Which Way Will They Go??

Could you imagine not having any ideas where to start regarding what you eat in the morning or what you will wear to work? You probably wouldn’t be able to get out the door! For that reason, you have to rely on a certain number of assumptions. We make assumptions every day, and they keep our lives from becoming impossibly confusing.

Likewise, cultures have assumptions. In the United States, which we will cover in two months, the assumption regarding immigrant groups is that they will integrate with the larger American culture, and become part of the same in two or three generations. After all, this is a nation of immigrants. In our short history, this has almost always been the case.

But the peoples of western Europe have had a different set of assumptions. In places like Germany, the Netherlands, England, and France, the assumption in general terms is that peoples from the developing world will come as guest workers, make their money, then return to wherever home may be. They, and perhaps the guest workers themselves, didn’t anticipate that these people would eventually bring their extended families to come live with them and stay for good.

Therefore, as a general rule, these groups, many of which are Muslim or Hindu, were encouraged to live in separate ethnic neighborhoods where they had their own languages, schools, places of worship, markets, etc. They are seen as foreigners, even after the third generation. They are looked down upon, and not given opportunities, even when they speak the local language. The result has been resentment, and we saw the results of that in November of 2005 when there was widespread rioting in France. Resentment continues to smolder, and no one has any acceptable answers.

To some, the answer is to send the “foreigners” home. The problem is that some of them are now citizens, so they can’t be deported. Besides, the Europeans often depend on their labor.

Others say that it’s best to adopt a policy of “multiculturalism.” There should be many cultures and languages, and all are equal. But the problem is, they can’t all be equal! There has to be a dominant trade language, and a set of agreed-upon moral values. In Europe, that means democracy, equality and tolerance. So it comes as a shock to Europeans when Muslim communities force their young daughters to marry men from the old country. Sometimes when she doesn’t comply, they will murder her and call it “honor killing,” with the explanation that allowing her to live would have brought dishonor to her family. Will “multiculturalism” allow for this kind of behavior? Few will argue for that.

Others want the immigrants to assimilate like they do in America. The problem is that both the guest and the host communities must allow assimilation. Often the “guests” don’t want to become part of the secular, hedonistic cultures that they find in Europe. And with all of their talk about equality and tolerance, the Europeans, especially the French, do not accept people from other cultures. Studies have shown that with identical resumes, job applicants with Muslim names are far less likely to be called for a job interview than those with French names. The French government has gone out of its way to secularize public life. For example, Muslim girls are not allowed to wear the traditional headscarf to school.

Secular Western Europe

Europe has endured hundreds of years of wars, many of which have pitted one religious group against another. Their answer to the problem of religious intolerance, which brought on these wars, is to secularize society. Though some countries, notably England, have religious instruction in public schools, most Europeans have opted to secularize all public institutions. Tolerance for liberal ideas-ideas like same-sex marriage and co-habitating couples-are almost unquestioned. In the Netherlands, potential immigrants from Muslim countries must first see a video featuring a topless woman sunbathing and two gay men kissing to discourage them from coming if they can’t tolerate such behavior, according to a March, 2006 article in the “New York Times.” Thus, immigrants, many of whom are from unreached people groups, are coming to nations where the moral values are defined more by secularism than by biblical Christianity. “Across Europe, the number of children born to unmarried couples has risen six-fold over the past 35 years to nearly one in three of all babies, altering the face of the European family beyond recognition-and beyond recall-say demographers and social analysts,” declares an April 17, 2006 article in the “Christian Science Monitor.” The article quoted Dr. Brierly of England’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) as saying, “People these days don’t expect their marriages to last, so they think, ‘Why get married in the first place if weddings are expensive and divorce complicated?’” The purpose of the ONS is to provide information to help British church leaders make “informed” policy decisions. The churches are expected by local customs to keep to themselves and not try to impose their moral beliefs on others.

Outreach!

There is no doubt that the church is weak in secular western Europe. An article by Tom Hundley published in the June 27th, 2006 edition of the “Chicago Tribune” says, “In France and in almost every other European country, Christianity appears to be in a free fall. Although up to 88 percent of the French identify themselves as Roman Catholic, only about five percent go to church on most Sundays; 60 percent say they ‘never’ or ‘practically never’ go.” The rest of western Europe is in a similar state. Last summer, the final text of the European Union’s new constitution made no mention of God.”

This is not to say that there aren’t vibrant Christians in western Europe. Wherever you go around the world, you will find some of the finest missionaries are from Germany, the Netherlands or England. But there are far too few of them to give the unreached people groups in that part of the world a fair chance to hear the gospel. But ironically, Europe is a place where they can legally hear the gospel without government or social interference. The unreached can be reached in western Europe, when they can’t easily be reached in Algeria, Pakistan or Turkey. Though the workers are few, there are some excellent ministries working among Europe’s unreached immigrants. Let’s highlight some of these for prayer.

Operation Mobilization (OM) has been engaged in training and evangelism among European Muslims each summer for the past 20 years through a program called, “Turning Point.” This effort includes door-to-door evangelism, street surveys, video evenings, a coffeehouse ministry, outdoor book tables, and programs for mothers and children.

Perhaps the most strategic ministry in Europe today is done by Christar. Mission history teaches us that people who live among those they are trying to reach and stay for whatever time it takes do the most effective ministry. Christar workers do just this. Providing child care, language lessons or hospitality can go a long way towards making friends and winning people to the love of Jesus.

In many cases, the best ambassador for Christ is a believer from a similar cultural background. The Christian organization, South Asian Concern, takes on this role not only in Europe, but it many other parts of the world as well. Most south Asian people groups in Europe are still unreached, and they are far more likely to interact with south Asians outside their communities when they live in a foreign land. So when south Asian Christians put on an event with speakers, discussions, and good food, south Asian members of all religious and ethnic communities are willing to attend.

Local indigenous European groups are also being reached by their peers, according to an April, 2006 article in “Charisma” Magazine. Northern Scandinavian Sami Christians are showing members of their communities how they can worship Christ within their own cultures. Thus the gospel, and Jesus Himself, become one of their own, instead of appearing foreign.

This month you will be praying for the unreached people groups in western Europe on a daily basis. But for now, let’s pray for those who are reaching out.

  * Pray that they will be filled with the power and fruit of the Holy Spirit.
  * Pray that they will be obedient to the prompting of the Holy Spirit in all that they say and do.
  * Pray that the people to whom they minister will be receptive to the person of Jesus Christ.