The Chase for Face: The Shame of Western Collectivism

Last updated on: August 12, 2015 at 3:46 am By Brad Vaughn

Ever wonder what Western collectivism looks like and why it matters? My recent article attempts to deal with these questions. You can find it over at the Missio blog, which is hosted by The Washington Institute for Faith, Vocation, and Culture. The article is called “The Chase for Face: The Shame of Western Collectivism.” Here are some of the things I address. Socially speaking, what is “collectivism”? Why are honor-shame cultures considered “collectivistic”? What’s the logic? What does Western style... Read more

Do you want "face"?

Last updated on: August 14, 2015 at 6:11 am By Brad Vaughn

Have you ever wondered how honor-shame might influence a gospel presentation? This video gives just a small glimpse into how such a conversation might flow. It is guided by two questions related to “face.” Who are your relationships? (i.e. ascribed honor and shame) What have you done? (i.e. achieved honor and shame) These are the two ways that a person can either get face or lose face. The video is intended to be a training video used to help people... Read more

China's Pragmatic Perspective on Christianity

Last updated on: August 11, 2014 at 8:30 am By Brad Vaughn

Recently, Stratfor.com had an excellent summary of the Chinese government’s perspective of Christianity. The article is titled “China Takes a Pragmatic Approach to Christianity” (Aug 8, 2014). Here is a noteworthy excerpt: For Beijing, religion is not seen solely as a personal moral or spiritual decision. Organized religion is seen as something that can rally support, build connections and potentially create a center of power opposed to, or at least not aligned with, the Communist Party. Yet Beijing also recognizes... Read more

Why Not Begin with Babel?

Last updated on: August 6, 2014 at 8:30 am By Brad Vaughn

Previously, I examined common problems that emerge when we start with the Adam story (Part 1, Part 2). I also suggested another way one could start with Adam and Eve without succumbing to individualism or running into a number of apologetic questions. Today, I offer an example whereby we can start with the group rather than the individual, i.e. the nations rather than Adam as an individual. Read more

Six Places Honor and Shame Hide in the Bible

Last updated on: August 1, 2014 at 9:50 pm By Brad Vaughn

HonorShame.com was gracious enough to allow me to reblog his most recent post. It is extremely helpful in equipping people to identity honor/shame themes in Scripture. Enjoy! And take a few minute to check out and subscribe to honorshame.com. There has to be a sociological term for this, because it is a universal phenomenon. When something new comes onto your radar, you begin seeing it everywhere. This is true not only of tangible things, but ideas as well – if... Read more

Sin is personal because it is social

Last updated on: July 30, 2014 at 8:35 am By Brad Vaughn

When sharing the gospel story and/or talking about sin, I suggest we start with the group, not the individual. In other words, we should discuss sin as a collective-group problem rather than explaining sin primarily as an individual problem. I know some people might get worried at this point, thinking I am doing a theological “slight of hand” whereby I insert liberal theology and alleviate individuals. Not at all. Here are 2 reasons. (more…) Read more

Why does Adam’s fruit fixation send me to hell?

Last updated on: July 26, 2022 at 6:37 am By Brad Vaughn

There are a number of reasons people normally start with Adam when sharing the gospel. But there's a big problem for people who hear this account. Read more

Leadership Lessons from the Party?

Last updated on: August 12, 2015 at 6:50 am By Brad Vaughn

People often overlook a key feature of honor-same societies. Honor-shame cultures are inherently collectivistic in orientation. Have you ever thought about how people lead others in a collectivistic context? Over at Inside Story, you’ll find an excerpt from a recent book by Kerry Brown called The New Emperors: Power and the Princelings in China. What I found interesting is how he describes the way one must demonstrate leadership within a collectivist society like China. The final lines of the excerpt... Read more

Don't Adamize the Gospel

Last updated on: August 12, 2015 at 3:46 am By Brad Vaughn

Where do you start when sharing the gospel? The beginning of a story has disproportionate influence on the effect that story has on the listener. It introduces the context, the main characters, key categories of thinking as well as the conflict, which the story will resolve. I suggest that traditional gospel presentations begin at the wrong place. As a result, we often already lost at the starting line. This post introduces a series that will not only explain the problem... Read more

Does God have a wonderful plan for your life?

Last updated on: December 11, 2015 at 7:03 pm By Brad Vaughn

If we tell someone, “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life,” is that true? (more…) Read more