Cultural Reporter Project

Growing up I was raised differently than most of my core group of friends. I was raised Jewish and for 13 years, up until my Bar Mitzvah, we practiced this religion. It was only after my Bar Mitzvah that my family stopped practicing Judaism and religion was no longer a part of our lives. Since I have been in college I have been exposed to many different religions practiced by my friends. This has broadened my knowledge of different religions. Not only have I began to step out of my comfort zone in learning about these different types of religions, it has allowed me to become exposed to different cultures.

Culture can be defined as learned beliefs, language, values, and patterns shared by a group of people (Martin and Nakayama, 2013 pg. 88). Culture is seen as a community and fellowship. It also can be seen as a set of traditions passed down from generation to generation. It is taught and learned within the groups that share these values. In college, I met my friend Courtney who began to share her faith with me.  She began to describe Christianity, more specifically her Lutheran faith. As I listened, I learned that she shares common beliefs within her church and other Luther churches. This particular culture displays different sets of traditions that were created from the Holy Scriptures.  In the beginning I did not understand most of the ideas and beliefs she was describing, but after our discussion my cultural lenses were widened.

 From what I have gathered so far, Lutherans believe that God sent his only son to die for all mankind’s sins. There is so much depth within this religion that I look forward to spending more time with Courtney to discuss her faith. For this project, I plan to first interview (qualitative method) Courtney and some of her Lutheran friends. I will then attend a Lutheran service to engage within this culture (participant observation).  Lastly, I will try to understand the reason behind the passion people have for the Lutheran belief (emic).

References

Martin, J.N., & Nakayama, T.K. (2013). Intercultural communication in contexts (6th ed.) New York, NY: McGraw Hill.