Transcript THE CONTEXTUALIZATION of MUSIC

THE
CONTEXTUALIZATION of
“WORSHIP” in ECUADOR
PART 1
INTRODUCTION
IMPORTANCE
A church that is not relevant to its context will
be ineffective in its ministry.
Worship that is not contextualized will be
meaningless to the people of that context.
Every culture has a distinct way of expressing
its faith in worship.
(The exception is when people adapt to a
foreign context and leave behind their original
identity.)
Divine Revelation
God´s manifestations have always been within
a specific context.
God has always accommodated himself to a
specific context in order to communicate with
humans.
We must follow his example.
The History of Missions
Missions in the 1800s and the 1900s was part
of Western colonization.
Western culture was considered “Christian.”
Other cultures were considered pagan.
New converts had to become “Western” in
order to be “Christian.”
Ecuador has been no exception.
Ecuador
The gospel came to Ecuador through foreign
missionaries.
The resulting evangelical church is a foreign
implant.
And has not yet been contextualized.
This is especially true in the “pueblos.”
We need to create an
“indigenous” church
in the “pueblos” of the
Andes of Ecuador
So that Christianity will be seen by the
nationals as relevant to them
This study focuses on the contextualization of
the music-worship-ritual, which is the principal
expression of religious belief in the “pueblos.”
PART 2
THEORETICAL
FRAMEWORK
Mission Mentality
In the past 40 years, mission terminology (and
strategy) has been changing:
From “Indigenization”
To “Contextualization”
And recently to “Appropriate Christianity.”
The Theory of
“Contextualization”
Models of Contextualization
The process of contextualization
I propose that understanding
must precede
contextualization.
This comes from Relevance Theory as
developed by Shaw and VanEngen
Unless a missionary understands a people,
the missionary cannot help them contextualize
Christianity. Instead the missionary will
unconsciously impose his or her culture on
them.
I also propose that
“cognitive environment” can
be understood through
“music-worship-ritual”
Music-worship-ritual is not only a means of
communicating, but can also serve as a
channel to understanding.
A missionary can better understand the
spirituality of a people through their musicworship-rituals.
Research Biases
Every research project is based on chosen
biases which determine its conclusions.
“Data” is secondary.
This investigation uses “phenomenology” as its
principal way of knowing.
The study is “subjective” and based on the
researcher´s experience and reflection.
DEFINITIONS
“Music-worship-ritual”
“Pueblo”
“Contextualization”
“Cognitive environment”
“Folk-Catholic”
PART 3
THE INVESTIGATION
Ecuador: the Chillo Valley
Is filled with small towns (“pueblos”), which are
traditionally “folk-Catholic.”
Every town has a evangelical church.
But not one town has been influenced by the
Gospel.
Because the church has not yet contextualized
its “faith-expression.”
The Research Process
Goal: to understand the spirituality of the
“pueblos” through their music-worship-ritual.
This investigation took place over a three year
period. Each year was a different phase of the
research.
2006 - The initial general investigation
2007 - Case study in El-Tingo
2008 – “On-site” reflection
Methodology 2006
Participant observation in various festivals in
various towns.
Workshops in five evangelical churches.
Results 2006
Evangelical music-worship-ritual and folk
music-worship-ritual are TOTALLY different!
(No contextualization has taken place.)
Neither evangelicals nor folk-Catholics can
clearly verbalize the meaning of their ritual.
Evangelicals see the folk-rituals as “pagan.”
Methodology 2007
Focus on the Corpus Christi festival in El-Tingo.
Historical research of the town.
Workshop with town leaders lead by the local
priest.
Results 2007
Town folk are more concerned about “how” to
celebrate the Corpus Christi festival than
about “why” they celebrate it.
Decisions are made when everyone is
present.
The history of the town is very important to the
people, but is disappearing with the older
generation.
Methodology 2008
Participant observation in the Corpus Christi
Festival in El-Tingo, focus on the “pingullero.”
Personal reflection and interaction with the
literature.
Results 2008
The “pingullero” is not the leader.
They won´t celebrate unless everyone
participates.
The town folk mentality is concrete,
communal, and identity-based.
My mentality (as a Western missionary) is
abstract, individualistic, and propositionbased.
PART 4
CONCLUSIONS
Implications for “El-Tingo”
Worship needs to be a community activity, not
an indoor concert.
The music-worship-ritual must reflect Jesus as
the patron of the town.
The Evangelical Church must become part of
the town.
The oral history of the town needs to be
recorded and published.
Implications for the
Andes of Ecuador
The Evangelical Church needs to recognize its
foreign roots and “redeem” its national culture
in order to create appropriate music-worshiprituals.
The rural, Evangelical Church needs to
develop a theology that is concrete, communal
and identity based.
Implications for Missionaries
This process could be used by missionaries in
a cross-cultural context in order to
contextualize music-worship-ritual:
1. Participate in the music-worship-ritual of the
people;
2. Dialogue with them about it;
3. Reflect on one´s own music-worship-ritual
in order to minimize one´s bias;
4. Work together to create an appropriate
music-worship-ritual.
Problems:
Who does the contextualization?
The missionary or the town folk?
Before or after their conversion?
Difference in older and younger generations.
Constant changes in identity and culture.
Past influence of foreign missionaries in
Ecuador.
How does one define: who are the “town folk?”
Appendix
Further confirmation:
Year 2009
The Local Town Council: decisions are made
as a group.
Planning the patron festival of 2009: they
never question its meaning or significance. It
just HAS to be celebrated.
The Association for Community Development:
seen as dividing the town; needs to be part of
the town, not a private organization.