How Cultural Blinders Effects Our Everyday Life
No matter who you are or where you grow up, we all have the immediate assumption that our culture is superior to those around us, it is all we know. As an American I am hardwired to pride myself in the control I possess over my environment, ability to embrace change, and adherence to time as the most valuable currency.
When comparing these three most commonly valued western values with counterparts; such as, fate, tradition, and human interaction, we see that where America emphasizes its values are neither right or wrong. The danger is neglecting balance in lieu of comfort.
The book Misreading Scripture with Western Eyes shows a great example of this in its discussion of cultural mores. How the expression of what is right and wrong can be subject to the overarching cultural values that we do not even realize. It is easy as a Westerner to assume that our morality is that of the Bible because of how ingrained it is culturally. While it is true that the western culture has adopted a Judeo-Christian version of morality, we lose sight of how the other cultural values influence our interpretations of christian morality.
Take the accumulation of money for example. In the West we view money as a renewable resource that in inexhaustible. However, any economist will tell you that while money can be printed, and regions can prosper symbiotically, at some level the concept of wealth is static and as one increases in wealth it is traditionally seen as lessening the earning potential of those around us.
In other countries outside of the west, it is seen as greed to accumulate wealth past what is necessary whereas in the America it is encouraged to increase one’s wealth as much as possible.
Why is that?
Well according to Robert Kohls, in America individualism/privacy is our fifth most important value. This is contrasted from group’s welfare which is emphasized much stronger in countries outside of the west.
I believe that the truth is nearly always in the middle, while all of my friends make fun of how my Michigan accent comes out when I say it, I am a sucker for find the balance.
Finding the balance I believe results in retaining the autonomy and desire for greatness that has propelled America in the global world, while practicing grace and empathy for our neighbors. Take an example from the Misreading Scripture book again, where a superintendent of a school refuses to collect his salary the last three years of his career. He posed a biting question,
“How much do we need to keep accumulating?”
