Week 6--Barker Chapter 12: Cultural Space and Urban Place

The fact that LA is “the location of the most culturally heterogeneous population ever agglomerated in any city in the world” is an important reality for Christians to grasp as we think of traditional attitudes towards missions. The reason I’m so interested in religious studies in general is because of this reality of religious diversity in LA, where I live and encounter so many radically different worldviews. I think it is important to invest in studying these different cultures, not only as a dry and academic pursuit, but by understanding the artistry of their faith with the aim to understand what moves them, not just what “determines” them or how they are “coded.” I see a particularly missional importance in spending time with people who are different from us and really engage them personally. And if LA is shaping up to be a model postmodern city, let’s not just “experiment” with our interaction with people from different cultures, let’s work out spiritual issues with them by living them out.