Women and men religious involved in the formation of those in various stages of Temporary Profession came together online recently for a webinar titled ‘Formation through the Lens of Interculturality’, hosted by Catholic Religious Australia (CRA).
Presenter Tim Norton SVD, a Divine Word Missionary priest and newly appointed Auxiliary Bishop for Brisbane, working full time in the area of interculturality as a course director for his congregation, Zoomed in from Nemi, Italy. Meanwhile, participants joined the webinar from across Australia, New Zealand, Solomon Islands, Vietnam, Kiribati, the Philippines and South Africa – illustrating CRA’s reach is extending beyond its shores.
A screenshot of some of the Religious who took part in a recent CRA webinar on interculturality.
Carmel Warnock, CRA Committees and Projects Coordinator, said the event was held in response to an expressed desire of a proactive network of religious formators to be able to better identify, understand and respond to the needs of those involved in the formation of our Temporary Professed religious, who come from diverse cultural backgrounds.
“Tim Norton SVD, an ‘Aussie’ by birth and upbringing, has traversed the intercultural journey himself through his years of religious life and ministry,” Carmel said. “He has the gift of being able to lead a group like ours through the complexities of intercultural difference with engaging, down-to-earth illustrations of the effects of our primary culture on how we interpret the world.”
Tim spoke of the ‘iceberg concept of culture’: there are a small number of cultural elements ‘above the water line’ 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 ‘below the water line’ which are primarily outside one’s awareness (such as deep-seated attitudes, beliefs and values). How do we invite another to tell their story and deepen our own awareness of what is ‘below the water line’? This is part of the challenge of intercultural interaction, whether it be based on ethnic, generational or gender differences.
Participants clearly welcomed the conversation, in both content and communication style. Commenting on the highlight of the seminar, one attendee pointed to “Tim’s practical examples and clarity of terminology”, such as the differences between monocultural and multicultural communities, and between ethnocentrism and cultural relativism.
“It allowed me to depth my understanding of the meaning of ‘culture’, ‘multi-cultural’, ‘cross-cultural’ and ‘inter-cultural’,” said another participant.
Yet another welcomed “the challenge to do some more ‘self-work’ in this area, and the opportunity to meet the others in the small [break out] groups”.
Mel Dwyer FdCC from the organising committee observed, “Seminars like this encourage us to embrace intercultural dynamics with joy and appreciation. They help us to be more aware of our own cultural formation as well as that of others, and of how we can better relate, listen, appreciate, work with and give feedback to one another as we journey together”.
“It’s clear that religious life in Australia is evolving with great diversity and keeping the mission alive,” said Anne Walker, CRA’s National Executive Director.
If you missed out and would like to view the presentation by Tim Norton SVD, find it here on the CRA Youtube channel.