Convergence

I realize that all of my posts recently have been about ministry. One of these days I'll get around to writing something about the college football season, a movie I watched, or some book that I'm reading...but today is not that day! I will say that the inspiration for this post did come, ironically enough, from yet another viewing of Band of Brothers.

At the risk of confirming my "history geek" status, let me say that what fascinates me about studying history is seeing the convergence of the various elements to produce an event so significant as earn the right to be recorded as "history". Me doing the dishes last night will never be considered "historical"...just not significant enough, no matter what my wife says. Okay, back to my point: (bear with me if you don't like history)

The D-Day Invasion (part of the Band of Brothers story) was this incredible convergence of Need (Hitler was bullying his way through Europe), Opportunity (Allied deception succeeded in misleading the Nazis and lead to significant portions of German forces deployed away from Normandy), and Timing. The original invasion was to be on June 5th, but heavy storms were forcasted for the coast of France and Eisenhower decided to postpone the invasion for at least a day. On June 6th, the weather cleared up just enough, for about a 36 hour window, that the invasion was allowed to proceed. If they miss the window, the Germans would likely have discovered the Allied charade and redeployed troops back to Normandy. If the Allied forces would have tried landing in the middle of the storms, it could have spelled potential disaster for the troops. There's much more to it, but you get the idea. If the weather hadn't cleared, who knows what would have happened. Maybe all of Europe would be speaking German now and the movie that I just watched would be called "Band der Brüder" instead of Band of Brothers. Weather was a pretty key factor. The idea, though, is that timing is key...not the weather. Otherwise, I say we go with Hillary's suggestion and kick Donald Rumsfeld out as Secretary of Defense and replace him with Al Roker.

Finally, here's my point. I've felt, for several years now, the convergence of those 3 things in the context of Asian American student ministry. I've known in my heart, through my own and through stories of others' experiences, that this is true. But sometimes the heart wonders if it's seeing what it wants to see, not what really is. Maybe I'm not alone. Well, here are a couple of reports to consider:


NEED: This is what The Barna Group had to say in 2004...

"The group that was the least likely to be active in Christian-oriented behaviors was Asians, who generated the lowest scores for all eight religious activities measured. Asians were the least involved in attending church, reading the Bible, praying to God, attending Sunday school, participating in a small group for religious purposes, watching Christian television and who gave the least average amount of money to churches. They were also the group most likely to be unchurched...Asians were not only the least likely to believe any of the traditional Christian perspectives tested but they were also the most likely to be either atheist/agnostic (20%) or aligned with a non-Christian faith group (at 45%, more than four times the national norm)."

Part of me is shocked by this (the part that recalls growing up in a Chinese Christian bubble) but another part of me is completely unsurprised. Where is the hope for this culture and this community?


OPPORTUNITY: Christianity Today's April 2006 issue featured an article about the growing number of Asian Americans populating Christian ministries on campuses all across the country. The author cites UC Berkeley as an example:

"Tonight, three of the largest Christian fellowships at the University of California, Berkeley, have arrived at First Presbyterian for a joint meeting. Hundreds of students, dressed in running shoes, jeans, and sweatshirts, spill into the sanctuary. A band warms up while students slap hands and hug. InterVarsity Christian Fellowship has invited Campus Crusade for Christ and Asian American Christian Fellowship to hear a special speaker.

Excitement like this would characterize a large Christian gathering at Berkeley during any era. One fact, however, would certainly startle earlier generations. About 98 percent of this gathering is Asian American.

At Berkeley, California's premier public university, "evangelical Christian" and "Asian American" are almost interchangeable descriptions. Three trends come together. One is California's demographics: It is 11 percent Asian compared to 4 percent for the nation as a whole. Two is academic prestige: As the oldest and most selective campus of the University of California, Berkeley has an undergraduate population that is 42 percent Asian. (As a general rule, the more selective the school, the higher the percentage of Asian students.) Three is a national fact: Asian students are more likely to show Christian commitment than other ethnic groups, including whites."

One article says Asians are "most likely to be unchurched", while another says they are "more likely to show Christian commitment than other ethnic groups". What's up with that? The key word here, of course, is students. While the first statement may accurately reflect the deep spiritual need within the Asian community as a whole, the second points to the surprising, counter-cultural spiritual openness of Asian American students.


TIMING: Asian American college students are more open to spiritual truth than they have ever been or perhaps ever will be again. What the CT article hints at is the tendency for Asians (Asian Christians, in particular) to congregate because it's safe. I believe this is true. The result is often a group that is significant in size but lacking in impact. This needs to change, but will it? After a bad day on campus, I wonder that sometimes. But then, I see what God is doing through our Epic Bay Area Project, what He is doing through our Epic Hawaii Project, through the Epic Movement...what He is doing in some Asian churches and ministries. I see God raising up a generation of Asian Americans that are passionate for His Kingdom, who undersand that the Kingdom suffers violence and it is the violent that take it by force, just like it says in Matthew 11:12! Then the heart knows that what it sees is not only the glory of God being revealed, but the hope for an entire culture and community.