I’ve been toying with the idea of taking Taiwanese classes lately, and I keep reading that Maryknoll is the best. I was wondering if anyone could share their experiences there.
My question is can one go to Maryknoll and just study language, or is religion a fundamental part of it?
I’m not a Christian, and don’t particularly enjoy it when people try to make me one. They argue their circular arguments, round and round and round, and then pity you for not “getting it”.
I just want to learn Taiwanese, not be the subject of the proselytizing fantasies of some young missionary. Is this possible at Maryknoll?
[quote=“Redmenace”]I’ve been toying with the idea of taking Taiwanese classes lately, and I keep reading that Maryknoll is the best. I was wondering if anyone could share their experiences there.
My question is can one go to Maryknoll and just study language, or is religion a fundamental part of it?
I’m not a Christian, and don’t particularly enjoy it when people try to make me one. They argue their circular arguments, round and round and round, and then pity you for not “getting it”.
I just want to learn Taiwanese, not be the subject of the proselytizing fantasies of some young missionary. Is this possible at Maryknoll?[/quote]
Taiwanese is too difficult to learn without the help of Jesus Christ. In my experience, only those who’ve been saved can successfully learn Taiwanese. You are more than welcome to come to my church.
OK, many of the teachers at Maryknoll are priests or people involved in Church service. But then again, it’s a Catholic missionary organization. What did you expect?
When I went there, apart from the fact that I was (being forced to speak in Taiwanese) speaking to a foreigner priest, there was absolutely no religious content whatsoever. They even offered me a missionary visa to do textbook writing for them (not sure how THAT fits in with Catholic doctrine).
I wouldn’t worry too much about being forcefully converted. If you’re in a group class, your classmates may well be preparing for the mission field, but in my experience Catholic missionaries in Taiwan don’t tend to be so bent on proselytizing, but rather on service or social justice.
Relax. Other than learning ‘priest’, ‘nun’, and ‘minister’ in the first few chapters, there is absolutely no religious content in the first two textboks and the teachers had zero interest in my faith or lack thereof.
Actually, the focus on social work makes the textbooks much more lively than the stilted Mandarin textbooks I used.
Mandarin textbook:
A: 'Do you enjoy calligraphy or Taichi, Li san?
B:Oh, I like Calligraphy. It preserves the essence Chinese culture.
Taiwanese books:
A: ‘Why is A-chiok crying?’
B: ‘Her husband ran off with another woman’
If you do decide to study there, Redmenace, don’t forget to come back and tell us how it went!
I’d be prepared to bet that some, if not many, of your fellow-students will be among the coolest and most interesting ‘foreigners’ you’re likely to meet in Taiwan!
P.S. I’m not a Catholic and I haven’t studied there, but - as they say - I know a man who has!
I don’t know any more about Maryknoll than what you’ve already written.
