Author: HonorShame

resources for Majority World ministry

By Posted on Posted in Culture, Honor, Relationships, Shame 3 Comments Tagged with , , ,
In 2001 I taught American literature at a university in Central Asia. It was my first year living overseas, and the experience of teaching cross-culturally caused many instances of culture shock. I enjoyed the friendships with students, but I resented …

Teaching in Honor-Shame Cultures: 5 Must Knows Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Culture, Honor, Resources, Shame, Theology 2 Comments Tagged with , , , ,
This article, co-authored with Jackson Wu, was originally posted at Christianity Today on Ed Stetzer’s blog (Feb 16). Shame is getting exposed, finally. Commentators now observe how Western culture, especially the millennial generation, is becoming more shame-prone. Consequently, more Westerners are …

Exposing the Truth about Honor and Shame: The 4 Dimensions Christians Must Understand Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Bible, Honor, Jesus, NT, OT, salvation, Shame, Sin, Theology, Wesetern 3 Comments Tagged with , , , , , ,
Anselm’s satisfaction theory (explanation here) has shaped Western atonement theory. Unfortunately, Anselm’s theology “went wrong” in two ways: (1) Anselm himself overlooked key parts of biblical theology, and (2) then latter theologians misinterpreted Anselm.  Making Anselm More Biblical Anselm’s Cur …

Improving Anselm’s Atonement Theory Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Christology, Honor, Jesus, Jesus Christ, salvation, Shame, Sin, Theology No Comments Tagged with , , , ,
In terms of honor and shame, how does Christ’s death atone for sin? This question got answered 1,000 years ago by Anselm, a Benedictine monk and archbishop of Canterbury who developed the “satisfaction” atonement theory. Anselm’s work Cur Deus Homo …

Atonement for Honor-Shame Cultures Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Culture, ethics, Resources, salvation, Shame, Spirituality, Theology, Wesetern 3 Comments Tagged with , , ,
Last year Christian publishers released 4 books titled “Unashamed.” These are Christian efforts to speak to a popular topic in Western culture—the longing to be free of shame and to “be myself.”  While inspiring and encouraging, these books assume the distorted, Western …

Super Duper “Unashamed” Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Bible, Honor, Missiology, Resources, Shame No Comments Tagged with , , , ,
The latest issue of the Lausanne Global Analysis includes my article “Honor & Shame in God’s Mission.” This short primer (1,600 words) is available online for free, so functions as a 5-minute introduction to honor-shame. The article explains: (1) the meaning of honor & shame, …

Lausanne Article: “Honor & Shame in God’s Mission” Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Culture, Honor, Relationships, Shame 8 Comments Tagged with , , ,
How might we define “honor-shame cultures”? Many people implicitly associate “honor-shame culture” with “violence.” Westerners perceive honor-shame cultures as aggressive and combative. This reason (proposed in my prior post) is because the Western mind perceives honor-based violence as “senseless” and “incomprehensible,” unlike the …

A Better Definition of Honor-Shame Cultures—”Connection” Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Culture, Honor, Shame, Wesetern 8 Comments Tagged with , ,
“Cultures of honor and shame are violent.” This common assumption is a myth rooted in a pejorative cultural bias. Westerners often define honor-shame cultures by their violent retaliation against personal slights. People in honor-shame cultures are sensitive about their reputation, …

A Western Bias: “Honor-Shame Cultures are Violent” Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Communication, Culture, ethics, Honor, Ministry, Missiology, Resources, Spirituality, Wesetern 2 Comments Tagged with , , , ,
“Transforming Honor” is a new training video about biblical ethics, morality, and discipleship in honor-shame cultures. My aim with this video is to (1) transform Western misconceptions about honor cultures and (2) transform honor into a positive source for moral change. The 33-minute resource is …

New Training Video about Ethics and Discipleship Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Communication, Culture 2 Comments Tagged with , ,
Three leading missiologists will join us at the Honor-Shame Conference (June 19-21) at Wheaton. Ed Stetzer is the Billy Graham Professor of Church, Mission, and Evangelism at Wheaton College, Executive Director of the Billy Graham School of Evangelism, and blogs at The Exchange …

Stetzer, Moreau, & Kärkkäinen at the Honor-Shame Conference Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Culture, Relationships, Resources No Comments Tagged with ,
A great way to acquire wisdom for cross-cultural wisdom is to watch the wise. I’m always amazed by Central Asians who handle problems with cultural savvy—they can influence people in such honoring ways. Unfortunately, Westerners often struggle to navigate thorny issues in …

Giving Indirect Advice (A Folktale) Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Culture, Honor, Shame, Wesetern 3 Comments Tagged with , , ,
“Young people these days are becoming more shame based.” The previous post showed how data from TheCultureTest.com collaborates this common observation. But this observation naturally evokes the “why?” question. Why is Western culture becoming more shame based? Here I identify are …

5 Reasons the West is Becoming More Shame Based Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Culture, Honor, Shame, Wesetern 3 Comments Tagged with , , ,
A new moral system has emerged in America. It is shaped by the language of privilege, class, bias, inequality, tolerance, and inclusion. This new moral system has taken definitive expression in the issue of microaggressions.Microaggressions are “brief, everyday exchanges that …

Microaggressions and “Reverse Honor”: America’s Latest Moral System Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Bible, Communication, Evangelism, Ministry, Missiology, Resources 4 Comments Tagged with , , , , ,
Biblical writers communicated God’s honor for the shamed through stories. Narratives recount how God saves his people from disgrace and displays honor.Here is a story set of 30 biblical narratives that address honor and shame. For a more complete list , …

Set of 30 Bible Stories about Honor & Shame Read more »

By Posted on Posted in Culture, ethics, Shame 10 Comments Tagged with , , , ,
Guilt-innocence cultures are W.E.I.R.D.—Western, Education, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic.In 2010, three cultural psychologists published an article titled “The Weirdest People in the World?” The authors explain that most psychological research in conducted on a small, unrepresentative subset of human population—W.E.I.R.D people.The …

Guilt-Innocence Cultures are WEIRD Read more »