Learning Thai

This past week I attended a seminar that presented a model of Christian witness to Buddhists that is based on "meekness" (as opposed to more direct methods that have typically been employed by missionaries). It was taught by a husband and wife who were both devout Buddhists prior to encountering Jesus. Their theory (and it is convincingly backed up by statistics and the present state of Christianity in Thailand) is that Christian witness in Thailand has almost always been carried out in ways that go "against the grain" of the Thai culture.

Protestant missionaries have worked in Thailand for more than 150 years, yet less than 1% of the population is Christian. Missionaries are welcomed into the country, Christians are tolerated and even respected, but the overwhelming majority of the Thai people have decided that Christianity so foreign that it can have little relevance for their lives.

Thais (in general) highly value meekness, humility, and smooth interpersonal relationships. All of these values are violated when Western Christians are perceived as being driven by an agenda to convert others. The presenters argued passionately that Thai people will come to Jesus when the gospel is presented meekly, lovingly, and with respect for Buddhism and Thai culture.

On the last day of the class several Thai Buddhists who have had varying degress of contact with Christianity talked to us about their perceptions of Christianity. It was very clear that they have been turned off to the gospel, not because of Jesus, but because of how he has been presented.

This experience left me with conflicting emotions and a lot of questions. What are my motives for befriending Thai people? How much responsibility am I trying to take for the work that only the Holy Spirit can do? To what extent can Buddhist teachings fit in with (or lead to) Christianity?

-Tom