H e l e n P a r r y

GLOBALISATION

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Other titles in the Life Issues Bible Study series

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CON T E N T S

IntroductIon 5

HowtousetHIsbook 6

week1:wHatIsGlobalIsatIon? 7HowsHouldweevaluateIt?

week2:economIcIllsInaGlobalIsedworld 12debt trade week3:creatIon 18tHeenvIronmenttHecHurcHIntHemIdstofcreatIontHeGlobalcHurcH

week4:tHInkGlobally,actlocally 23analternatIvecommunItyapropHetIcvoIce

postscrIpt 29

fIndoutmore 30

notes 31

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IN T r OduC T IONWe hear and see the word ‘globalisation’ everywhere in the media these days. We all have some idea of what it means. Very probably some of us think of it as a good thing, while others think of it as a bad thing. But whether we like it or not, globalisation, in some shape or form, is here to stay.

But surely this is a question of politics, not a concern of the Church.Well, is there anything that is not a concern of the Church? Is there anything

that is not a concern of God?There are some Christians who believe that the Church should not be

involved in politics. And indeed there are many people who are not Christians who believe that the Church should not be involved in politics.

Issues like globalisation present us with a problem. The ramifications of globalisation are so vast that we cannot hope to understand it. So we are tempted to withdraw into the security of the Church, and concern ourselves with what the Church specialises in: worship, Bible study, pastoral care and preaching the gospel. Are we tempted to believe that, as Christ will in due course return to create a new heaven and a new earth, we don’t have to get involved in the complex issues of the old earth?

But it was God who created the ‘old earth’. And, although it is corrupted by the Fall, God is not only still interested in it, but indeed upholds it from day to day, ‘sustaining all things by his powerful word’ (Heb. 1:3). He owns ‘the cattle on a thousand hills’ (Psa. 50:10); declares ‘The silver is mine and the gold is mine’ (Hag. 2:8); told his people in exile in Babylon to seek the peace and prosperity (not the destruction) of the city in which they were held captive (Jer. 29:7); and Jesus told people to ‘Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s’ (Matt. 22:21) and to pray ‘your kingdom come … on earth’ (Matt. 6:10).

This series of studies is based on the conviction that there must be no division in our thinking between the ‘sacred’ and the ‘secular’; and that Christians are called to be salt, light and yeast in the world.

So we need to get our heads round the big issue of globalisation. And perhaps we shall not be so daunted by it after all!

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HO w T O u S E T HI S B OOkSince globalisation is a vast and complex subject, it is impossible to encompass more than a few aspects of it in four study sessions. Groups differ widely in terms of how much knowledge their members already have; some will no doubt find the approach simplistic. But the essential thing for us as Christians is to bring a ‘Christian mind’ to the big issues of our contemporary world. What does the Bible say that is relevant to the topic of globalisation?

Every member of the group will have worthwhile ideas to contribute, however much – or however little – knowledge he or she already has. Individuals, too, may like to study the material on their own.

In some sections, there is quite a lot of text that needs to be read. It may be helpful if members of the group can look through it beforehand. But it will not take too long to read it together when you meet.

Developing a ‘Christian mind’ is not just an intellectual exercise. It helps us to overcome our prejudices and to challenge the values of our culture. Even more, though, it shapes the way we live and informs our prayers. At the end of each study there are suggestions for reflection and action. May this series of studies deepen our understanding of God, His world and our place in His world, so that we can all make a difference, wherever He has placed us.

It may be helpful, at the beginning of each session, to share some of the thoughts and experiences that you have had during the week while trying to put the action points into practice.

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wEEk ONEwHat I s

G loba l I s at I on?Globalisation is essentially interdependence – an interdependence that binds the whole world together in a way that makes the old politics of self-contained nations, all pursuing their own interests, largely irrelevant. People sometimes talk of a ‘global marketplace’, and this is certainly true. But the network of connections that make us all dependent on one another goes far beyond the economic.

discussSpend a few minutes thinking of, and sharing, as many aspects as possible of •this global interdependence.As you think about all these interconnections, are your feelings about it •broadly positive or negative. Why?How should we evaluate it?•

read, think through and discussRead together the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25–37.

We know this story so well, but it is important to look at the context in which Jesus told it. The parable hangs on two key sentences: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself ’, and ‘Who is my neighbour?’ ‘Love your neighbour as yourself ’ appears in the Old Testament among various laws recorded in Leviticus 19 (v.18). It was widely recognised as summarising much of the Old Testament

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G l o b a l I s a t I o n

Law. Indeed, on another occasion (Matt. 22:36–40), Jesus Himself summarised the Law in the same terms as the expert in the law in this passage.

In the Old Testament, this law was concerned with people who were literally neighbours – people who were members of the same community: ‘one of your people’. The purpose was to build the Israelites – who had recently escaped after 400 years of slavery – into a united community, with shared values and interests, and allegiance to one God.

Think of examples of ways in which, your personal interests conflict with those of other people; •our national interests conflict with those of other nations.•

In both cases, how should we respond?

‘who is my neighbour?’Perhaps the expert in the law, confronting Jesus in Judea (now a province of the Roman Empire), realised that the definition of ‘neighbour’ was more complicated than at the time that the Old Testament Law was given. Jesus’ answer to the question singled out a Samaritan – a member of a racial group that the Jews despised (see John 4:9).

Discuss the significance of this.One of the points Jesus is making is that our ‘neighbours’ may be very

unlikely people.

Let each person in the group write down a description of someone (real or imaginary) who might be described as an unlikely neighbour. Now share these and spend a few minutes praying for them (if real) or people like them (if imaginary).

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w e e k o n e : w H a t I s G l o b a l I s a t I o n ?

Were all those you selected people whom you might actually come across in real life? Or were some of them people whom you could never possibly meet, but whose interests and aspirations were in some way affected by your own?

That is the point about globalisation, and what is commonly called the ‘global village’ in which, we all live. People near and far are affected by the decisions and actions of others.

When you were considering the bad aspects of globalisation, how far were you influenced by self-interest – the effects of global interdependence on your job, your lifestyle, your children’s prospects, and so on? Does the parable of the Good Samaritan make you think again?

And when you were considering the good aspects of globalisation, how far were you influenced by self-interest – the opportunities for travel, enjoying foreign cuisine, strawberries all year round, Primark and Wikipedia? Does the parable of the Good Samaritan make you think again about any of these?

Jesus describes in detail the Samaritan’s response to the traveller’s plight.

What strikes you about his attitude and his actions? If you feel convicted about this, spend a few minutes asking the Lord to forgive you and change your heart.

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Case study 1Bypass campaignImagine that you live in a village that has a busy main road running through the middle of it. The local authority has proposed the building of a bypass. Two possible routes have been suggested, one of which runs right past the bottom of your garden. If neither of these is accepted, the traffic through the village is bound to increase, although speed bumps and a 20mph limit could be introduced.

Your immediate neighbours have formed a ‘Stop the Eastern Bypass’ campaign, and have asked you to help to organise it. (Their preference is for the western bypass.)

How will your Christian faith affect your response?

Case study 2AfghanistanRead through the scenario below and identify some of the complex issues and conflicting interests that this situation illustrates.

‘When Jesus says to love your neighbour as yourself (Mark 12:31), He is asking us to see our interconnectedness with and mutual responsibility towards one another. We are called to love one another, not to turn a blind eye or deaf ear. To love one another – to put the good of all over our individual wants and to cherish our common humanity. This is about politics. Pope Paul VI in his document Populorum Progressio said we must “breathe the spirit of the Gospel into the changes and reforms” that we need.’ 1

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w e e k o n e : w H a t I s G l o b a l I s a t I o n ?

After the attack on the World Trade Center in New York on 11 September 2001, the ‘War on Terror’ coincided with the war on the drugs trade in the south of Afghanistan – the determination to root out al-Qaeda and the Taliban along with the fields of opium poppies.

In 2004, Afghanistan supplied 87 per cent of the world’s illegal opium, much of it smuggled out through Pakistan. The livelihood of hundreds of thousands of Afghan families now depends on it. Opium is far more lucrative than any other crop. The landowners and traders make huge profits from it, and warlords exploit local clan rivalries. First the EU, and then the US, have tried to promote alternative crops, or provide alternative work. The Afghan government, desperate to maintain the support of the West, has declared poppy-eradication programmes, but has had neither the will nor the means to enforce them.

Meanwhile, American, British and other NATO soldiers have been deployed throughout the region to defeat a resurgent Taliban, who threaten once more to overrun the country, overthrow its constitutional government and reimpose the brutal authority and Islamisation that the country has only recently escaped from. The presence of foreign soldiers and the civilian casualties that accompany the fighting have compromised the efforts of foreign aid agencies, which are working, often in very dangerous circumstances, to rebuild the shattered infrastructure and diversify agriculture. The effects of failure would be to further destabilise Pakistan (which is, of course, a nuclear power) and provide almost unlimited scope for international terrorism.

For further reflection and actionRead the newspapers and watch the TV news with the parable of the Good •Samaritan in mind. Try to see things through the eyes of Jesus. Make a note of some of the topics that you have begun to see differently. Pay closer attention to your own immediate neighbours, in your street and •in your village/town/city. Pray for opportunities to help them with acts of kindness or generosity, even at the cost of your time, convenience or money.

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