FAITH AND THE IMAGE OF GOD AMONG YOUNG BELIEVERS IN BENIN: QUANTITATIVE SURVEY AND COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS.

The cultural environment in which an individual lives and grows up undoubtedly shapes the relationship to God, religiosity, and faith, and it has a certain influence on the creation of an image of God. The encounter of another religion, especially from the Western culture, with the domestic cultural environment can cause admiration or an attitude of caution or rejection, but also the possibility of partial acceptance of its values. Such reaction elements can easily be observed in the so-called mission countries that accept the novelty of the Christian message. With the aim of examining the perception of the influence of the cultural environment on understanding and perceiving God, religiosity and faith, a survey was conducted among 1062 young believers in the West African state of Benin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]