The melting pot..

I was just thinking today about the multicultural experiences which are so much a part of my life these days. Somebody mentioned on Saturday that he couldn't understand how I could have multicultural contacts in such a monocultural society as Scotland. However, I've found Scotland not to be nearly as simple as some may think. I suppose it would still be easy for someone living here in Kirkintilloch to avoid any non-European contacts as it is indeed true that most of the local population is purely British.

However, there are rich pockets of varying cultures across this country, especially in the cities, and even amongst the Scottish people there really are vast differences. I was reminded of this yesterday. We had a Ugandan friend speak to us in the evening and a missionary in the morning who spoke to us about his work in Rwanda. We also had visitors from Australia, a lovely family with two teenage daughters, one of whom wore a hat in church that looked like an upside down flower pot. It looked right on her because she was Australian and Australian girls wear such things, but I couldn't help but to think how ironic it was that if a Scottish girl wore the same hat people would think it really WAS a flower pot and begin to pray for her sanity.

But anyhow, I digress. I also have spent time lately with friends from Pakistan, Iran, Tanzania, America, and various other faraway lands who all live here within 15 miles of me. I know a man in the town of Linlithgow who is a Pakistani Muslim, owns and runs an Indian restaurant, and was born and raised in Nairobi, Kenya. If one looks, there is a rich tapestry of culture surrounding us in Scotland which can serve to enrich us all as we learn from one another and share our perspectives and experiences together. However, another thing that has really impressed me is the rich variety even within Scottish culture itself. In some areas of the north, you still have people who speak Gaellic, as well as remnants of other local languages such as the Doric language in Aberdeen. There is such a vast difference in the accents and dialects of Glasgow and Edinburgh that people from Edinburgh often fail even to understand the ones from Glasgow, even though they are only separated by 42 miles.

In Glasgow itself, there are many who are embroiled in the continuing rivalry between Catholics and Protestants, and they often identify themselves by the football team they support. Then there are the others who refuse to participate in that battle but in doing so forge for themselves yet another distinct culture. There are the wealthier areas, of course, and there are also ghettos such as Easterhouse that most locals avoid for fear that if they go in they might not get out. There are Christians, Muslims, agnostics, witches, Hare Krishnas and people of all kinds of religious beliefs and practices. There are communities forged by asylum seekers which are primarily middle eastern, and there are communities which are characterized by pubs and thick Glasgwegian accents.

Even in smaller towns such as the one in which I live there are many cultures. For example, on Wednesday, I'm planning to meet with a man who until very recently has been a major heroine dealer and whose name still strikes fear in the hearts of the crime world. His is, perhaps, an extreme example which reminds us that every culture has an underbelly that many try to ignore, but it also serves as a reminder that even in places of shared language and environment, there are many different lifestyles and personal backgrounds. One of our challenges here in the work of the church is to recognize that not everybody shares our cultural values or ways of thinking and to find ways to reach across the cultural divides that may separate us even from our next door neighbors so that we can reach them and love them with God's love.

This is the challenge that we are embracing here at Riverside in Kirkintilloch as we seek to move out into the community in the months to come. On Saturday, I'll be presenting a plan to the people of the church for reaching out to the community in a way that will hopefully have the effect of impacting the area with Christ's love. The goal is not to force our own culture upon the community but to build a bridge into the cultures in which the people live so that they might experience God's love for them in a tangible way. These are exciting times at Riverside!

A lot of great things have been happening in people's lives as they seem to be getting more and more hungry for God's presence in their lives and excited about their part in a shared mission in the community. I look forward to seeing what kind of adventure lies ahead as we move forward here together!