Provision #709: Jesus Matters
by Bob Tschannen-Moran
Laser Provision
Jesus matters. Does that title surprise you? Delight you? Shock you? Offend you?
If so, then you probably have an opinion about Jesus. For the first 20 years of
my adult life, I had a strong opinion about Jesus. I was a spokesperson for
Jesus as a pastor in the United Church of Christ. In 1998, I took off that
mantle in order to pursue the art, science, and business of coaching. Since that
time, my opinions about Jesus have changed. I no longer see him as I once did,
but I still see him as important. That's not just because of his place in human
history; that's rather because of what his teachings and example can offer those
of us who find ourselves in positions of leadership. If you don't mind a little
theology, then I encourage you to read on. This Provision just might kindle a
few flames.
LifeTrek Provision
Before sharing a few reflections about Jesus, I want to start this Provision
with a shout out to my daughter, Bryn, and her loving partner, Andr้s Rodriguez.
My wife and I spent the last few days with them in Los Angeles, enjoying life
and preparing for their special wedding ceremony before family and friends,
which is planned for April 18, 2011 in Costa Rica.
Our time in LA included a show at the Magic Castle, along with 24 of their
closest friends. Many of these folks will be in Costa Rica as well, where the
guest list looks to be around 50. What makes for that kind of interest and
participation in a wedding? The quality of loving kindness that Bryn and Andr้s
have for each other and for others. In a world that is often too busy and too
competitive for love, people are thirsty for reminders of the things that are
important.
Which is a very nice segue to the focus of this week's Provision:
Jesus. For the 20 years that I was a pastor, before becoming a coach in 1998, I
officiated at many weddings and I learned a thing or two about the relevance of
Jesus to the modern world. Whether you are a Christian or not, Jesus has
important things to teach us about leadership. This Provision seeks to demystify
Jesus and to unpack those lessons for us all.
When I was in seminary, I was introduced to a book by a Swedish theologian,
Gustaf Aul้n, titled
Christus Victor. Written in 1930, between the two
Great Wars of the 20th century,
Christus Victor
identified three mechanisms of action for the saving work of Jesus:
- The
"classic view," which Aul้n argued was the predominant one for the first
thousand years of church history, is a cataclysmic view of how Jesus
accomplished what Christians believe he came to accomplish: the salvation of
the world. How did Jesus do that? By descending into hell and doing battle
with the devil, rising victorious from the grave on Easter morning. Up from
the grave he arose, proclaims a popular Easter hymn, breaking the bonds of sin and death.
There are many Christian sermons and songs based on this motif.
- The
"scholastic view," which Aul้n attributed to Anselm of Canterbury, an
11th century cleric and philosopher, takes a more legalistic view of how
Jesus did what he did: he sacrificed his life to pay the price for human
sin. Going back to ancient codes of righteous divinities requiring blood
sacrifices to appease their anger over moral and cultic infractions, Jesus
is here understood to be the sacrifice to end all sacrifices. Jesus pays the
debt, once and for all, protecting God's honor and dignity in the process.
- The
"idealistic view," which Aul้n saw arising at about the same time as the
"scholastic view" in the work of Peter Abelard, a medieval French
philosopher, theologian, and logician, takes a more subjective view as to
why Jesus matters. It's not that Jesus overpowered the devil or paid the
price for sin; it's rather that Jesus lived an exemplary life and died a
spectacular death that would move people to tears. By evoking compassion
Jesus brought salvation to those whose hearts were strangely warmed by the
graceful love that he displayed.
Theologians have long argued over whether or not these three views of the "atonement,"
of how a good God could be reconciled with evil people (at-one-ment), are compatible or
incompatible with each other. Many Christians want to have all three, and see no
internal contradictions. That's certainly how I started out in the church: singing all
the songs and accepting all the views without much thought or consideration as to what
I was really saying.
Over time, however, I've become increasingly troubled with the notion that the
Prince of Peace has to fight the devil or that a loving God has to extract a
blood sacrifice in order to be whole. Call me an idealist, in the words of
Abelard, but I no longer see how these three views fit together. The teachings
and witness of Jesus do, indeed, evoke compassion at least for me and it is
that very compassion that calls into question the other two possibilities.
I like the notion that Jesus matters because of the effect he has on people. I
can reach out and touch that. I can understand that. Best of all, I can share
that with others, even in a multicultural world, without being embarrassed. Jesus
matters not because of some metaphysical cosmology; Jesus matters because his
words and actions were compelling, conscious, compassionate,
courageous, composed, and creative. In a few short years he launched a movement
that changed the world and still lives on today. Talk about leadership!
Those qualities speak to me and have much to commend themselves to anyone in any
position of leadership, so let's consider each in turn.
-
Compelling. If Jesus had anything, he had charisma. People flocked to hear
him speak, to be touched by him, to look him in the eye, and to be loved by
him. On occasion, the crowds were so large that he was in danger of being
crushed by the press of the people. It's hard to say exactly what creates
such magnetism, but in Jesus' case we know he was famous for stories and
questions. Not just any old stories and questions, but really good ones.
Two things made his stories compelling: they were short and eye-opening. Too
many leaders are famous for long, boring speeches. Not Jesus. He was prone
to tell short stories with a twist, otherwise know as parables. His
questions worked the same way. They were not leading questions with an
implied right answer. They were open-ended questions that invited discovery
and possibility. When Jesus compared the ways of God to some unexpected aspect of human
experience, turning the tables on conventional wisdom, you can bet it made people think and grow.
-
Conscious. The press of those crowds was not an easy thing for Jesus to
manage, either in terms of his security detail or in terms of his personal
composure. That's why we read stories of his inner circle defending him against attacks, once with a sword, and telling people to go away
when they thought the demands were just too much. But Jesus would not
hear of that. He was always conscious and always engaged, beyond the limits
of mere mortals. How did
he do that? By taking the time to get away, to reflect, and to pray.
Those are necessary practices for any leader. I have written before about the
STOP Tool, which I learned from Tim Gallwey. STOP stands for Step
back, Think, Organize your thoughts, Proceed. Gallwey
writes about the importance of short STOPs, scattered throughout the day,
medium STOPs, at the start of the day or the week, and long STOPs, where we have
much longer periods of time to pull ourselves together
in the service of our "destiny, cause, and calling" (Lance Secretan). Jesus
took that time and we should too.
-
Compassionate. It was hard for me to decide where to put this
attribute, since
compassion was such a hallmark of Jesus' leadership. He was deeply rooted in
the notion that love was the be all and end all of both spiritual and moral
practices. The greatest commandment? To love God. The second greatest
commandment? To love people. Those two commandments are woven tightly
together. There's no way to do one without the other. That's why I decided
to put it in the center of my list: compassion lies at the core.
The relationship between the two kinds of love is like the tree and its shadow. Loving God is the tree;
loving people is the shadow. Those who climb the tree will sooner or later
cast a shadow. Those who labor in the shadow will sooner or later
look up and see the tree. By integrating these two elements so fully in his
life and work, Jesus became a paragon of compassion. People often commented
on the depth and breath of Jesus' love, especially with those rejected by
society. That, more than anything else, is what won people over.
-
Courageous. The fact that Jesus was compassionate did not make him a
wimp or a pushover. On the contrary, Jesus famously spoke his mind even when
the message was hard to hear. Take the rich man who came to Jesus wanting
advice on how to be made whole. Jesus told him to keep the commandments.
When that wasn't enough for the man, Jesus told him to sell everything he
owned and give the money to the poor. Now that was a tough word, and the man was unable to
bring himself to do it. Nevertheless, we are told that Jesus looked at the
man and loved him.
That's the compassion that makes courage possible. Jesus did not condemn the
man because he walked away in sadness and surprise. Jesus understood how
hard it was to feel both safe and venturesome. He understood the ambivalence
that comes when two or more needs compete for our energy and attention. So
when the wealthy man walked away, Jesus grieved the loss that made his
point: prosperity limits possibility. That assertion was shocking then and
it is shocking now. But Jesus didn't shy away from speaking hard truths. He
had the courage to speak his mind with both clarity and compassion.
-
Composed. Although Jesus occasionally expressed anger at injustice, he
never physically attacked others or destroyed their personhood. Even when
false charges were trumped up to build a case for his execution by the
religious and governmental authorities of his day, Jesus
remained composed enough to avoid retaliating in kind. That was, in fact,
the spectacle that Abelard found to be so moving: a wholly innocent man, condemned
to death, who nevertheless refused to retaliate and who remained loving to the
very end.
Leaders would do well to follow suit. Instead of being triggered by attacks
and criticisms, leaders would do well to remain composed. How do we do that?
Through intentionally and consciously reframing those attacks and criticisms as "tragic expressions of
unmet needs" (Marshall Rosenberg). By seeing the legitimacy of the
underlying need, leaders can look beyond unfortunate and often
counterproductive strategies to find new possibilities for moving forward.
Jesus did that and we can do it too.
-
Creative. Jesus was a master of possibility. He saw possibilities
where others, even his closest followers, saw only impossibilities. On many
occasions, the situation was so overwhelming that the disciples were ready
to call it quits. Send the people away, there is no food! Send the people
away, there is a storm coming! Send the people away, the man is dead! But
Jesus would hear none of that. See what you can do, he would say, or let me
see what I can do. Most of the time, such persistence paid off in the end.
If leadership is anything it is the art of possibility. We don't operate
from the vantage point of winners and losers. We don't give up when the
going gets tough. We don't limit our imagination when the value is clear and
the need is great. Instead, we become possibility thinkers. We go outside
the box to explore new approaches and design new experiments to see how
things might get done so as to bring the greatest good to the greatest
number. That was the framework and trust Jesus took the answer is
somewhere and that is the framework and trust that serves leaders well yet
today.
Compelling, conscious, compassionate, courageous, composed, and creative:
that was how Jesus carried himself and how he inspired others to be. Jesus did not
come to do things for people; he came to empower people to do things for themselves.
"You will do greater things than I have done," was among the promises he made to his
followers. Call it succession planning. Call it leadership. Call it Jesus
matters.
Coaching Inquiries: In what ways have you learned from or appreciated the words
and actions of Jesus? How could you become more compelling, conscious, compassionate,
courageous, composed, and creative in your way of being and in your relationships with
others? What would have to shift inside you for that to happen? How could you begin to
make it so?
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LifeTrek Readers' Forum (selected feedback
from the past week)
Editor's Note: The LifeTrek Readers' Forum contains selections from the comments
and materials sent in each week by the readers of LifeTrek Provisions. They do
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submit your comment, use our Feedback Form or
Email Bob.
Your Provision,
Justice Matters,
is so very awesome, astute - true and delightful to read. I struggle with principle,
always yielding to it, sometimes to my detriment. This piece that you wrote gives me more
energy and intention always when I stand for principle - the right and perfect principle.
Thank you for this renewal!!!!!
Thanks, for your Provision,
Justice Matters.
I hope you will build on this to reflect on US empire and democracy.
I have been reading your Provisions for nearly a decade, and have both enjoyed
and benefitted tremendously from your insight, and more importantly, your
commitment and focus on growth and embracing life and love.
I haven't written to you before, but I must comment simply and disagree with the
nature of how you characterized the self-immolation of Mohammed Bouazizi.
While I have the greatest empathy for this man and what he and others have
endured in Tunisia and other countries with little protections or focus on human
rights throughout history, I can in no way accept that his actions encompassed a
"self-sacrificing stand on principle."
Rather I imagine his actions were a final, last act of a desperate Arab man,
humiliated by a corrupt female police officer, who felt there was little more to
live for, and whose only recourse was to kill himself, and perhaps attribute the
manner of his awful death to those who would not even consider listening to him.
His own mother even referred to his humiliation as his probable motivation. I
know you are aware of the pivotal roles that gender plays in many cultures, and
for Bouazizi, there was nothing he could do to ameliorate the humiliation he
suffered and he saw little choice but to kill himself.
While his actions may indeed have helped spark protests that hopefully will lead
to improvement of human rights for millions of people (the early pages of this
chapter have just been turned) I had to remind myself that no matter what
happens to us in life, we have choices.
Mohammed Bouazizi's choices stemmed from the context of his life experience and
cultural mores. He saw death as the preferred alternative to life.
He was not "standing on principle" in terms of the corrupt civil structure that
existed, but more likely the humiliation that he as a poor, but proud male was
made to endure. To cite a "principled stand" as the reason for his actions would also
require accepting the belief that some form of "justice" may exist in this
context that relates specifically to gender in the Arab world, which most of us
in our more progressive cultures now see as oppressive and antiquated.
I believe that, intentionally or unintentionally, the cloaking of Bouazizi's
actions in terms of some "principled stand" may do more harm than good, and turn
a blind eye to the oppressive nature of some cultural norms, especially those
involving gender. That is a question perhaps for the evolution of individual
cultures in the decades ahead.
I think the greatest concern however, is that we would in any way cite as a
hallmark of one's life an individual suicidal action as some form of
"principled" stand that we would celebrate.
Instead I would hope that while we might remark on the direction of events, and
the challenging human rights records that do exist in many nations around the
world, we would encourage and work toward change in other ways.
I would also hope that we would remind ourselves and those we celebrate life
with that among all our choices perhaps our greatest, most loving, and even
most challenging action or choice is to... keep living.
I believe we can focus on the reasons for the choice to affirm the wonder and
beauty of Life both within ourselves and with those around us, in every way
possible... as you have done for many years. I share with you that central theme
in my own life, and wish you all the best in future.
(Ed. Note: Thanks for taking the time to write such a long and thoughtful reply.
What happened in Tunisia with Bouazizi is certainly a complicated situation that
I do not pretend to understand fully. It seems clear to me, however, that this
is a case of both and. Yes, Bouazizi was humiliated and violated in ways that
led to an emotional breakdown. But this was not just a matter of gender
politics. The violence was deeper, more profound, and more systemic than that.
Bouazizi had a chance to choose life, and he chose death. I am not celebrating
that choice and I am not recommending it to others. I grieve that choice as well
as the circumstances and conditions that led up to that choice. I pray that
justice will prevail as revolutions sweep the Arab world, since justice is the
key to peace and to all the other life-giving values that you and I both hold
dear. Thanks for recognizing the importance of that and for continuing with us
on the trek of life.)
I wanted to share my website/blog with you:
www.simplyrediscovered.com. Thanks
for all that you do every day to make this world a better place. Top
May you be filled with goodness, peace, and joy.
Bob Tschannen-Moran
President, LifeTrek Coaching International,
www.LifeTrekCoaching.com
CEO & Co-Founder, Center for School Transformation,
www.SchoolTransformation.com
Immediate Past President, International Association of Coaching,
www.CertifiedCoach.org
Author, Evocative Coaching: Transforming Schools One Conversation at a Time,
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