This material has been provided by Asbury Theological Seminary in good faith of following ethical procedures in its production and end use. The Copyright law of the united States (title 17, United States code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyright material. Under certain condition specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to finish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specific conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law. By using this material, you are consenting to abide by this copyright policy. Any duplication, reproduction, or modification of this material without express written consent from Asbury Theological Seminary and/or the original publisher is prohibited. Contact B.L. Fisher Library Asbury Theological Seminary 204 N. Lexington Ave. Wilmore, KY 40390 B.L. Fisher Library’s Digital Content place.asburyseminary.edu Asbury Theological Seminary 205 North Lexington Avenue 800.2ASBURY Wilmore, Kentucky 40390 asburyseminary.edu Abstract USING CEREMONIES TO DISCIPLE ORAL LEARNERS AMONG THE TRIBAL PEOPLE IN BANGLADESH Despite the remote, isolated location of the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT), the tribal inhabitants of this comer of Bangladesh are beginning to embrace Christianity. Westem discipling methods dependent on literacy have limited effectiveness with these tribals who are largely oral people. If Christianity is to become indigenous in this region, ministry including disciple-making must be contextualized. From their former religious practices it is evident that CHT tribal ceremonies are both indigenous to the culture as well as appropriate for oral learners. This dissertation, is a case study of using a ceremony as a discipling event. Following bibliographic surveys of literature on orality, ceremony, and discipleship, I made field observations in the CHT and conducted interviews with tribal people in Bangladesh. Having this information, a local hermeneutical community was formed to constmct, implement, and evaluate a discipling event. Sixty participants from different tribal areas representing various tribal groups participated in and gave their impressions of the discipling event. In the initial part of the field research, ceremonies were observed and religious leaders were interviewed. The ceremonies observed included Buddhist ceremonies from the Chakma tribe, Hindu pujas (worship) from the Tripura tribe, and animist rituals from the Mm tribe. From these observations and interviews three main characteristics of oral learning emerged. First, we found that symbols enhance and deepen the understanding of and emotional connection to the event. Second, listening to, memorizing, and chanting mantras intemalize particular teachings. Third, drama adds an enjoyable and participatory element and reinforces the learning. With this information from the village ceremonies and leaders, the Hermeneutical Community began to plan the discipling event. This group also considered the spiritual condition of the tribal Christian community, and chose appropriate biblical teaching. A five-part event was constructed including dramatizations of biblical stories, memorizing a Christian mantra, and a symbolic candle-lighting commitment service. The entire event was guided by the Hermeneutical Community, but every participant was very involved and participated in each aspect of the event. Two such discipling events took place with 30 participants each time. The participants were divided into focus groups of ten people, and the focus groups were interviewed before and after the event. Both strengths and weaknesses of the event were identified by the focus groups. Over-all both the participants and the Hermeneutical Community found that Christianized symbols, scriptural mantras, and biblical drama all giving Christian teaching were an appropriate form of discipling for oral, tribal people. If discipling is to be effective for the oral masses of the world's population, it will look very different from the literate, Westem discipleship programs we usually find. Oral people learn much of their religious teaching through symbols, mantras, drama, and ceremonies. We can use these same forms, infuse them with Christian teaching, and create discipling ceremonies. The use of such ceremonies has been found to be an appropriate discipling method for oral learners. Dissertation Approval Sheet This dissertation, entitled USING CEREMONIES TO DISCIPLE ORAL LEARNERS AMONG THE TRIBAL PEOPLE IN BANGLADESH Written by Roy C. Mclntyre and submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Missiology has been read and approved by the undersigned members of the faculty of the E. Stanley Jones School of World Mission and Evangelism Asbury Theological Seminary Michael A. Rynkiewich A. H. Mathias Zahniser USING CEREMONIES TO DISCIPLE ORAL LEARNERS AMONG THE TRIBAL PEOPLE IN BANGLADESH A Dissertation Submitted to the Facuhy of the E. Stanley Jones School of World Mission Asbury Theological Seminary by Roy C. Mclntyre In Partial Fulfillment Of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Missiology COMMITTEE MEMBERS Dr. Terry C. Muck, Mentor Dr. Michael A. Rynkiewich, Reader Dr. A. H. Mathias Zahniser, Reader 1 April, 2005 9:00 am �2005 Roy Clarence Mclntyre ALL RIGHTS RESERVED Table of Contents Tables ix Acknowledgements x Chapter 1 . An Introduction to Ceremonies as a Means of Making Disciples... 1 Experiences in Discipling 3 Definition of Terms 6 Orality 6 Ceremony 7 Disciple 8 Indigenous Disciple Making 9 Statement of the Research Problem 10 Sub-problems 1 1 Research Questions and Data Collected 12 Methodology 18 Analysis and Evaluation 20 Theoretical Framework 21 The Importance of the Study 28 iii Notes 29 2. The Cultural Context of Tribal People in Bangladesh 31 The Region of the Chittagong Hill Tracts 33 History of Christian People Movements in the Area 39 Karen 40 Garos 41 Khasis 42 Nagas and Mizos 43 The Tribal Groups Under Study 46 Chakma 48 Tripura 54 Mru 61 Emerging Common Themes 67 Religion 68 Orality 70 Human Rights Issues 70 Context of Change 71 Struggle for Survival 73 Notes 74 iv 3. The "Oral Majority" (Can people become true disciples without literacy?) 75 Oral Learning and Discipleship 80 Defining Orality 81 Where Orality has been Missed in Mission Work 84 Education 85 Communication 92 Social Interaction 95 Orality Works on its Own 98 Orality and the Christian Community in Bangladesh 104 The Oral Disciple - Findings from Research 108 Ceremonies Observed 1 09 Interviews with Religious Leaders and Adherents 112 Notes 116 4. Master the Ceremonies (Symbols, Ritual, and Festivals Transformed for Discipleship) 1 17 Symbol, Ritual, and Ceremony 118 Symbols 119 Rites of Passage 122 Ceremonies as Ritual Events 126 V Missiological Issues 130 Examples of Ceremonies 133 Drama 139 Festivals and Ceremonies in Bangladesh 143 Festivals 144 Christian Response 149 Ceremonies Designed for Disciple-making 155 Constructed Event for Discipling - Findings from Research. 160 Planning of the Hermeneutical Community 161 The Constructed Event 171 5. Discipling Among Tribals in Bangladesh "Many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip" 185 Toward More Contextual Discipling 188 Biblical Basis and Definition of Discipling 188 Mentoring 192 Actual Discipling 195 Contextualization in Discipling 198 Discipleship and the Christian Community in Bangladesh ... 208 The Barriers to Discipleship 208 Movements in the Right Direction 215 vi Discipling though Ceremony for Oral Learners - Findings from Research 220 Focus Group Findings 220 Hermeneutical Community Evaluation 232 Notes 239 6. Discipling Through Ceremonies in an Oral Context 241 Dynamic Equivalence in the CHT Context 242 Discipling through Indigenous Cultural Forms 246 Cross-cultural Discipling through Indigenous Ceremonies... 249 Contextualization of Indigenous Discipling 252 Summary of Missiological Implications 255 Contributions to Missiology 255 Recommendations for Discipling in Oral Contexts 257 Further Areas of Study 259 Appendixes A. Map of Bangladesh with Chittagong Hill Tracts 262 B. Religious Leader Survey 263 C. Pre-Ceremony Interview Schedule for Focus Group Participants 264 D. Post-Ceremony Interview Schedule For Focus Group Participants 267 vii E. Post-Event Evaluation Questions for Hermeneutical Community 268 F. Field Research Process 270 References Cited 271 viii Tables Table Page Themes from Observations and Interviews 115 2. - Focus Group Response to Question # 1 Teaching Received ... 222 3. Focus Group Response to Questions # 2 and 8 - Comparison/ Orality 224 - 4. Focus Group Response to Question # 3 Likes and Dislikes .... 227 - 5. Focus Group Response to Question # 4 and 5 Communitas .... 228 - 6. Focus Group Response to Question # 6 Non-Christian Response . 229 7. Focus Group Response to Question # 9 - Greater Commitment. 230 ix Acknowledgements For the past eleven years I have worked among the people of Bangladesh and developed a heart for the struggles that they face. Most of that time was spent with the tribal people in the Chittagong Hill Tracts whom I have grown to love and admire. This work is a result