There were over 100 religious there attending the conference. Feeling a bit out of place John tried to humor himself with the thought that at least the line for the rest room won't be long for him. They have unisex rest rooms. Later ONE Josephite priest came in. The conference was really very good.
Faith is expressed through cultural expressions.
We use language, faith expressions, and other concrete, visible objects. When we make a statue of Mary, she will appear to be of one race or another. When we choose music, art, popular religious expressions, they are all rooted in one culture or another. More importantly, each culture has perceptions, values, and judgments about what is good, beautiful, respectful, etc. These perceptions are learned implicitly and are usually unspoken, even unconscious.