Well, we have finally made the cultural jump from Latin America to the other side of the world. After about 43+ hours of traveling, 4 plane flights, 5 countries, and crossing the international date line, we arrived in Bangkok, Thailand!
I’m not sure what is stranger – arriving in quiet, formal Asia, or leaving friendly and familiar Latin America. It’s almost a little surreal; the culture here is so different. People greet you with a slight bow with their hands together in front of their face, but you must remember that you only greet them that way sometimes, and only to certain people, and only with your hands at a certain height (too high is considered odd, too low can be insulting), and yes, you have to think though all that just to say hello! You always take off your shoes, you never touch someones head, you never point, you can’t touch a monk, you never let your heel face someone. As you might guess, it is hard not to make cultural mistakes left and right. We can only hope the Thai people are as full of grace toward us as Jesus. 🙂
I’m not sure what is stranger – arriving in quiet, formal Asia, or leaving friendly and familiar Latin America. It’s almost a little surreal; the culture here is so different. People greet you with a slight bow with their hands together in front of their face, but you must remember that you only greet them that way sometimes, and only to certain people, and only with your hands at a certain height (too high is considered odd, too low can be insulting), and yes, you have to think though all that just to say hello! You always take off your shoes, you never touch someones head, you never point, you can’t touch a monk, you never let your heel face someone. As you might guess, it is hard not to make cultural mistakes left and right. We can only hope the Thai people are as full of grace toward us as Jesus. 🙂
The main thing that I can’t get used to, though, is the prominence of Buddhism. The majority of Thai people claim to be Buddhist, with one source presented to us stating that 94% claim it as their religion. Last month in El Salvador I saw “Jesus” graffiti on walls. This month I see shrines and statues of Buddha.
While in Bangkok, we took a “prayer walk tour” of several of the famous temples in the area. The architecture and elegance of the buildings were stunning, but unfortunately we could not just look at the carvings, statues, and staircases with the same eyes as the other tourists. Filling these beautiful buildings were beautiful people bowing down and worshiping false gods. They literally get down on their knees, they bow down, they offer sacrifices, they ring bells, they present flowers, they burn incense – all to gain the attention and blessing of Buddha. Regal older women, strong young men, little baby boys led by their daddy’s hand – each one doing these ritualistic actions.
It was heartbreaking.
I felt an urge to yell rise up within me, just to let them know that there is a LIVING God that loves them like crazy and just wants a relationship with them! Because I couldn’t yell, I just sat there, talking with Jesus, recognizing how much He loves each and every one of them. That sweet little old lady ringing the bells? She was created to be a daughter of the King. The teenage girl putting flowers on the alter? Her Creator is crazy about her! The tourist in awe of this “cool religion” he is witnessing? God loves Him and wants to introduce him to a relationship that is so much cooler than a religion.
I kept on thinking about the Israelites and how many times they reverted back to worshiping golden images like these. Seeing idolatry in such a blatant form is somewhat shocking, but in some ways, is it any better than what we do in the USA? A friend in a rehab center in El Salvador told me he was thankful his sins had been drug and alcohol abuse because they were obvious and external – people could see them and call them out in him. Hidden sins are the ones that rarely get exposure or help. Isn’t it the
same way with what we worship? In the “Bible belt” we often hide our idols behind the mask of religion or Christianity. Because it is not a little golden Buddha we claim it isn’t there. Things like image, money, security, and food, don’t strike us as idols because we don’t literally put them on a decorated table and bow down to them. However, the real question is, do we do bow down to it in our minds? Do we put other gods before the true God? Do we let things sneak in and steal His spot? When it’s not a tangible little statue we think it’s not obvious, but it certainly is to the One who gets slighted.
same way with what we worship? In the “Bible belt” we often hide our idols behind the mask of religion or Christianity. Because it is not a little golden Buddha we claim it isn’t there. Things like image, money, security, and food, don’t strike us as idols because we don’t literally put them on a decorated table and bow down to them. However, the real question is, do we do bow down to it in our minds? Do we put other gods before the true God? Do we let things sneak in and steal His spot? When it’s not a tangible little statue we think it’s not obvious, but it certainly is to the One who gets slighted.
“You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God…”
– Exodus 20:3-5
– Exodus 20:3-5
