"Culture," said one wag, "is like an onion. It has many layers, and as you peel each one, you do a lot of crying." As Americans in England, we are considered cross-cultural wimps. Every piece of cross-cultural literature we read seems to end with this disclaimer: "Of course, this does not apply to Americans who move to Canada or England." English culture seems civilized, very Western. Lifestyles and language are not radically different; compared with the differences missionaries face in the rain forests of South Asia, England must seem like a piece of cake. However, subtle differences can... Read More.

He stood tall in the pulpit, grinning in all his Texas glory: cowboy hat and boots, diamond ring and bolo tie, with an off-white Western suit. Pacing back and forth, he thundered forth his message, repeating his points with God's Word curled up in one hand. He made emphatic gestures as big as his voice was loud, occasionally slamming his fist into the Bible or dropping it on the pulpit. Then he paused, staring straight into the eyes of the people sitting before him as he waited for his words to sink in. Read More.

The recent divergence between French and U.S. policy on Iraq led to much discussion in the media of a possible schism between the "New World" and the "Old World." In an interview with Tim Weeks, ABWE missionary to France, I asked him whether a schism really exists between French and American cultures, and how he shares the gospel across cultures. Read More.

What could be stranger than the presence of Korean style karate, or Tae Kwon Do, in Japan? Since Japan's occupation of Korea in the early 1900s, cultural exchanges between the two economic powers have been overshadowed by competition. The two countries still harbor animosity toward one another... Read More.