Project Three Abstract:
The Value of Religion: Surpassing Linguistic and Cultural Differences
Melissa DeFrank
In this essay, I explore the value of religion as a way of connecting diverse cultures. I use personal experience from my trip in Kenya to back up my claim that Christianity inherently has no official language (DeFrank). Canagarajah talks about certain semiotic resources that surpass language, and I extend his point to include religion as well (Canagarajah 7). I believe that having a common God and text connects Christians of all diverse backgrounds. I support the value of diversity in Christianity using a passage from the Bible itself about Tongues of Fire (New International Version). I counter Miranda by saying that the spreading of religions does not have to be violent, but I agree that it sometimes is (Miranda). Therefore, I go on to say missionaries must be careful; one way to be an ethical missionary is to really try and use receptive competence. Canagarajah defines "receptive competence" as being receptive and appreciative of other languages. This is important because language is inherently connected to culture, so by appreciating a language, one shows appreciation for the culture in general (Motha 7). I believe that by doing this, missionaries will try to understand rather than dominate, and missions can benefit people on both sides.
Sources:
Canagarajah, Suresh. Translingual Practice. London: Taylor and Francis Group, 2013. Print.
DeFrank, Melissa. "Jumapili Katika Kericho" Living Multilingualism. Weebly, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
Miranda, Deborah A. Bad Indians. Berkeley: Heyday, 2013. Print.
Motha, Suhanthie. Introduction. Race, Empire, and English Language Teaching: Creating Responsible and Ethical Anti-racist Practice. New York: Teachers College, 2014. 1-19. Print.
New International Version. [Colorado Springs]: Biblica, 2011. BibleGateway.com. Web. 3 Mar. 2011.
In this essay, I explore the value of religion as a way of connecting diverse cultures. I use personal experience from my trip in Kenya to back up my claim that Christianity inherently has no official language (DeFrank). Canagarajah talks about certain semiotic resources that surpass language, and I extend his point to include religion as well (Canagarajah 7). I believe that having a common God and text connects Christians of all diverse backgrounds. I support the value of diversity in Christianity using a passage from the Bible itself about Tongues of Fire (New International Version). I counter Miranda by saying that the spreading of religions does not have to be violent, but I agree that it sometimes is (Miranda). Therefore, I go on to say missionaries must be careful; one way to be an ethical missionary is to really try and use receptive competence. Canagarajah defines "receptive competence" as being receptive and appreciative of other languages. This is important because language is inherently connected to culture, so by appreciating a language, one shows appreciation for the culture in general (Motha 7). I believe that by doing this, missionaries will try to understand rather than dominate, and missions can benefit people on both sides.
Sources:
Canagarajah, Suresh. Translingual Practice. London: Taylor and Francis Group, 2013. Print.
DeFrank, Melissa. "Jumapili Katika Kericho" Living Multilingualism. Weebly, n.d. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
Miranda, Deborah A. Bad Indians. Berkeley: Heyday, 2013. Print.
Motha, Suhanthie. Introduction. Race, Empire, and English Language Teaching: Creating Responsible and Ethical Anti-racist Practice. New York: Teachers College, 2014. 1-19. Print.
New International Version. [Colorado Springs]: Biblica, 2011. BibleGateway.com. Web. 3 Mar. 2011.