A Cultural Kinship

Acts 17:16-34

In him we live and move and exist. As some of your own poets have said, “We are his offspring.” (Acts 17:28)

MATTEO RICCI, a Jesuit missionary to China in the late 1500s and early 1600s, saw a lot of truth in Confucian teaching and suggested that God had used that philosophy throughout the centuries to prepare the Chinese for the gospel. Other missionaries criticized Ricci for syncretism, arguing that he was corrupting the purity of the gospel with foreign teaching. But this case, like many others, leads to an age-old question—to what extent does God work through the wisdom gained by sages living outside of his covenant? We know God gives pure revelation, but many of the most effective and inspired teachers of his Word have found connecting points with secular philosophy, just as Paul and other New Testament figures did with Greek and Roman cultural influences. Somewhere between isolating and accommodating these teachings is an enticing open door.

In Paul’s day, Athens was known for being a source of shrines, a hodgepodge of common and unusual beliefs, and, according to the ancient geographer Pausanias, the city that surpassed all others in its worship of various gods. No wonder Paul was “deeply troubled” by all the idols he saw as he walked along Athens’s streets (Acts 17:16). The city was perhaps the premier hub in the production of pagan artifacts and monuments. So it may be surprising that Paul, who was clearly not shy of conflict, did not begin his message to the Areopagus—“the high council of the city” (17:19)—with a blistering critique of the city’s paganism. Instead, his first approach was to commend the city leaders for their religious nature, to affirm that their search for truth was worthwhile. He offered something of an endorsement for their monument to an unknown god. In other words, he found a connecting point with them.

That wasn’t the end of Paul’s message, of course. He went on to explain the good news of Jesus, getting specific about what God had done in Christ and what it meant for our salvation. But he established whatever affinities he could before stretching them in favor of truth, giving us a model of interfaith discourse. He understood the fruitlessness of frontal attacks, and so should we. Generous words open conversations—and hearts—for God to enter in.

{Father, you have prepared cultures, kingdoms, and hearts for your truth. Give me eyes to see the connecting points in every situation and build relationships through them. Amen.