Humanization

Leadership and the New Science, by Margaret Wheatly (Berrett-Koehler, 2006), is the attempt to rethink leadership in light of quantum theory’s radical reinterpretation of the cosmic order. The old Newtonian model no longer explains at a foundational level how the cosmos operates, nor does a Newtonian cosmic model offer true paradigms for how human beings act, relate, and perform, for human beings are a part of the created order, and, therefore, intrinsically act according to the ways and means of the cosmos—and that, she argues, is ordered chaos as opposed to a great cosmic mechanism. So, the root paradigm through which to operate is not mechanical, but organic. 

To align with the organic nature of reality, Dr. Wheatley argues that our corporate structures need to embrace more fully the human element in what we do. Instead of trying to make human beings conform to a mechanistic, artificial structure, our best institutions will be more free-form in nature—structures growing out of and adapting to a context, instead of imposing an artificial architecture onto a natural system, expecting people to conform to it. They will embrace more randomness, free thought, and creative impulse than is currently the norm. 

If we apply her thinking to the church, we can begin to identify some transformative changes that will be appropriate to our corporate life, both locally in congregations and more broadly in our Mid-Council organizations that will better correspond to the human beings comprising them.

We need to always acknowledge that we are a company of human beings. As such, all of our gatherings, communities, and organizations will be every bit as human as the people who comprise them. What that means is that we will have to attune to the needs, wants, and feelings of the people engaged in our work. We will have to take seriously our individuality even as we seek to create communities whose trademarks will be mutuality, interdependence, and generosity. We will have to take seriously what sort of environment is needed for people to feel comfortable enough to do the the work. That includes security, sanctity, and safety—essential foundational blocks from which creativity can flourish. 

In a more mechanistic model, people may feel inhibited in sharing their ideas because those ideas are out of conformity with the structures in place. Moreover, original thinking is discouraged because the assumption is that all the needed thinking was done in the construction of the institution—new thinking would only disrupt the established order. People are valued who conform to the rules, edicts, and definitions imposed from a higher authority. 

Stagnation, therefore, is never a surprise, even though we act like it when we find an old order turning to dust. It no longer fits the people as they are. But in order to get the fresh thinking necessary to keep up with the changing times and context, people need to feel free enough to question existing models, reimagine them, and deconstruct them to replace them with something new and more relevant. They need to know they will not be rejected, reprimanded, nor rebuked for standing outside the box. They need openness. They need affirmation. 

But, we will also need to acknowledge the inherent limitations, frailties, and fallibilities of the people engaged in the life and ministry of any communion. People are fallible. They will make mistakes. Failure will come. Rather than being mitigated, minimized, or marginalized, though, it needs to be planned for, accepted, and seen only as a piece of the process to get where we want to be. Some things work, some things don’t, and the joy is in the trying!

Finally, we will need to understand that no matter what the work is, it is always a matter of heart—the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of any endeavor flows directly from the meaning a person derives from it. If someone is not invested in the work, then not much will get done of any value—rote work kills; meaningful work thrives. The first source of this needed meaning comes through the valuation of human beings engaged in the work. If someone’s participation and presence is valued, then they will know they are important, and if they know they are important, they will more likely invest more of themselves in whatever work is being done.