Narrative
“Stories matter. Many stories matter. Stories have been used to dispossess and to malign, but stories can also be used to empower and to humanize. Stories can break the dignity of a people, but stories can also repair that broken dignity. . . . when we reject the single story, when we realize that there is never a single story about any place, we regain a kind of paradise”. – Chimananda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie shared those words at the end of her Ted Talk entitled “The Danger of a Single Story.” Her TED Talk has been viewed nearly 25 million times since she gave her powerful talk in 2009. Her talk focuses on what can happen and what can be lost when we look at the world exclusively through the lens of our own culture and our own experience.
Our story, our narrative, is shaped by our context, by our experiences, by our family, and by our friends. Our story, our narrative, is the tint in the glasses through which we see the world. It colors the pictures we see, gives context to the stories we encounter, and guides our interpretation of events. As Adichie points out, when we assume there is only one story, our story, then we intentionally or unintentionally reject those who have a different story than our own and we risk missing the fullness of God’s wonderfully diverse creation.
One key for growing in relationship with our community is to begin to understand the stories, the narratives, that exist in a community and bind a community together.
You can use the following questions to help you unearth the narrative that exists in your community. Begin by considering these questions as a team and then begin to think about how you can ask these questions of others who represent a broad cross-section of your community. When you talk with your neighbors, listen for what they believe about God, for the core beliefs that shape their lives, and for the ways that they are shaped by the stories of others.
Reflection by Pastor John Wertz, Jr.
Reflection Questions for Narrative
The list of questions is adapted from The Church as Movement, pg. 193-194.
- What are the key slogans of this community?
- What are the prime landmarks, and how do they shape the narrative of this community?
- What kind of music do people listen to and what story do the lyrics call them into?
- What are people’s dreams and hopes?
- What are their fears and stresses?
- What do people think about God, Jesus and the church?
- What places of worship are available, and what do they tell us about this community?
- How do people think about money and power?
- What are the idols in this community?
- Who has “played God” in this community, and how has that shaped the story being told?”
- What are important moments in the history of this community?