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The text of the day is that of Acts 17. 26<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cFrom one man, he created all peoples to dwell in all the earth. He drew the boundaries of their countries, he fixed the time of the seasons. \u00bb <\/em><\/p>\n <\/span>This text is taken from Paul\u2019s speech in Athens, one of the key moments of Christian mission in the theology of Luke. Christianity passes symbolically from Asia to Europe, from the Semitic and Eastern world to that of Greek thought. About 300 years before Nicaea, we have here the description according to Luke of the first attempt at inculturation of the Christian faith. I propose to start from this text to reflect on the interactions between the Gospel message and the human culture in which it is proclaimed. For this I will also call upon the text of the multiplication of loaves and fishes in the Gospel of Luke (9.10-17). <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n Last October, in Chiang Mai\/Thailand, we experienced days of intense intercultural exchange between the Churches of the World Communion of Reformed Churches WCRC, but also discovered how the inculturation of the Christian faith is expressed in the Asian and Thai context. According to the cultures, the Christian faith takes different colors and accents. Having to do as in the FAP with Churches from very different contexts allows us to appreciate not only the differences, but also the exchanges between the different cultures, as well as the limits of inculturation, the moments when the Church must clearly distance itself from any assimilation and instrumentalization of the biblical message for political or ideological ends, what is called deculturation.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>But let\u2019s look at the context of this verse of the day, namely the stages of the journey that bring Paul of Troas (Troy) to Athens (v.1-7): <\/span><\/p>\n %22Paul and Silas (…) came to Thessalonica, where the Jews had a synagogue; and Paul went in there according to his custom. For three Sabbaths, he discussed with them, (…). Some of them were persuaded, and joined Paul and Silas, as well as a great multitude of God-fearing Greeks, and many women of high quality. But the Jews, jealous, took with them some wicked men of the populace (…). And they brought themselves to the house of Jason, and sought for Paul and Silas, to bring them unto the people. Not finding them, they dragged Jason and some brothers before the magistrates of the city, shouting: These people, (…) Jason received them. They all act against the edicts of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus….<\/em><\/p>\n <\/span>The strong reaction of the supporters of the Synagogue forces Paul to change his strategy: accustomed to going from city to city as he did in his first trip to Asia Minor, he decides here to skip the steps and gain speed for his opponents by taking the boat to go faster and directly to Athens. It is while waiting for his friends to join him that the main stage takes place (verse 16- 34)<\/span><\/p>\n %22As Paul waited for them in Athens, he felt his mind within him become irritated at the sight of this city full of idols. He therefore talked in the synagogue with the Jews and the men fearing God, and in the public square (…). Some Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to speak with him (…), hearing him proclaiming Jesus and the resurrection, saying: It seems that he is proclaiming foreign deities. Then they took him, and led him to the Areopagus, saying: Could we know what this new doctrine is that you are teaching? Because you make us hear strange things (…). Now, all the Athenians and foreigners living in Athens spent their time only saying or listening to news. Paul, standing in the middle of the Areopagus, said: Men of Athens, I find you extremely religious in all respects. Because, while traveling through your city (…), I even discovered an altar with this inscription: : To an unknown god! What you reveal without knowing it is what I announce to you. The God who made the world and all that is in it, being the Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, he who gives life to everyone, the breathing, and all things. From one man, he created all peoples so that they would dwell in all the earth. He traced the limits of their countries, he set the time of the seasons (…). In reality, he is not far from each one of us, because in him we have life, movement, and being. This is what some of your poets also said: Of him we are the race… So then, being the offspring of God, we must not believe that the divinity is like gold, or silver, or stone, carved by the art and industry of man. God (…) has set a day when he will judge the world according to justice, by the man whom he has appointed, of which he has given all a certain proof by raising him from the dead. When they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked, and others said: We will hear you on this another time. So Paul withdrew from among them. Some nevertheless attached themselves to him and believed, Denys the areopagite, a woman named Damaris, and others with them.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/span>The intra-cultural dialogue with the synagogue is not really a success, because Paul runs away. And the first attempt at dialogue with Greek philosophy is not a success either, but not a failure: %22we will talk about this another day.%22 Luke\u2019s statement is clear: Paul reaches the cultural and intellectual center of the Empire, Athens. Then he will reach Jerusalem, then Rome in the following chapters. The whole Empire is reached by the Gospel. The attempt at reconciliation with the cultural, but also social main stream is successful, for example when we are told that ‘quality women’ are being converted, that is to say rich women. Indeed, the extension of Christianity owes quite a lot to wealthy businesswomen, even if it is surprising that Luke places this kind of remarks so early, and twice in a row, at a time when the mission is first directed towards the synagogues. But the message is clear: The Church is now an actor of the main social, cultural and intellectual stream.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>However, unlike the bishops gathered at Nicaea, Luke is not enthusiastic about Greek concepts to explain the Christian faith. There is resistance. Just as with the birthplace of Christianity, Judaism. What the adherents of the Synagogue retain and which shocks them is specified in verse 7: %22They all act against the edicts of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.%22 Lack of loyalty towards the political authorities is invoked as a reason for exclusion and conviction.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>Deculturation and inculturation: there remains an irreducible divergence with the ambient culture: there is another king! This message, already a source of tension with the Synagogue in Jerusalem, takes on an even more provocative, even dangerous aspect in a context entirely subject to Rome like Athens. <\/span><\/p>\n Deculturation consists in the assertion that this King, this Messiah, was not only crucified (which is unthinkable for a Jew) but also recognized by God through his resurrection as the king above all secular power. A crucified God! %22we will hear you on this another day!%22. The problem is not that Paul preaches a new god. There were so many, and the intellectuals were always fond of a new idol, especially if it came from the East. The problem is that this faith claims there is another king than the emperor. It\u2019s not politically correct at all, and dangerous. From the start, the Christian faith distances itself from power when it demands blind obedience and unfailing adoration. This discourse was not necessarily foreign to the Jewish thought of the time, particularly among the Pharisees (from whom Paul comes) or the zealots. The Jews, among whom the first Christians were assimilated as an additional sect, enjoyed an exception on this point from the Empire, because they waited for the Messiah and reserved their absolute obedience to this future king. But it remained limited to Judea, and was not tolerable in the rest of the Empire.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>But what was wrong neither for the Jews nor for the Greeks, was to claim firstly that this king was as much for the Jews as for the non-Jews, and secondly that he was a crucified and deceased person. Death on the cross was the absolute antithesis of what religious and philosophers could represent as a divine image. It was highly impure, a shameful death, a torture reserved for bandits, agitators, slaves, those who were not Roman citizens. Messiah – King Jesus does not claim a territory like any self-respecting king, says Paul, but the hearts of the people, and his kingdom is not governed by order and strength, but by love and respect for everyone, justice. It is a kind of anti-culture, alternative culture that is proposed.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span><\/p>\n I take a big leap and return to our theme of intercultural. I have the impression more and more that the situation of the Churches today resembles more and more the situation of the Church of the first centuries, before Constantine, also and in particular on this subject of reverence to the dominant powers, insofar as those we intend to directly control and influence the entirety of our lives by orienting our choices, imposing dependencies, excluding or marginalizing alternative systems, and putting all this not under the control of a modern and transparent State of law, but in private hands accountable and judiciable before shareholders.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>Distrust, even distrust of power is an almost constant in the Churches of the South that one can cross in the networks of the WCRC. It is a subject of intercultural tension with our Churches in Europe. But less and less so, for example, with those in the USA or in Eastern Europe. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>We are at the challenge of transcultural, that is to learn in the way other contexts think, act for our own context. In a postcolonial perspective and not euro-centered, we are driven by convictions such as those expressed by a former Anglican bishop of Jerusalem, Kenneth Cragg:<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>\u201dIn the same way that the Christ of Galilee and Jerusalem in the NT became the Christ of the Mediterranean, of Athens and of Rome, it is necessary that the Christ of the West be more clearly the Christ of the world. He can only be known everywhere in his fullness if the whole world in its cultural diversity seizes him and expresses about him what he has learned and loved from Him, freely, with his own thought and choice of form… This movement within the global Christian movement does not only mean a geographical movement, but also a social transformation, in the sense that the vast majority of committed Christians are today found in very economically disadvantaged regions, at the margin of the globalized world… This movement (from the North to the South) represents the return to a mode of mission that we know from the New Testament, when the Gospel was carried from the margins of the Empire to the center of imperial power by people without status or social honor. Today, the peoples of the margin claim their central role as agents of mission and affirm that mission is transformation.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>Or again this statement by a waldensian theologian from Chile, Pablo Richard: <\/span><\/p>\n \u00ab The Christian Bible has been read and interpreted in the abstract spirit of Greek philosophy, the imperial spirit of Constantine, the conquering and colonizing European spirit, the patriarchal and erudite Western spirit, the individualistic spirit of modern liberalism. <\/span><\/p>\n It is necessary to save the Bible from this captivity in order to make another reading and interpretation possible with the Spirit in which it was written. For this, we need a non-Western reference point. %22 (1995)<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>Our mission at the FAP is to recognize this difficult Christian intercultural dialogue, but also to be open to transculture: to understand something of the Gospel through the cultural interpretation of other Churches, understand something that we had never understood like this and that carries a meaning not only new, but above all fertile for us.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>To illustrate this and conclude, I would like to present to you the reading that a colleague from the Pacific, Jione Havea, made in Chiang Mai of the famous story of the multiplication of the 5 loaves and the 2 fishes in Luke\u2019s version. Jione is an indigenous Methodist pastor from the Tonga Islands, professor at the United Theological College of Charles Stuart University and at the Siaa’atoutai Theological College in Tonga.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>Luke 9:10-17: \u00abWhen the apostles returned, they told Jesus all that they had done. He took them with him and withdrew apart, on the side of a city called Bethsaida. But the people heard of it and followed him. Jesus welcomed them; he spoke to them about the kingdom of God and he healed those who needed it. As the day began to wear off, the twelve approached him and said: %22Send the crowd away, that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and food, for we are here in a deserted place.%22 But Jesus said to them, %22Give them something to eat yourselves.%22 They replied: %22We have no more than five loaves and two fishes, unless we ourselves go buy food for all this people%22. Indeed, there were about 5000 men. Jesus said to his disciples: \u00abHave them sit down in groups of 50.\u00bb That\u2019s what they did, and everyone sat down. Jesus took the five loaves and the two fish, looked up to heaven and blessed them. Then he broke them and gave them to the disciples so that they could distribute them to the crowd. All ate and were satisfied, and they took up twelve baskets full of the pieces that remained.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>I don\u2019t know about you, but personally, it\u2019s one of those texts that I\u2019ve always tried to avoid and I don\u2019t know what to do. As much as for miracles of healing, I could rely on the fact that scientifically spontaneous healings occur, whether by laying hands or psychological shock, as much as for this kind of challenge to physics, I don\u2019t see a way out. And the allegorical or numerological interpretations with these digits of 5 and 12 do not solve the problem.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>Jione Haeva in his Bible study pointed out that in all classical interpretations there is a constant, namely that everything is centered on Jesus and his action (looking to God and blessing). The other actors are presented as a bit lost (the crowd), or overwhelmed (the disciples). But when Jesus takes matters into his own hands, literally, everything is regulated in profusion. A second constant is that disciples are not presented to their advantage. They want to keep their picnic to themselves and leave the crowd to fend for themselves. Once again Luke shows: it is only if the disciples do what Christ tells them that they are up to it. Without that they do not have the necessary resources. Only Jesus has the solution, he is the solution, not the disciples, not the institution.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>Haeva invited us to reflect on our classic Western reaction to this situation: how would you react if at the end of an important company meeting called at short notice, your boss suddenly tells you: \u00abfinally, we will extend by a picnic offered for all: give food to all the staff present\u00bb. It is panic that settles in the head of any normally constituted Western employee. \u00ab Chef, I just have two red bulls and gluten-free cookies! \u00bb.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>Haeva directs his attention to the crowd. Starting from his Pacific Tonga culture, he is not surprised that the crowds gather. At home, when we go to a gathering, whether it\u2019s worship or something else, we don\u2019t leave without having a meal with ourselves, and enough to be able to share with others. This is also the case for migrants. You don\u2019t go elsewhere without having enough to feed yourself until the next step. If the disciples at 12 only have 5 loaves and 2 fishes, Jesus knows that the crowd has something to share. The miracle of Jesus is that he believes in wisdom, local culture. He trusts the crowd of people from all over who want to hear his wisdom. The miracle is not the magical action of his two hands, but the fact that he uses the resources of the people gathered around him. And there are so many that there are many left for other groups. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/span>The reading of this biblical text proposed by Haeva is stimulating and interesting not only because it shows us how inculturation can be practiced, but also for us because it invites us not to forget the strength of the communities we have to do in the work of the FAP. Do not overestimate the five loaves and two fishes that we can offer, but rely on the intelligence, commitment and generosity of the communities that come to us.<\/span><\/p>\n Serge Fornerod – pastor – Pr\u00e9sident of FAP<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n ” global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″]<\/p>\n Le texte du jour est celui d\u2019Actes 17. 26<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00ab\u00a0\u00c0 partir d\u2019un seul homme, il a cr\u00e9\u00e9 tous les peuples pour qu\u2019ils habitent sur toute la terre. Il a trac\u00e9 les limites de leurs pays, il a fix\u00e9 le moment des saisons\u00a0\u00bb. <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Ce texte est extrait du discours de Paul \u00e0 Ath\u00e8nes, un des moments cl\u00e9s de la mission chr\u00e9tienne dans la th\u00e9ologie de Luc. Le christianisme passe symboliquement d\u2019Asie en Europe, du monde s\u00e9mitique et oriental dans celui de la pens\u00e9e grecque. A peu pr\u00e8s 300 ans avant Nic\u00e9e, on a ici la description selon Luc de la premi\u00e8re tentative d\u2019inculturation de la foi chr\u00e9tienne. Je vous propose de partir de ce texte pour r\u00e9fl\u00e9chir aux interactions entre le message de l\u2019\u00c9vangile et la culture humaine dans laquelle il est proclam\u00e9. Je ferai appel pour cela aussi au texte de la multiplication des pains et des poissons dans l\u2019\u00c9vangile de Luc (9.10-17). <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>En octobre dernier, \u00e0 Chiang Mai\/Tha\u00eflande, nous avons v\u00e9cu des jours d\u2019intenses \u00e9changes interculturels entre les \u00c9glises de la Communion Mondiale d\u2019\u00c9glises R\u00e9form\u00e9es CMER, mais aussi d\u00e9couvert comment se d\u00e9cline l\u2019inculturation de la foi chr\u00e9tienne dans le contexte asiatique et tha\u00eflandais. Selon les cultures, la foi chr\u00e9tienne prend des couleurs et des accents diff\u00e9rents. Avoir \u00e0 faire comme \u00e0 la FAP avec des \u00c9glises de contextes tr\u00e8s diff\u00e9rents nous permet d\u2019appr\u00e9cier non seulement les diff\u00e9rences, mais aussi les \u00e9changes entre les diff\u00e9rentes cultures, tout comme les limites de l\u2019inculturation, les moments o\u00f9 l\u2019\u00c9glise doit se distancier clairement de toute assimilation et instrumentalisation du message biblique pour des fins politiques ou id\u00e9ologiques, ce qu\u2019on appelle la d\u00e9culturation. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Mais regardons le contexte de ce verset du jour, soit les \u00e9tapes du voyage qui am\u00e8nent Paul de Troas (Troie) \u00e0 Ath\u00e8nes (v.1-7)\u00a0: <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>\u00ab\u00a0<\/strong>Paul et Silas (\u2026) arriv\u00e8rent \u00e0 Thessalonique, o\u00f9 les Juifs avaient une synagogue. Paul y entra, selon sa coutume. Pendant trois sabbats, il discuta avec eux, (\u2026). Quelques-uns d’entre eux furent persuad\u00e9s, et se joignirent \u00e0 Paul et \u00e0 Silas, ainsi qu’une grande multitude de Grecs craignant Dieu, et beaucoup de femmes de qualit\u00e9. Mais les Juifs, jaloux prirent avec eux quelques m\u00e9chants hommes de la populace (\u2026). Ils se port\u00e8rent \u00e0 la maison de Jason, et ils cherch\u00e8rent Paul et Silas, pour les amener vers le peuple. Ne les ayant pas trouv\u00e9s, ils tra\u00een\u00e8rent Jason et quelques fr\u00e8res devant les magistrats de la ville, en criant : Ces gens, (\u2026) Jason les a re\u00e7us. Ils agissent tous contre les \u00e9dits de C\u00e9sar, disant qu’il y a un autre roi, J\u00e9sus\u2026\u00a0\u00bb.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>La forte r\u00e9action des tenants de la Synagogue force Paul \u00e0 changer sa strat\u00e9gie\u00a0: habitu\u00e9 \u00e0 passer de ville en ville comme il l\u2019a fait dans son premier voyage en Asie mineure, il d\u00e9cide ici de sauter les \u00e9tapes et de prendre ses adversaires de vitesse en prenant le bateau pour aller plus vite et directement \u00e0 Ath\u00e8nes. C\u2019est en attendant que ses amis le rejoignent que se passe la sc\u00e8ne principale (v.16- 34)<\/span><\/p>\n \u00ab\u00a0Comme Paul les attendait \u00e0 Ath\u00e8nes, il sentait au dedans de lui son esprit s’irriter, \u00e0 la vue de cette ville pleine d’idoles. Il s’entretenait donc dans la synagogue avec les Juifs et les hommes craignant Dieu, et sur la place publique (\u2026). Quelques philosophes \u00e9picuriens et sto\u00efciens se mirent \u00e0 parler avec lui (\u2026),<\/span> l’entendant annoncer J\u00e9sus et la r\u00e9surrection, disaient : Il semble qu’il annonce des divinit\u00e9s \u00e9trang\u00e8res. Alors ils le prirent, et le men\u00e8rent \u00e0 l’Ar\u00e9opage, en disant : Pourrions-nous savoir quelle est cette nouvelle doctrine que tu enseignes ? Car tu nous fais entendre des choses \u00e9tranges (\u2026). Or, tous les Ath\u00e9niens et les \u00e9trangers demeurant \u00e0 Ath\u00e8nes ne passaient leur temps qu’\u00e0 dire ou \u00e0 \u00e9couter des nouvelles. Paul, debout au milieu de l’Ar\u00e9opage, dit : Hommes Ath\u00e9niens, je vous trouve \u00e0 tous \u00e9gards extr\u00eamement religieux. Car, en parcourant votre ville (\u2026), j’ai m\u00eame d\u00e9couvert un autel avec cette inscription : \u00c0 un dieu inconnu ! Ce que vous r\u00e9v\u00e9rez sans le conna\u00eetre, c’est ce que je vous annonce. Le Dieu qui a fait le monde et tout ce qui s’y trouve, \u00e9tant le Seigneur du ciel et de la terre, n’habite point dans des temples faits de main d\u2019homme ; il n’est point servi par des mains humaines, comme s’il avait besoin de quoi que ce soit, lui qui donne \u00e0 tous la vie, la respiration, et toutes choses. \u00c0 partir d\u2019un seul homme, il a cr\u00e9\u00e9 tous les peuples pour qu\u2019ils habitent sur toute la terre. Il a trac\u00e9 les limites de leurs pays, il a fix\u00e9 le moment des saisons (\u2026)<\/em>. En r\u00e9alit\u00e9, il n\u2019est pas loin de chacun de nous,<\/em> car en lui nous avons la vie, le mouvement, et l’\u00eatre. C’est ce qu’ont dit aussi quelques-uns de vos po\u00e8tes : De lui nous sommes la race… Ainsi donc, \u00e9tant la race de Dieu, nous ne devons pas croire que la divinit\u00e9 soit semblable \u00e0 de l’or, \u00e0 de l’argent, ou \u00e0 de la pierre, sculpt\u00e9s par l’art et l’industrie de l’homme. Dieu (\u2026) a fix\u00e9 un jour o\u00f9 il jugera le monde selon la justice, par l’homme qu’il a d\u00e9sign\u00e9, ce dont il a donn\u00e9 \u00e0 tous une preuve certaine en le ressuscitant des morts. Lorsqu’ils entendirent parler de r\u00e9surrection des morts, les uns se moqu\u00e8rent, et les autres dirent : Nous t’entendrons l\u00e0-dessus une autre fois. Ainsi Paul se retira du milieu d’eux. Quelques-uns n\u00e9anmoins s’attach\u00e8rent \u00e0 lui et crurent, Denys l’ar\u00e9opagite, une femme nomm\u00e9e Damaris, et d’autres avec eux\u00a0\u00bb.<\/span><\/p>\n Le dialogue intra culturel avec la synagogue n\u2019est pas vraiment un succ\u00e8s, car Paul s\u2019enfuit. Et la premi\u00e8re tentative de dialogue avec la philosophie grecque n\u2019est pas non plus un succ\u00e8s, mais pas un \u00e9chec non plus\u00a0: \u00ab\u00a0nous parlerons de cela un autre jour\u00a0\u00bb. Le propos de Luc est clair\u00a0: Paul atteint le centre culturel et intellectuel de l\u2019Empire, Ath\u00e8nes. Puis viendra J\u00e9rusalem, puis Rome dans les chapitres suivants. Tout l\u2019Empire est atteint par l\u2019\u00c9vangile. La tentative de rapprochement avec le main stream<\/em> culturel, mais aussi social est r\u00e9ussie, par ex. lorsqu\u2019on nous signale que des \u00ab\u00a0femmes de qualit\u00e9\u00a0\u00bb sont converties, c\u2019est-\u00e0-dire des femmes riches. En effet, l\u2019extension du christianisme doit pas mal \u00e0 des femmes d\u2019affaire riches, m\u00eame s\u2019il est \u00e9tonnant que Luc place ce genre de remarques aussi t\u00f4t, et deux fois de suite, \u00e0 un moment o\u00f9 la mission est orient\u00e9e d\u2019abord sur les synagogues. Mais le message est limpide\u00a0: L\u2019\u00c9glise est maintenant une actrice du main stream<\/em> social, culturel et intellectuel. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Toutefois, contrairement aux \u00e9v\u00eaques r\u00e9unis \u00e0 Nic\u00e9e, Luc ne s\u2019enthousiasme pas des concepts grecs pour expliquer la foi chr\u00e9tienne. Il y a de la r\u00e9sistance. Tout comme avec le terreau natal du christianisme, le juda\u00efsme. Ce que retiennent les tenants de la Synagogue et qui les choque est pr\u00e9cis\u00e9 au verset 7\u00a0: \u00ab Ils agissent tous contre les \u00e9dits de C\u00e9sar, disant qu’il y a un autre roi, J\u00e9sus\u00a0\u00bb.<\/em> L\u2019absence de loyaut\u00e9 vis-\u00e0-vis des autorit\u00e9s politiques est invoqu\u00e9e comme motif d\u2019exclusion et de condamnation\u00a0\u00bb. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>D\u00e9culturation et inculturation\u00a0: il reste une divergence irr\u00e9ductible avec la culture ambiante\u00a0: il y a un autre roi\u00a0! Ce message, d\u00e9j\u00e0 cr\u00e9ateur de tension avec la Synagogue \u00e0 J\u00e9rusalem, prend encore plus un aspect provocateur, voire dangereux dans un contexte enti\u00e8rement soumis \u00e0 Rome comme Ath\u00e8nes. <\/span><\/p>\n La d\u00e9culturation consiste dans cette affirmation que ce Roi, ce Messie, a \u00e9t\u00e9 non seulement crucifi\u00e9 (ce qui est impensable pour un juif) mais en plus reconnu par Dieu par sa r\u00e9surrection comme le roi au-dessus de tout pouvoir s\u00e9culier. Un Dieu crucifi\u00e9\u00a0! \u00ab\u00a0nous t\u2019entendrons l\u00e0-dessus un autre jour\u00a0!\u00a0\u00bb. Le probl\u00e8me n\u2019est pas que Paul pr\u00eache un nouveau dieu. Il y en avait tellement, et les intellectuels \u00e9taient toujours friands d\u2019une nouvelle idole, surtout si elle venait de l\u2019Orient. Le probl\u00e8me est que cette foi pr\u00e9tend qu\u2019il y a un autre roi que l\u2019empereur. Ce n\u2019est pas du tout politiquement correct, et dangereux. D\u00e8s le d\u00e9part, la foi chr\u00e9tienne prend ses distances avec le pouvoir lorsqu\u2019il r\u00e9clame une ob\u00e9issance aveugle et une adoration sans faille. Ce discours n\u2019\u00e9tait pas n\u00e9cessairement \u00e9tranger \u00e0 la pens\u00e9e juive de l\u2019\u00e9poque, en particulier chez les pharisiens (dont est issu Paul) ou les z\u00e9lotes. Les Juifs au nombre desquels les premiers chr\u00e9tiens \u00e9taient assimil\u00e9s comme une secte suppl\u00e9mentaire, jouissaient d\u2019une exception sur ce point de la part de l\u2019Empire, car ils attendaient le Messie et r\u00e9servaient leur ob\u00e9issance absolue \u00e0 ce roi futur. Mais cela restait limit\u00e9 \u00e0 la Jud\u00e9e, et n\u2019\u00e9tait pas tol\u00e9rable dans le reste de l\u2019Empire. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Mais ce qui n\u2019allait pas ni pour les juifs ni pour les grecs, c\u2019est de pr\u00e9tendre premi\u00e8rement que ce roi \u00e9tait aussi bien celui des juifs que des non-juifs, et deuxi\u00e8mement que c\u2019\u00e9tait une personne crucifi\u00e9e et d\u00e9c\u00e9d\u00e9e. La mort sur la croix \u00e9tait l\u2019antith\u00e8se absolue de ce que les religieux et philosophes pouvaient se repr\u00e9senter comme image divine. C\u2019\u00e9tait hautement impur, une mort honteuse, un supplice r\u00e9serv\u00e9 aux bandits, agitateurs, aux esclaves, \u00e0 ceux qui n\u2019\u00e9taient pas citoyens romains. Le Messie – Roi J\u00e9sus ne r\u00e9clame pas un territoire comme tout roi qui se respecte, dit Paul, mais le c\u0153ur des gens, et son royaume n\u2019est pas gouvern\u00e9 par l\u2019ordre et la force, mais par l\u2019amour et le respect de tout un chacun, la justice. C\u2019est une sorte d\u2019anti-culture, de culture alternative qui est propos\u00e9e. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Je fais un grand saut et reviens \u00e0 notre th\u00e8me de l\u2019interculturel. J\u2019ai de plus en plus l\u2019impression que la situation des \u00c9glises aujourd\u2019hui ressemble de plus en plus \u00e0 la situation de l\u2019\u00c9glise des premiers si\u00e8cles, avant Constantin, aussi et en particulier sur ce sujet de la r\u00e9v\u00e9rence aux pouvoirs dominants, dans la mesure o\u00f9 ceux-ci entendent contr\u00f4ler et influencer directement l\u2019entier de notre vie en orientant nos choix, en imposant des d\u00e9pendances, en excluant ou marginalisant des syst\u00e8mes alternatifs, et en mettant tout cela non pas sous le contr\u00f4le d\u2019un Etat de droit moderne et transparent, mais en des mains priv\u00e9es redevables et judiciables devant des actionnaires. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>La m\u00e9fiance, voire la d\u00e9fiance face au pouvoir est une quasi constante dans les \u00c9glises du Sud que l\u2019on peut croiser dans les r\u00e9seaux de la CMER. C\u2019est un sujet de tension interculturelle avec nos \u00c9glises en Europe. Mais de moins en moins par ex. avec celles aux USA ou en Europe de l\u2019Est. <\/span><\/p>\n Nous sommes au d\u00e9fi du transculturel, c\u2019est-\u00e0-dire d\u2019apprendre de la mani\u00e8re des autres contextes de r\u00e9fl\u00e9chir, d\u2019agir pour notre propre contexte. Dans une perspective postcoloniale et non euro centr\u00e9e, nous sommes port\u00e9s par des convictions comme celles exprim\u00e9e par un ancien \u00e9v\u00eaque anglican de J\u00e9rusalem Kenneth Cragg: <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>\u201dDe la m\u00eame mani\u00e8re que le Christ de Galil\u00e9e et J\u00e9rusalem dans le NT devint le Christ de la M\u00e9diterran\u00e9e, d\u2019Ath\u00e8nes et de Rome, il faut que le Christ de l\u2019Ouest soit plus clairement le Christ du monde.\u00a0 Il ne peut \u00eatre connu partout dans sa pl\u00e9nitude que si le monde entier dans sa diversit\u00e9 culturelle s\u2019empare de lui et exprime \u00e0 son sujet ce qu\u2019il a appris et aim\u00e9 de Lui, en toute libert\u00e9, avec sa propre pens\u00e9e et son choix de forme\u2026Ce d\u00e9placement \u00e0 l\u2019int\u00e9rieur du mouvement chr\u00e9tien mondial ne signifie pas seulement un mouvement g\u00e9ographique, mais aussi une transformation sociale, dans le sens o\u00f9 la vaste majorit\u00e9 de chr\u00e9tiens engag\u00e9s se trouvent aujourd\u2019hui dans des r\u00e9gions tr\u00e8s d\u00e9favoris\u00e9es \u00e9conomiquement, \u00e0 la marge du monde globalis\u00e9\u2026Ce d\u00e9placement (du Nord au Sud) repr\u00e9sente le retour \u00e0 un mode de mission que nous connaissons du Nouveau Testament, lorsque l\u2019\u00c9vangile a \u00e9t\u00e9 port\u00e9 des marges de l\u2019Empire vers le centre du pouvoir imp\u00e9rial par des gens sans statut ni honneur social. Aujourd\u2019hui, les peuples de la marge r\u00e9clament leur r\u00f4le central comme agents de la mission et affirment que la mission est transformation.\u201d<\/span><\/em> (1968)<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Ou encore cette affirmation d\u2019un th\u00e9ologien vaudois du Chili, Pablo Richard\u00a0: <\/span><\/p>\n \u201cLa Bible chr\u00e9tienne a \u00e9t\u00e9 lue et interpr\u00e9t\u00e9e dans l\u2019esprit abstrait de la philosophie grecque, l\u2019esprit imp\u00e9rial de Constantin, l\u2019esprit conqu\u00e9rant et colonisateur europ\u00e9en, l\u2019esprit occidental patriarcal et \u00e9rudit, l\u2019esprit individualiste du lib\u00e9ralisme moderne. <\/span><\/em><\/p>\n Il est n\u00e9cessaire de sauver la Bible de cette captivit\u00e9 afin de rendre une autre lecture et une autre interpr\u00e9tation possible avec l\u2019Esprit dans lequel elle a \u00e9t\u00e9 \u00e9crite. Pour cela, nous avons besoin d\u2019un point de r\u00e9f\u00e9rence non-occidental.\u00a0\u00bb<\/span><\/em> \u00a0(1995)<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Notre mission \u00e0 la FAP est de reconna\u00eetre ce difficile dialogue interculturel chr\u00e9tien, mais aussi de s\u2019ouvrir au transculturel : comprendre quelque chose de l\u2019\u00c9vangile gr\u00e2ce \u00e0 l\u2019interpr\u00e9tation culturelle d\u2019autres \u00c9glises, comprendre quelque chose que nous n\u2019avions jamais compris comme cela et qui porte un sens non seulement nouveau, mais surtout fertile pour nous. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Pour illustrer cela et conclure, j\u2019aimerai vous pr\u00e9senter la lecture qu\u2019a fait \u00e0 Chiang Mai un coll\u00e8gue du Pacifique, Jione Havea, de la fameuse histoire de la multiplication des 5 pains et des 2 poissons dans la version de Luc. Jione est un pasteur m\u00e9thodiste indig\u00e8ne des \u00eeles Tonga, professeur au United Theological College de la Charles Stuart University et au Sia\u2019atoutai Theological College de Tonga.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Luc 9.10-17 : \u00ab\u00a0A leur retour, les ap\u00f4tres racont\u00e8rent \u00e0 J\u00e9sus tout ce qu’ils avaient fait. Il les prit avec lui et se retira \u00e0 l’\u00e9cart, du c\u00f4t\u00e9 d’une ville appel\u00e9e Bethsa\u00efda. Mais les gens l’apprirent et le suivirent. J\u00e9sus les accueillit ; il leur parlait du royaume de Dieu et il gu\u00e9rissait ceux qui en avaient besoin. Comme le jour commen\u00e7ait \u00e0 baisser, les douze s’approch\u00e8rent et lui dirent : \u00abRenvoie la foule, afin qu’elle aille dans les villages et dans les campagnes des environs pour se loger et pour trouver de quoi manger, car nous sommes ici dans un endroit d\u00e9sert \u00bb. Mais J\u00e9sus leur dit: \u00abDonnez-leur vous-m\u00eames \u00e0 manger!\u00bb Ils r\u00e9pondirent : \u00ab Nous n’avons pas plus de cinq pains et deux poissons, \u00e0 moins d’aller nous-m\u00eames acheter des vivres pour tout ce peuple\u00bb. En effet, il y avait environ 5000 hommes. J\u00e9sus dit \u00e0 ses disciples : \u00abFaites-les asseoir par groupes de 50.\u00bb C’est ce qu’ils firent, et tout le monde s’assit. J\u00e9sus prit les cinq pains et les deux poissons, leva les yeux vers le ciel et les b\u00e9nit. Puis il les rompit et les donna aux disciples afin qu’ils les distribuent \u00e0 la foule. Tous mang\u00e8rent et furent rassasi\u00e9s, et l’on emporta douze paniers pleins des morceaux qui restaient.\u00a0\u00bb<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>Je ne sais pas vous, mais personnellement, c\u2019est un de ces textes que j\u2019ai toujours essay\u00e9 d\u2019\u00e9viter et dont je ne sais que faire. Autant pour des miracles de gu\u00e9rison, je pouvais m\u2019appuyer sur le fait que scientifiquement des gu\u00e9risons spontan\u00e9es arrivent, que ce soit par imposition des mains ou choc psychologique, autant pour ce genre de d\u00e9fi \u00e0 la physique, je ne vois pas de porte de sortie. Et les interpr\u00e9tations all\u00e9goriques ou num\u00e9rologiques avec ces chiffres de 5 et 12 ne r\u00e9solvent pas le probl\u00e8me. <\/span><\/p>\n Jione Haeva dans son \u00e9tude biblique a soulign\u00e9 que dans toutes les interpr\u00e9tations classiques, il y a une constante, \u00e0 savoir que tout est centr\u00e9 sur J\u00e9sus et son action (regarder \u00e0 Dieu et b\u00e9nir). Les autres acteurs sont pr\u00e9sent\u00e9s comme un peu perdus (la foule), ou d\u00e9pass\u00e9s (les disciples). Mais quand J\u00e9sus prend les choses en main, litt\u00e9ralement, tout est r\u00e9gl\u00e9 \u00e0 profusion. Une deuxi\u00e8me constante est que les disciples ne sont pas pr\u00e9sent\u00e9s \u00e0 leur avantage. Ils veulent garder leur piquenique pour eux et laisser la foule se d\u00e9brouiller toute seule. Encore une fois Luc montre: c\u2019est seulement si les disciples font ce que le Christ leur dit qu\u2019ils sont \u00e0 la hauteur. Sans cela ils n\u2019ont pas les ressources n\u00e9cessaires. Seul J\u00e9sus a la solution, il est la solution, pas les disciples, pas l\u2019institution.<\/span><\/p>\n Haeva nous a invit\u00e9 \u00e0 r\u00e9fl\u00e9chir sur notre r\u00e9action occidentale classique devant cette situation\u00a0: comment r\u00e9agiriez- vous si \u00e0 la fin d\u2019une importante r\u00e9union d\u2019entreprise convoqu\u00e9e au pied lev\u00e9, votre chef vous dit tout \u00e0 coup\u00a0: \u00ab\u00a0finalement, on va prolonger par un piquenique offert pour tous: donnez \u00e0 manger \u00e0 tout le personnel pr\u00e9sent\u00a0\u00bb. C\u2019est la panique qui s\u2019installe dans la t\u00eate de tout employ\u00e9 occidental normalement constitu\u00e9. \u00ab\u00a0Chef, j\u2019ai juste deux red bulls<\/em> et des cookies sans gluten\u00a0!\u00a0\u00bb. <\/span><\/p>\n Haeva pointe lui l\u2019attention sur la foule. Partant de sa culture tonga du Pacifique, il ne s\u2019\u00e9tonne pas que les foules se rassemblent. Chez lui, lorsqu\u2019on va \u00e0 un rassemblement, que ce soit le culte ou autre chose, on ne part sans prendre le repas avec soi, et suffisamment pour pouvoir partager avec les autres. C\u2019est aussi le cas pour les migrants. Tu ne pars pas ailleurs sans avoir de quoi te nourrir jusqu\u2019\u00e0 l\u2019\u00e9tape suivante. Si les disciples \u00e0 12 n\u2019ont que 5 pains et 2 poissons, J\u00e9sus lui sait que la foule a de quoi partager. Le miracle de J\u00e9sus, c\u2019est qu\u2019il croit \u00e0 la sagesse, la culture locale. Il fait confiance \u00e0 la foule de gens de tous azimuts qui veulent entendre sa sagesse. Le miracle n\u2019est pas l\u2019action magique de ses deux mains, mais le fait qu\u2019il utilise les ressources des gens rassembl\u00e9s autour de lui. Et il y en a tellement qu\u2019il en reste beaucoup pour d\u2019autres groupes. <\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/span>La lecture de ce texte biblique propos\u00e9e par Haeva est stimulante et int\u00e9ressante non seulement parce qu\u2019elle nous montre comment l\u2019inculturation peut se pratiquer, mais aussi pour nous parce qu\u2019elle nous invite \u00e0 ne pas oublier la force des communaut\u00e9s auxquelles nous avons \u00e0 faire dans le travail de la FAP. Ne pas surestimer les cinq pains et deux poissons que nous pouvons offrir, mais compter sur l\u2019intelligence, l\u2019engagement et la g\u00e9n\u00e9rosit\u00e9 des communaut\u00e9s qui s\u2019adressent \u00e0 nous.<\/span><\/p>\n Serge Fornerod – pasteur – Pr\u00e9sident FAP<\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" M\u00e9ditation , Conseil de la FAP, 9 mars 2026 Le texte du jour est celui d\u2019Actes 17. 26 \u00a0\u00ab\u00a0\u00c0 partir d\u2019un seul homme, il a cr\u00e9\u00e9 tous les peuples pour qu\u2019ils habitent sur toute la terre. Il a trac\u00e9 les limites de leurs pays, il a fix\u00e9 le moment des saisons\u00a0\u00bb. \u00a0Ce texte est extrait […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2989,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2991"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2991"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2991\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3019,"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2991\/revisions\/3019"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fondationfap.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}M\u00e9ditation , Conseil de la FAP, 9 mars 2026<\/span>