In this age of space exploration, we are all familiar with the picture of a space rocket blasting into space. While we focus on the rocket, the launch pad is essential and without it there would be no journey. Similarly, when we talk to people about Jesus, we can be so focused on “The Journey” or “The Destination” that we don’t adequately consider the launch pad. Do we focus on the content of our message, or the response we are looking for, but neglect an effective place to start?
Often our “Gospel presentation” starts with the launch pad that we are familiar with or was used to help us think about the Gospel. However, the person we are talking to is starting from a completely different place than we did. So, they need to be “launched” with concepts or thought patterns different from ours. We need to identify a cultural launch pad that will help the listener start their journey.
Very briefly I will introduce two examples. Each one needs fleshing out and further research but they offer something for us to consider.
A Pashtun Launch Pad
The Pashtun People come from an area straddling the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan; many Pashtuns have come to live in our communities in the UK. They have their own culture and values expressed in a code of conduct called the Pashtunwali.[1] Although some of the ways this code works out in practice can result in blood feuds and the oppression of women, there are ideas within it which could form a cultural launch pad.
Two core principles are Melmastia (Hospitality) and Nanawatai (Asylum). Pashtuns are expected to show absolute hospitality to guests, even strangers or enemies. This hospitality includes the unreserved provision of food, protection and refuge to anyone irrespective of their background and must be upheld even at personal risk.
These two principles reflect God’s offer of protection and refuge which he holds out to all irrespective of background and even towards his enemies. God’s provision of refuge is at immense personal cost and is eternally sure.
Another principle is Badal (Justice & Revenge). While it is often expressed as revenge, its deeper aim is restoring honour and harmony. At the heart it is not about aggression and is open to restoration through mediation.
God is seeking justice and restoration. Those who have wronged him deserve justice, but through the mediation of Christ honour and harmony can be restored.
There are different strands of the Pashtunwali. Reflections of God’s salvation plan can be found amongst them and could be used to start a Pashtun on a journey to encounter God through Christ.
An Iranian Launch Pad
Iranian culture has a rich and ancient heritage of poetry and poetic imagery.[2] Persian people will be familiar with the Shāh-nāmeh (“Book of Kings”) by Ferdowsī, and the poems of Hafez and Saadi. Often these poets used pictures of nature and love to allude to religious experiences and the desire to find God. Their writings may provide a natural cultural launch pad for spiritual conversation.
An example can be seen in the writings of an Iranian poet Badi al-Din from Tabriz who wrote in the 14th century. One of his poems is called The Love Story of The Rose and The Nightingale. This poem is a story of love and separation where the lovers are kept apart by imprisonment or wrong relationships.
Can we see here an image of the separation of God and his “beloved” caused by evil and sinful desires? Throughout the poem there is an intense yearning for intimacy that remains elusive, mirroring the human desire to know and encounter God. At one point, before their separation, they exchange gifts. While they are apart, these gifts help them to remember their intimacy.
Images such as these may be used to introduce the plight of people separate from God and God’s desire to be reunited into intimate relationship with his creation. Using familiar themes in this way may help an Iranian seeker to reach out to God and start a journey to discover his love.
Conclusion
These two examples of the Pashtunwali and Iranian mystic poetry, though very different, are cultural launch pads which may help someone discover God’s love and mercy from within their own cultural framework. Though they have their limitations, there are ideas in them which can be ‘redeemed’ and offer familiar language for sharing the message of Christ.