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In Summary Doing theology among peoples of different cultures is not limited to "overseas" locations. In this article Sheri Kafton, a U.S. resident, illustrates how such theology can be done among Cambodian refugees in the United States. From her own firsthand experience she delineates three areas of felt needs which must be addressed: what it is like to be a refugee, a Buddhist, and in bondage to the fear inherent to animistic beliefs. Kafton then suggests communication techniques-including the use of traditional arts-which may help to implement theology among this people group.

He sits motionless, expressionless, a barefoot peasant in black rags. But as the camera zooms in, and as his face fills the screen, the movie audience looks beyond the passive expression and hears the anguish that filled the silent years of 1975-79 in Cambodia:

They tell us that God is dead, and now the party they call Angka will provide everything for us. He says Angka has identified and proclaims the existence of a bad new disease, a memory sickness that's known as thinking about life in pre-revolutionary Cambodia.... We must be like the ox and have no thought-except for the party. No love-except for Angka. People starve, but we must not grow food. We must honor the comrade children whose minds are not corrupted by the past. I'm full of fear, Sidney. I must show no understanding. I must have no past. This is the Year Zero, and nothing has gone before. The wind whispers of fear and hate. The war has killed love, Sidney, and those who confess to the Angka vanish, and no one dare ask where they go. Here only the silent survive (Dith Pran, "The Killing Fields").

Dith Pran was one of the silent who survived. Two to three million other Cambodians were not; they died as victims of the genocidal regime of the Khmer Rouge under Pol Pot. For most of those 400,000 who managed to escape to refugee camps along the Thai border, "the happy ending" in 1979 portrayed in the movie "The Killing Fields" was a rare fantasy. For most, the fear and the suffering have continued in different forms-both in the camps that are harassed by Vietnamese raids and Thai hostility and in the difficulties of relocation in third countries. Surprisingly, many Cambodian refugees have said that the greatest challenge and suffering they faced was not in the terrors of the holocaust, but instead in their adjustment to life in America, where they confronted hostility, prejudice, depression, unemployment, and the loss of their culture and values.

It is now a critical time of transition for Cambodians in the U.S. It is a time of receptivity to the compassion of Christians and to the message they present. Fortunately, many Christians have responded to me need; articles occasionally appear in Christian journals stressing the importance of ministering to "the mission field on our doorstep," highlighting sponsorship, orientation to American life, and teaching English as successful evangelistic strategies.

But is that enough? Is there anything else we can do to communicate the hope of Christ to the Cambodian refugees? Can their suffering provide a theological framework for presenting the gospel? Are there culturally relevant forms for presenting biblical truth that avoid the "foreign" stigma hindering past attempts to communicate the message of Christ? Are there elements of Cambodian culture that can be "transformed" into a Christian context rather than completely erased?

This essay is an attempt to explore some of these issues, an attempt that begins with an understanding of Cambodia's cultural and religious background and then moves to the felt needs of refugees as a basis for presenting a biblical theology.

Cambodian Buddhism

The dominant religion of Cambodia-and of the Cambodian refugees-is Theravada Buddhism (also known as Hinayana Buddhism or Buddhism of the Little Raft), the same form of Buddhism practiced in Thailand and Laos. Once the state religion (prior to the Khmer Rouge), Buddhism was outlawed in 1976, temples destroyed, and monks killed. Yet over 90% of the Cambodian refugees entering the U.S. still consider Buddhism their "religion" or worldview. Often stressed is the concept that Buddhism is not merely a religion, "not a revealed dogma, but rather a way, a line of conduct, a psychological attitude that gives direction to one's life" (Garry 1980:49). Cambodians often view Buddhism as "a badge of national identity" (Bunnag 1984:159), and converts to Christianity are often seen as those who have turned their backs on their own culture.

The sacred writings of Theravada are written in the Pali language and are called Tripitaka, "The Three Collections." The first focuses on monastic discipline, the second deals with general religious questions, and the third with morality and philosophy.

The doctrinal formula focuses on karma (a cause-effect philosophy-"that which a man is, is the fruit of what he has been"), and the fundamentals of Buddhist doctrine are contained in the Four Noble Truths: (1) life is full of suffering (dukka); (2) suffering is caused by desire (tanha); (3) suffering can be avoided by the crashing of desire; and (4) desire can be crushed by strict adherence to a prescribed moral path.

Cambodian Animism

Although Theravada Buddhism officially denies the existence of other-worldly beings such as spirits, gods, and devils, animism is an integral part of the belief system of the average Cambodian.

When we inquired about the Forest-Spirit we also asked questions on the relations of the villagers...to Buddhism.... We asked the villagers whether the priest does not forbid them to worship the spirit. They answered that the Buddhist religion helps a man to get merits. It teaches us to behave well and to hold the five commandments: do not kill, drink whiskey, lie, steal, and commit adultery. Hearing the teaching of the Buddha and giving food to the teacher brings personal merit. So we might pass away to a better life.

But in this life there is only the spirit who can help the poor man. How could Buddhism help to fight rats eating the rice on the stem? How can Buddhism drive wild pigs away when they come to devastate the fields? The matters of the Spirit are the business of the spirit and the matters of the temple are the business of the temple. One does not contradict nor oppose the other (Filbeck 1985:115).

This co-existence in Cambodia of two religions (or two varieties of the same religion), "each one fulfilling different purposes and meeting different needs" (Filbeck 1985:115), continues in the refugee community in the U.S. Fortune-telling, amulets, and spirit appeasement are common. So is the compartmentalization of religion. Consequently, even Cambodians who turn from Buddhism to Christianity are likely to continue to turn to animism to fulfill needs that they perceive Christianity cannot fulfill.

Responding to Refugees' Felt Needs

The place to develop a strategy for "doing theology" among refugees is not in a library study of the belief system of Buddhists and animists, but in interactions with the refugees themselves. By learning to listen, we can discover the needs that the refugees themselves identify through their statements, questions, and experiences.

Presenting the gospel to Cambodian refugees must be a holistic approach, but it may be easier in this essay to compartmentalize the issues into their felt needs as refugees and their beliefs as Buddhists and animists. The basis for "my theology" comes from refugee interviews (both my own and those reported by Lausanne and Nguyen) and from the findings of those working with Buddhists and animists in the Third World.

In a brief paragraph (Lausanne 9), the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelism suggests several themes that can be highlighted in sharing the gospel with refugees: love, constancy, hope, peace, and justice.

Love

In "The Killing Fields," Dith Pran said, "We must have...no love-except for Angka.... The war has killed love." The cruelty of the Khmer Rouge regime, the hostility of the Thai government toward the refugee camps along the border, and the hostility in the U.S. of Anglos and other ethnic groups toward the Cambodian newcomers all have magnified in the refugee a message of rejection. But although these factors have worked together to erase any expression of love, they haven't erased the longing for love.

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Sheri Kafton is a media expert who has worked in several different countries. She currently works with Good News Productions International, headquartered in Joplin, Missouri, USA.


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