Appreciation or Appropriation? On Cultural Sharing

By Rev. Carol Bodeau

Hello friends,

We've been talking lately about non-violence, and how important it is to use our words mindfully and respectfully. This last week in Spiritual Practices, we had an interesting discussion about another aspect of showing respect: distinguishing between cultural appreciation and cultural appropriation. These can be tricky terms for us to understand, and the distinction is not always crystal clear. So I thought it might be useful to go through these concepts again, as a review and reminder for us.

As UU's, we really appreciate the wisdom of the world's cultures. We take inspiration from a wide range of religious traditions, from other's philosophies and art styles, and from their basic ways of being in the world. This is a good thing! To be inspired by things that are new, that we can learn from, is one of the greatest gifts of an inclusive and diverse faith tradition. We can get into some trouble, though, when we don't know how to 'appreciate' without 'appropriating' unintentionally. So what exactly is the difference?

To "appropriate" something means that we take it and use it as our own, without really giving any attention or credit to the source from which it came. And saying "this is from the eastern tradition," or "this is a black spiritual" isn't enough. We need to actually take the time to learn about and understand more deeply the people, the histories, the lived experience, of those who created a song or story or ritual. And, beyond that, we need to use our cultural curiosity to spur us to be materially better neighbors to those whose cultures we want to honor.

Our Himalayan bowl is a good example of cultural appreciation that we have to be careful about not 'appropriating.' Periodically, I make a point to discuss the actual cultural context out of which the bowl comes. I also make a point to speak about our resident bowl in the same spirit as the cultures where they originated. This is why I stopped calling it a "Tibetan" bowl, as the bowls are native to the entire Himalayan region. I also say that our bowl 'sings' rather than saying we 'play' it. And I treat the bowl as a sacred, living being with a spirit, rather than an inanimate object. These are deep ways of relating to the cultural context from which our Westside ritual arises.

Another way we can 'appreciate' rather than 'appropriate' is to carefully use only music or readings that we are willing to put into deep context. For example, at yesterday's service I made a point to name both the Hindu and Buddhist traditions associated with the chant music played by our musicians; and I included reference to the original language that chant was sung in, Sanskrit. We have also held whole services on the subject of kirtan music, as well as on the eastern traditions, to help us locate this music in a deep cultural context.

We often struggle, as UU's, to honor the cultures of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) peoples. As a predominantly white tradition, we want to appreciate these communities. But it can be hard to fully recognize that, unless we are actually part of those cultures, we don't fully understand them and need to be very careful about using them in ways that give full credit to specific individuals or cultural groups.

I actually have a fair amount of discomfort with some of the hymns in our hymnal, and hesitate to use them, because they are inadequately or only loosely attributed to other cultures. The song, "Come, Come Whoever You Are" brings us music from the Sufi mystical tradition, but leaves out possibly the most important words of the original poem by Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi: 'though you've broken your vows a thousand times," leaving us a version that many culturally conscious people feel is 'white-washed.' And there are lots of readings in the back of our gray hymnal that we really should only use with a fair amount of contextualization.

This is something we UU's are constantly working to improve on, and something that can cause some challenging emotions for us.

I plan to do a service on this topic in coming months, so we can talk about it more fully. But in the meanwhile, what do you think about cultural sharing? More importantly, how do you feel about it? It isn't a topic we will resolve in just one conversation, but it's a conversation worth having.

In faith and hope,

Rev. Carol