FBC Carthage E-News for February 7, 2011

FBC Carthage E-News
February 7, 2011

Good morning,

As we enter the month of February, I am reminded of Valentines’ Day (next Monday) and the theme of love. During this month I encourage you to express your love to your family and friends. The characteristic which sets us apart as Christians is to be our love for one another. Take time to tell someone, “I love you.” Stop and do a kind, loving deed for someone. There are many ways to say and show your love.

I am reminded of the time not long ago when I told my brother that I loved him. He stopped me in my tracks when he said that was the first time he had heard me say those words to him. He is gone to heaven now, but I remember the importance of those few short words and the impact they can made in our relationship. Has your family heard an “I love you” from you lately? Has your friends? Has your children? Has your parents? Has your spouse? Has the Lord? Right now may be the best time to stop what you are doing and make that call. I am glad I told my brother I loved him before the opportunity passed.

A great resource to help you in expressing your love is the concept of the Five Love Languages. Here is a link that will explain the concept of different ways we receive and express love. Take the time to learn how to speak, “I love you” in the way others can hear. Check it out:
http://www.5lovelanguages.com/learn-the-languages/the-five-love-languages/

Speaking of love, “We Love Smith County” Day will be Saturday, February 19 beginning at 8:00AM. We have several projects scheduled for the day in our community. Make your plans to join us for this special day of showing our love to others. More information is available at the display in the foyer. Also, a donation bucket is located at the display for your contributions toward this effort.

Have a blessed week and remember to express your love to others.

Bro. Tim

Here’s the news for the week:
1. Welcome new members!
It is a joy to welcome Leyanne Nesbitt, Terry Tungate, and Mary Horton as new members of FBC Carthage.

2. Relay for Life
The American Cancer Society Relay for Life will be held at the Ag Center on Saturday, June 11. This annual event helps raise money to fight cancer. Many, if not most, of our families have been impacted by the devastation of cancer. My sister, Judy, passed away several years ago from cancer. To help in this fight, we are forming a FBC Carthage Relay for Life Team. We will have an initial planning meeting this Wednesday, February 9 after the 6:30 PM Prayer Service. Everyone is invited to join in this effort, especially those who have been touched by cancer.

3. Business Meeting
This Wednesday, February 9 will be our monthly business meeting at 6:30 PM in the Christian Life Center.

4. Deacon’s Conference
All deacons are reminded of the Deacon Conference next Thursday, February 17 at 6:00 PM. This conference will be held at the New Middleton Baptist Church.

5. Smith County Pregnancy Help Center
The Smith County Pregnancy Help Center will host an information meeting on Monday, February 21 at 6:30 PM at the Chamber of Commerce building on Upper Ferry Road. This meeting will be to share the work and ministry of the Pregnancy Help Center which will open in June 2011. Everyone is invited to attend this information meeting.

6. Vacation Bible School
It’s time to begin planning toward our 2011 Vacation Bible School, scheduled for June 20-24. Becky Mitchell and Rhonda Etheridge will be working together is directing this year’s big event. Everyone is needed and asked to be involved in some aspect of VBS this year. It truly is the big event for the entire year. Let Becky or Rhonda know where you would like to serve.

7. Revival by the River
We will be joining together with several area churches for two weeks of special events beginning Monday, February 28 at the Ag Center. These events will be:
Revival by the River February 28-March 5
Smith County Women’s Conference March 7-8
Smith County Youth Conference March 9-10
For more information click on the church web site at www.fbccarthage.com, click on events, and click on Revival by the River.

8. www.fbccarthage.com
Speaking of the church web site, have you seen the new design? If not, take a few minutes to look at the recently re-designed web site at www.fbccarthage.com.

9. Coach Tony Dungy
We heard a short testimony from Coach Tony Dungy yesterday during the second service. Here is a link to a great testimony he made for the program “I Am Second.” (Jesus is first.) It is encouraging to have well-known Christians take a stand for the Lord Jesus Christ. Check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKcEydDsCMU

10. Reaching the Inuit People for Christ
Copied below is a report written by Dr. David Sills, professor of missions at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, on an initial trip to the Inuit people in Northern Canada. We have been praying for this group of people for two months and are asking God to help us be a part of reaching them for Christ. Get a cup of coffee and sit down with Dr. Sills as he shares with us about the Inuit people, their needs, and the opportunity for the gospel. In addition, we have invited him to be with us personally on Sunday, March 6.

A Short-Term Team Approach to Ethnographic Research
By
M. David Sills and Anthony Casey

Introduction
It is impossible to be an effective missionary without understanding the culture and worldview of those among whom you minister. Indeed, Eugene Nida states in his classic Customs and Cultures, “All good missionaries have always been in a sense good anthropologists, for they have been sensitive to the needs of the people and in a remarkable way have entered into the lives of the people, fully identifying themselves with the people.” {Eugene A. Nida 1975:PG} For centuries missionaries have been crossing boundaries and entering cultures for the purpose of sharing the gospel and advancing the kingdom of Christ. Many missionaries learned skills for effective intercultural interaction only after years of living among the target culture. Lacking formal preparation in ethnographic investigation and cultural anthropology, advancing by trial and error, these missionaries learned the hard way what modern missionaries now receive much earlier in seminary based missions preparation.
There is a biblical basis for intentional investigation to gather needed data and intelligence. Moses sent spies into the land to gather information critical to the goal of taking the land. Joshua also sent in researchers before crossing the Jordan. Both men were doing God’s will by leading His people to take the land He had commanded them to take, and both saw wisdom in gathering as much information as they could obtain. Likewise, as missionaries go forth into the world to evangelize, plant churches, disciple, and train indigenous leaders, they must know the people’s religion language, worldview, and other crucial information for effective intercultural engagement. Such knowledge enables the missionary to engage the people in culturally appropriate ways and may assist the missionary to avoid mistakes or causing unintentional offence.

Missionaries who understand the significance of ethnographic research still face the challenge of determining how and when to obtain the needed information. Many missionaries are frustrated with the prospect of waiting weeks or months to begin their evangelistic ministry while they conduct basic ethnographic research even when they recognize the value of the information. This article will provide a recommended strategy for conducting ethnographic research in advance to assist missions administrators and field missionaries by enabling them to begin their ministries much more quickly. Basic cultural information can be obtained by short-term mission teams who have received orientation to do ethnographic research.

The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky put this concept into practice with a short-term mission team sent out by the school to Iqaluit, Nunavut, Canada in July 2009 to conduct ethnographic research. The goal was to identify the culture(s), religions(s), dominant language, and to glean at least the building blocks of the worldview. I led the team, which consisted of graduate students from various disciplines as well as trained church planters. The students had all completed related courses or received orientation for the work we would conduct.

Nunavut is a relatively new territory in Canada. It was established in 1999 and is located in the far northeast region of Canada, representing about one-fifth of Canada’s landmass. The territory is sparsely populated with only about 29,000 people although it is roughly the size of Western Europe. The Inuit people comprise the majority of its citizens. It should be noted, however, that almost half of the 6,000 people living in the capital city of Iqaluit are White Europeans. Life is understandably difficult where darkness reigns for six months of every year. In addition to the geographical challenges, it is also an expensive place to live, as virtually everything must be shipped in from other regions of Canada or other countries. Unfortunately, these difficult realities are evidenced by a comparatively high suicide rate.

The goal of the short-term mission trip was to investigate the culture of the capital city and record our findings in an ethnography for the North American Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC). We connected with the community leaders, interviewed residents, learned about their religions, legends, myths, heroes, and daily life in an effort to identify the existing bridges and barriers for gospel witness and provide a cultural overview for future missions work in the area.

Methodology
Iqaluit is a city of 6,000 that is well known among anthropologists and scientists. The area is one of cultural diversity, ecological wonder, and valuable natural resources. Anthropologists and scientists frequent Iqaluit, living there as objective observers of the culture. The Inuit themselves often feel as though they are under a looking glass as the anthropologists take a scientific approach to their presence and research. As a result, there is a chasm between those doing the research and those being researched. As Paul Hiebert has noted, ethnographic studies carry no commitment of responsibility on the part of the anthropologist to the community being studied. The team completing the ethnographic research took a gospel-focused method of research and relationship building as much as possible so as to not create further animosity between the Inuit and outsiders.

Logistics
Simply getting to Iqaluit, located near the Arctic Circle, is no easy endeavor. The territory of Nunavut is as large as the southeastern United States. There are very few towns and villages with air access suitable for a large passenger jet. The airport in Iqaluit boasts an 8,000-foot long runway, the longest in Nunavut and a remnant of the days when it was used as a U.S. Air Force base. Flying in, one immediately notices the fluorescent yellow airport terminal distinctively marking the horizon. The use of the audacious color is so the terminal and adjacent runway can be located from the air in the midst of winter when everything within 2,000 miles of Iqaluit is white. After touchdown, most people just walk into town. Taxis are available, but like virtually everything in Iqaluit, the fee seems high to first-time visitors.

The team’s housing was a bed and breakfast that we rented on the edge of town. Lodging was comfortable and provided a respite from a hard day of walking, interviewing, and enduring less than ideal weather. The house had plenty of bedrooms, bathrooms, a kitchen, large meeting area, and Internet access. The bed and breakfast had expansive windows and the 24-hour a day summer sun supplied an ample amount of radiant heat to keep the lodge comfortable. Iqaluit is heated by fuel oil, stored in five massive tanks outside of town.

Every morning the team walked into town to work. The day’s strategy was often formulated the night before during the debriefing and preparation. New contacts were sought and previous day’s relationships solidified. The Arctic has its own version of afternoon siesta as all businesses, restaurants aside, close down for an hour or so around lunchtime. There are six restaurants in the city, all of which are difficult to locate. Food is expensive because it is either flown or boated in from the south.
The food available in Iqaluit is very similar that which is typically available in the United States. Interestingly, while one could find chicken fingers, french fries, turkey sandwiches, and other diner style fare, the traditional Inuit food such as caribou, seal, whale, and Arctic char were disappointingly absent from restaurant menus. Research revealed that commercial fishing, migrating caribou herds, and loss of skills needed to hunt game coupled with the influx of convenience foods from the south has drastically altered the native diet.

Dividing Research Goals
The team arrived in Iqaluit with no contacts, no idea of how the city was laid out, no previous experience in this part of the world, and five days to learn what we could of the culture in order to gather the needed data for the ethnography. The goal was to find information concerning key research areas: government structure, history, family structures, the decision making process, effects of racism and ethnocentrism, preference for native language and religion, and to build meaningful relationships with locals to help pave the way for an incoming church planter.

Upon arrival the team assigned research goals for the week to each member. The team of nine was split into groups of two or three and each group was asked to choose one of the aforementioned research areas. Team members chose focus areas that had developed out of individual interest fueled by various points of training and from their own missions experience. Assigning research areas to each team member made the overall project manageable in a short amount of time.

Gathering the Research
The team approach allows different personalities, giftings, and skills to be maximized in order to accomplish the task more efficiently. Some on the team were adept at sitting in a library for hours looking at photographs and reading records. Others were skilled in social settings and had a knack for getting information from informal conversation. The first trip into the city catered to each team member’s strength. With no names to seek out or places to visit, each group simply walked about the town and looked for people with whom they could talk. When one team found themselves warming up in a local coffee shop, they discovered that the casual coffee stop proved to be a goldmine for information and networking. The providence of God brought team members into contact with the mayor’s husband who owned the shop. Local government leaders frequented the coffee shop for conversation–both casual and business. Since these particular team members were conversant in areas of business and politics, they were able to immediately join in the conversation and even contribute to the topics being discussed. The diversity of the team facilitated this effective research and insight into government and politics in Iqaluit.

Other team members spent time in the local museums, bookstores, and the visitor’s center. The patient inquirer was able to record valuable information about the history of the city, local industry and tourism, and begin to understand the complex mythology that undergirds the religious expression found among the Inuit. Learning some of the names of local spirits enabled the team to use them in conversation on the street to ascertain the level of animism and spirit worship still prevalent after more than one hundred years of Anglican presence.

It was crucial that each team member take accurate notes of any findings. In order to be respectful of the conversation, the notes were usually recorded immediately after saying goodbye. Often, one conversation would provide several leads for further inquiry. In this way what began as a blank slate quickly blossomed into a web of connections around the city. Each team member made a note when the interviewee mentioned matters that dealt with another team member’s area of research responsibility. In order to stay on task, this new information was held until the nightly debriefing and was then shared with the other team members.

Daily Debriefing
Though the sun never actually set, each “evening” the team met for a time of sharing and debriefing. This proved to be the most encouraging and important time of the day. Every group shared their findings for the day. It was amazing how much information could be discovered, how many relationships were built, and the number follow-up contacts made considering the short time spent in town. As previously noted, many team members were able to gather information about other member’s research areas and discover names of people they should talk to the next day. The nightly debriefing was a time to confirm findings, encourage one another, pray together, and develop a plan for the next day. Over the course of the week one could begin to see how much of the culture was built on a foundation of age-old stories that provided the rules of life, explained creation, put forth rituals and methods to appease the spirits, and compile stories meant to keep children safe in the unforgiving arctic climate.

Methodology Summary
The team’s basic strategy proved to be successful. Division of research topics was crucial so that some member of the team covered all essential areas, thus allowing man-hours to be multiplied and work done effectively. Relationships and contacts quickly spider-webbed from one day to the next with the evening debriefing providing a time to compile data and share contacts with other team members. In many aspects the trip was similar to what one would find in the United States–quality lodging, recognizable food, predominant use of English, and a town built around the government buildings in the center of town. Upon further investigation however, the team discovered a society consisting of complex layers of culture fighting to coexist. The complexity of the culture revealed missiological implications that are anything but commonplace in the U.S.

Missiological Implications

General Findings
First, it was discovered that the Canadian government is developing Nunavut because several companies are interested in mining uranium and other resources. Iqaluit is of particular interest because of its port location and large runway. This interest in development has led to the large influx of well-educated and qualified Anglos that reside in Iqaluit. Exorbitant salaries upwards of $80,000 a year are offered even for entry-level jobs. In addition, a $12,000 Northern Living Allowance is available for those relocating to reside in Iqaluit.

Second, the local government in Nunavut is a blend of the Canadian government and Inuit style leadership. Officials are elected to hold seats in the Nunavut Assembly. Anglos and Inuit compose this Assembly. All members have voting power and their decisions are authoritative. Seats are reserved for community elders who have a voice in government but do not possess governing authority. The government has a distinctly Western feel and functions much like territorial and provincial governments in the rest of Canada even though a minimal attempt was made to replicate Inuit style leadership.

Third, there are more than one hundred recognized elders living in Iqaluit. Elders can be men or women because authority and wisdom in Inuit culture is based on societal roles tied to gender. For example, women are seen as the authorities on medicine and healing so it would seem unnatural for a man to speak on the subject. Decisions are always communal and by consensus of the elders. There is disdain for individuals who try to rise up and lead the community. In the past such people would be killed because they were seen as a threat to the communal nature needed to survive the harshness of the Arctic. The elders meet daily in the legislative building in Iqaluit and community members may call the office to request a meeting with the elders. It is customary for guests to bring a gift such as a meat tray when speaking with the elders.
Fourth, racism is prevalent in Iqaluit. The city has rapidly become a near equal blend of Inuit and Anglo as the latter have come for jobs. The team observed little interaction between Inuit and Anglo people outside of professional relationships. Businesses employ both Anglo and Inuit workers but Anglos tend to have the managerial roles. One team member observed a bank teller refusing to help an Inuk so that the Anglos in the bank might be helped first. Years of Anglo domination in matters of leadership, schooling, and religious work have led to tension between races. Only recently has Canada made an attempt to give power back to the Inuit in Nunavut.

Fifth, cultural preservation is again becoming a priority in Nunavut. Rarely has another culture seen as much change as the Inuit have in the past fifty years. The coming of the outsider brought a new language, new religion, new leadership, and new education methods. There has been a resurgence of traditional culture and of the Inuit language, Inuktitut. A special task force was installed called The Department of Culture, Language, Elders, and Youth (CLEY). This organization is composed of both Inuit and long time Anglo residents. CLEY recruited a team of elders who have begun mentoring younger Inuit in cultural skills. Month-long snowmobile trips are taken to teach the younger generation how to navigate the bleakness of the Arctic, hunt seals and caribou, and restore ancient travel routes in order to connect isolated villages once again. Such activity has been met with varied responses. Many youth do not care about the old ways. They consider them boring compared to new innovations such as the Internet. Anglos have told the Inuit for decades that the old ways are savage and uncivilized. Tremendous challenges threaten the Inuit culture, yet with the work of organizations like CLEY and the influence of elders who are old enough to remember the old ways, a cultural resurgence has begun.

Sixth, further evidence of the cultural resurgence is that the Inuit language is becoming more prominent. Two main dialects are spoken across Nunavut. Inuktitut is spoken in the eastern region that includes Iqaluit. Inuktitut has been reduced to writing via symbols developed by early missionaries. Inuinaktun is spoken in western Nunavut and is based on the Romanized alphabet. The two dialects share between 70 to 90 percent of vocabulary and can be understood in some capacity across the Polar Regions. Inuit are closely tied to their heart language even though they speak English very well. English is still seen as the foreigner’s language.

The White European linguistic influence is seen in Iqaluit through the languages that are spoken throughout the city; one is likely to hear English, French, or Inuktitut at any given time. Newspapers are usually printed in parallel column form with all four languages represented. One individual reported that a language protection act is being formulated that would require applicants for certain jobs to be fluent in the four languages and dialects found in Nunavut.

Seventh, family structure is distinct among Inuit culture. The culture has traditionally leaned toward matriarchal leadership. As previously noted, men and women are assigned roles based on the culture. Women often dominate the household. Domestic violence in Iqaluit most often involves the woman beating her boyfriend or husband. Men appear to have a very weak role in the family. Women tend to lose their virginity in their early teens and are encouraged to have as many children as possible in order to build the population, yet children are often raised by others in the community, rather than by the mother. There are reports of women selling their babies to people who wish to adopt in order to circumvent the process. This is against Canadian law but goes unchecked throughout Nunavut.

Currently only 25% of youth graduate from high school in Iqaluit. Many girls drop out because they become pregnant. Prospects of leaving Iqaluit are slim without education. A very small percentage of youth who do well in school are able to go to Ottawa to become advocates for Nunavut. The majority of the population is left to find jobs in Iqaluit or live off of government assistance supplemented by hunting and fishing. Such a dim outlook coupled with six-month-long nights and harsh weather contributes to one of the highest suicide rates in the world. One local business owner reported that he personally knows over sixty people who have taken their own lives in the past 25 years. There is simply not much hope for many Inuit living in Nunavut.

Eighth, mythology and animism are prevalent in Inuit culture. Government officials may indicate otherwise but research indicated the presence and practice of shamans in Iqaluit. The government has told the Inuit for years that spirit worship is not real and belief in the power of the shaman is primitive. The community is torn between past expressions of religious belief and the naturalistic worldview of many incoming Anglos. One Inuk language expert expressed his belief that community shamans can speak the spirit language of the animals in order to gain control over them. Inuit culture is built upon thousands of years of myth and legend concerning creation and the ongoing presence of benevolent and malevolent spirits. These legends are still told today. Inuit mythology is very intricate and complex and many stories were discovered that lay a foundation for the Inuit worldview. Various statues of spirits can be found all over Iqaluit. They are both a reminder of the past and an indication of present realities.

Ninth, and finally, the team identified several non-native religions present in Iqaluit. The Anglican Church has the longest presence, having come with the Hudson Bay Company. In addition to Anglicans, a Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, Baha’i, Seventh Day Adventist, Mormon, and Jehovah’s Witness presence was also discovered. Many of these movements are very small and ineffective. For example, the Pentecostal church has been established for twenty years but has never had a baptism. The Anglican church claims there are over 6,000 Anglicans in Iqaluit, though only a handful may be found attending a service on any given Sunday. The leader of the church claimed there was no need for any new churches because everyone in town was already a Christian. This man was very opposed to any form of evangelistic ministry. In summary, though several spiritual movements are in existence, the team could find no evidence of evangelical Bible teaching in a Baptistic tradition anywhere in Iqaluit.

Missiological Approaches
The Inuit are very guarded with newcomers. So many outsiders come and go in Iqaluit that locals do not give anyone a second glance. The Inuit are used to being studied and analyzed, often without being able to benefit from the results of such studies. It became clear that a long-term approach to church planting is needed in order to be effective. It will take time to build relationships and become a part of the community. Based on the above findings several recommendations for ministry are given.

First, the church planter should use a house church model. The Inuit are opposed to organized religion and large church buildings have been the hallmark of organized religion in Iqaluit. The church continues to be associated with past abuse and control. The house church model would allow for personal relationships to be built more easily in this communal culture. Furthermore, real estate is extraordinarily expensive in Iqaluit; a singlewide trailer costs around $300,000. It may not be financially feasible for a church planter to purchase a building for the church.

Second, the church planter must learn Inuktitut. Most Inuit speak English, but the language is seen as the foreigner’s language. An Inuk elder made it clear that a white person gains much respect and a voice in society once he or she learns the language. With the increasing proliferation of English, very few outsiders are willing to take the time to learn the local language. If the church planter were to take this step it would go a long way toward establishing trust and relationships.

Third, the issue of racism must be addressed. There is very little interaction between the Inuit and Anglo in Iqaluit, largely due to the years of tension and hurt. A church planter would be wise to initially start an Inuit church rather than Anglo. Much healing needs to take place and only the gospel can accomplish this task. Attempting to begin a multi-cultural church immediately would arouse suspicion and animosity from both sides.

Fourth, a church planter must take into account the community structure of the Inuit. The society still looks to the recognized elders for any decision-making that does not relate to the government. It would be wise to build relationships with the elders by attending their meetings. A Western individualistic evangelistic approach that calls for personal decisions for Christ may not be appropriate. By working first with the elders, the hope is that many in the community will look to them for direction and be ready to respond to the gospel at the right time.

Fifth, a church planter should recognize that the Inuit are primarily an oral people. The animistic worldview built on cultural stories and legends is still in operation, though not as easily seen as it would have been one hundred years ago. Missionaries should use a storying approach to evangelism and discipleship because it fits the culture the best. If a Western model of preaching and teaching is used, the church planter runs the risk of failing to address key worldview issues central to an animistic culture and syncretism will result.

Finally, a holistic approach to ministry must be used. Depression and suicide are major issues in Iqaluit, and jobs are scarce. The prevailing dark atmosphere over Iqaluit is rooted in spiritual realities that are showing themselves through depressive behavior, broken relationships, and poor health. The gospel is the good news for salvation and presenting it must be primary, but a loving missionary will have ample opportunity for other types of ministry as well.

Benefit of ethnographic research for future missionaries
The data collected about the Inuit culture is vital to the success of a future church plant. The ethnographic data the team collected can be used to develop a detailed and accurate ‘job description’ for recruiting and interviewing prospective church planters. Dozens of contacts are already recorded as well as informed counsel as to their influence in Iqaluit society and openness to the gospel. In essence, a good ethnography provides a virtual trip to the location, giving the future church planter much to plan for and pray over. Time is saved as the missionary can arrive on location with a solid plan for ministry and much of the awkwardness of being new in town can be avoided. In an unreached area such as Iqaluit, the benefit of such an ethnographic research team is worth the expense.

Encouragement to utilize method
The process worked as anticipated in the Iqaluit research, largely because of the proficiency and maturity of the team. They clearly understood the trip objective, the limited time, and the kingdom value that this research data would afford to a future missions effort. The team divided up the areas for research and all submitted their assignments, which were then edited into a composite ethnography that was then submitted to the North American Mission Board. There is clearly great value and wisdom in utilizing short-term ethnographic research teams in this way.
The team process enables a more comprehensive snapshot of culture in such a cultural portrait. While an individual missionary researcher can certainly drill down much deeper over a longer period of time, a team is able to cover more ground in a single week and to do so with the benefit of various gifts, personalities, and strengths. The information will not be as thorough as longer research would provide, but the various components will be contemporary with one another rather than the non-commensurate phenomena that long-term studies often provide. Additionally, a one-week short-term team is often able to be bolder than long-term missionaries who must be constantly aware of long-term relationship building.

Of course, such a short-term approach has many limitations as well. The quantity versus quality argument is pertinent in the consideration of this approach. For instance, the team that is in place for only one week must work in English speaking areas or utilize interpreters. Additionally, the team will not have the benefit of knowing the personalities, culture, or tendencies to embellish or hide information in their interviews. Even participant observation is woefully limited in a one-week investigation and a short-term team cannot recognize and probe deeper issues that surface in long-term relationships that will be developed by the field missionary.

In addition to providing helpful information to get the field missionary involved in ministry more quickly, there are other benefits to the team itself. Since this team was comprised of seminarians, there were some who were open to God’s leading in missions and others who already committed to missionary service. This trip gave both the opportunity to be challenged by introducing them to personal field experience, cultural distinctions, and to understand how helpful ethnographic research data is to missionaries. Even though it requires time in the beginning of a missions experience, it is time well spent, as it helps discern bridges and barriers to the gospel. The trip also served to foster analytical thinking for missions strategies among the students as they weighed the data and what it meant to the kinds of ministries that should be employed in Iqaluit.

The missions administrator with the fruit of such an ethnographic research trip would benefit by identifying the spiritual needs of the people in areas where none of his missionaries have gone. He would have information regarding the languages, population, religions, governing structure, and many cultural aspects quantified and delineated which would enable wiser decisions for deploying personnel and investing kingdom resources. Otherwise, he could only learn what resources and strategies would have been the wisest after he had deployed one or more families. After an investigation of this kind, the administrator is able to place its fruit in the hands of missionaries who are praying about that particular field, or in the hands of those who are committed to the area but do not know where to start. He may also recognize that he has missionaries who are completing ministries in near-culture areas who would be ideal for redeployment to the area of study. One can only make wise decisions according to the best information available; this is one method for obtaining better field data where none currently exists.

As noted, the recruitment of team members is one of the keys for success. Team members should ideally have studied cultural anthropology, ethnographic research, intercultural communication, or related subjects. In the absence of this, a thorough orientation into the discipline with clear instructions regarding dos and don’ts can safeguard the process. Team members who are extroverted enough to engage in conversations and interact with strangers are essential. However, another advantage of short-term trips is that naturally shy team members often find courage to step into a more extroverted personality in the knowledge that they are only in the research context for one week. Being forward in conversation and asking questions without being offensive is a not gift possessed by all. Therefore, it is good to pair those with this gift with others who may not be as socially adept. People are often open to talk about themselves and the interviewer must be able to elicit this interest, closing with, “Whom else should I talk to for information about this?”

The team should be aware of the spiritual value of the research, and not just for the future. One of the team members should be praying for the interviewer and interviewee in every conversation. As they seek out ways and connections to meet community leaders, they should remember that these people are also gatekeepers whose friendship and good experience in the interview could be the key for future missionaries.

Another cultural perspective that short-termers can conduct which may not be advisable for a long-term resident missionary is discovering the locals’ perception of non-indigenous religions. For instance, a short-term researcher could ask what the religious representatives of the newer religions have done or currently do that are offensive, ways that demonstrate that they do not understand the culture, what they could have done or could do that would make them more acceptable and win a hearing with more people. What are the most offensive or most welcome aspects of their ministries? The researcher could ask the interviewees how Christianity would be accepted, whether people are open to religious change, or whether there is an interest in the Bible, as well as whether there are any current church planting efforts by some other organization.

Basic cultural information must be obtained sooner or later, and the sooner it can be obtained the better. In one week, it is possible for a trained team of researchers to discern societal, cultural, and worldview foundations. Even simple matters such as whether the culture is patriarchal or matriarchal, the basis for marriage and kinship organizations, languages spoken, religious preferences and allegiance, industry, food, music, and clothing styles, are helpful. All of this information is basic and easily obtainable in its most rudimentary sense but very helpful to the administrator or newly arrived field missionary.

Additionally, our team was able to discern in one week on the field, a deep-seated sense of lostness and despair in the area residents, whether from the full shelf of books on suicide in the town’s tiny bookstore or from the interaction on the street. A team on the field brings valuable information because economic factors and racial tensions are felt and experienced more profoundly in person than on spreadsheets of researchers. A field team is able to provide a first hand description of the reality better than quantitative data can ever present.

Conclusion
Ethnographic research conducted by short-term teams is a wise stewardship of mission funds, a practical method for educating missions students about missionary life, and provides a short-term missions experience with immediate kingdom value. Indeed, the Lord may actually call one or more of the team members to return to the research setting as a career missionary. Ralph Winter said, “God cannot lead you on the basis of facts you do not have.”{Ralph D. Winter 2007:PG} This kind of missions experience is an excellent tool to introduce students to the world of missions in general, and in specific locations in hands-on ways, as well as providing a foundation for long-term workers. Our prayer is that God will bless the fruit of our research that we traveled to complete and that it will result in culturally appropriate healthy New Testament churches throughout Iqaluit and the surrounding area.

M. David Sills, D.Miss., Ph.D. is Professor of Christian Missions and Cultural Anthropology at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY. Having served as a missionary, pastor, and professor, Dr. Sills is the author of several books including his most recent releases Reaching and Teaching: A Call to Great Commission Obedience (Moody, 2010) and The Missionary Call: Find Your Place in God's Plan for the World (Moody, 2008). dsills@sbts.edu

Anthony Casey is a PhD student at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY studying missions. He has been a part of many short term evangelistic and research oriented mission trips and is particularly interested in oral cultures. ACasey@sbts.edu