronger than family and our communities are scattered throughout the US and Canada. The specific community into which we (us conservative Mennonites) are born definitely determines the form of the religion we are most likely to practice--black car, rubber tire, steel rim, or other. Those are local nics for the various groups based on type of transportation i.e. black cars, rubber-tire buggies, or buggies with steel rim wheels.