God’s Hierarchy

One of the most highly contested resolutions at General Synod – and the only one that was voted down – was to change the UCC leadership model. It would have allowed the General Minister to choose Associates instead of the entire Synod voting on those positions. It failed, not because we don’t trust the board or the General Minister; they are all amazing and trustworthy people, but because our church is democratic in nature, and a lot of us felt we would lose the ability to be an integral part of that process. It makes sense for the GM and Board to work in concert with the body of delegates, of course, but some of that, I felt, would have been lost. I grew up in a top-down church, and while this change would not have been the same, it felt similar to me.

When I was writing my dissertation on leadership and ordination at Alvernia University, one of my major points was that hierarchy is a human construct, and that churches with complicated hierarchical structures are not living into God’s hierarchy as much as they could. In 1st Corinthians 15, the Apostle Paul wrote, “When all things are subjected to Jesus, then the Son Himself will also be subjected to the one (God) who put all things in subjection under (Jesus or God?), so that God may be all in all.” This verse complicates my understanding of the nature of Jesus (which is another topic), but what it says to me is that God is the only authority; no human can have dominion or control over any other. This also blows the whole fundamentalist view of male/female roles out of the water. No person, regardless of gender, is to be subject to another. We elect leaders who work for us, not the other way around.

Democracy, whether in government or the church, is frustrating. Giving every person a voice takes a lot of time, and we are impatient beings. Many people would rather have someone make the decisions for them; it feels more direct – simpler. But that isn’t how we are supposed to live. None of us is autonomous, neither are we supposed to be ruled by others. Working things out together gives us agency and voice, and as many of us have said before, when you get 5 people together, you are likely to have 6 opinions. The best world is one in which we are all equally respected and listened to. The lack of that equality creates tyranny. Tyranny creates injustice. Tyranny is evil, and God is all about justice. Something we should keep in mind these days, I think.

Prayer – Holy God, we are fickle beings who are looking for answers. Guide us so that we can find them together. Amen.

Today’s art was part of “Cartooning for Peace: the art of democracy” in Atlanta in 2016. The artist is Xavier Bonilla, known at Bonil.

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