BRISBANE auxiliary bishop Tim Norton explained the importance of ‘Interculturality’ as a way of building a powerful new discipleship, during Summit 2023.
Bishop Norton, a Divine Word Missionary priest, explained the complexities of intercultural difference with engaging, down-to-earth illustrations of how our own primary culture determines the way we interpret the world.
He spoke of ways that each of us develop our culture based on our own family and community upbringing.
There are a small number of cultural elements which someone from outside that culture may be readily aware of (such as forms of dress or dietary practices); however there are many more elements that are less obvious (such as deep-seated attitudes, beliefs and values).
Within the Brisbane Archdiocese, Bishop Norton invited summit attendees to become intercultural advocates to break down barriers that isolate and separate cultural groups.
“Our challenge is to move from labelling to embracing’,” he said, “to grow in the consciousness of our own ethnocentrism in the remarks we make, in the attitudes that we have, to try our best to understand that other people have a history, a place in the world from which they’ve come.
“And sometimes that place is a place of great trauma, of famine, of war.
“Let’s drink together of a new world order of intercultural communities of disciples of Jesus.”
Bishop Norton quoted from Galatians 3:28 “For there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”
“I choose this particular image because this is us in the Archdiocese of Brisbane intercultural disciples for Jesus,” Bishop Norton said.
