TO FOLLOW...OR NOT TO FOLLOW THAT IS THE QUESTION.

By Trish Patrick in All Sorts

what light does Jesus shed on what true leadership is like and what true followers are like?

TO FOLLOW...OR NOT TO FOLLOW THAT IS THE QUESTION.
With fascination and interest I listened and watched Tony Blair responding to the findings of the Chilcot Report, a report he must surely have been secretly dreading over a number of years. The Inquiry seemingly left no stone unturned, taking six years to research and findings published in six sizeable tomes. The conclusions drawn leaving no doubt that the invasion of Iraq by Britain, USA was ill-advised. 'Lack of consultation with relevant entities, lack of transparency in process, lack of cabinet debate, challenge and rigour, the decision to invade has had tragic and far reaching consequences.'
Perhaps one of the most telling and chilling of Tony Blair's comments was his promise to George Bush that ...'we will be with you whatever'. The desire to 'follow' the US uncritically is not uncommon. Our struggle to be nuclear free deeply annoyed the US and many NZers, and I well remember Helen Clark on the receiving end of much criticism when she
refused to allow NZ to be part of the ill-advised Iraq invasion. Not much has changed. Our present government is not slow to follow the wishes of any power with economic muscle, be it USA, UK, Australia, Saudi Arabia, China to mention a few.
Being 'followers' of anything or anyone, demands of us certain responsibilities.
Uncritically following because someone is slick with their rhetoric and charming as well is tempting but potentially disastrous. Several reasons we may abdicate our responsibilities might be... *Feeling overwhelmed with information, or lack of it.
*Lack of time and resources. *Feeling our voice doesn't matter because it wont be heard by those in the halls of power.
There are lots of reasons why we as individuals might not want to get involved ...all valid.
However, there may be far-reaching consequences if we default on due diligence and we must be prepared to live with the consequences of that. Brexit being a recent example of such a failure.
We as a church claim to be followers of Jesus and his way. Do we do this unquestioningly, relying on the claims of orthodoxy because we are familiar with that, (in spite of the fact that it's no longer working for us)? Or are we doing our own journey of discovery and asking the difficult questions, finding equally difficult, or perhaps no definitive answers?
Is the Connexion following good process when voting on influential roles with far-reaching consequences for the future? Are issues about Church governance being thoroughly debated around the parishes before decisions are made? Is necessary information disseminated in a timely way so people can do their homework and make informed
choices? Or must we submit to less than democratic and discerning decision making?
Getting back to Tony Blair. Clearly he sincerely believed his decision to invade Iraq to be the right one in spite of very convincing evidence to the contrary. The human brain is very good at enabling an individual to go to a place of denial when faced with difficult truths. Even when the UN were unconvinced that invasion was a good idea, Tony couldn't 'hear' that. He was convinced England faced a real threat because the Bush Administration told him so. This threat proved to be based on faulty intelligence. He did not see the importance of giving his cabinet the opportunity to rigorously debate the issues. His determination to follow the Bush administration, (and probably personal hubris,) clouded his judgement, even when presented with convincing alternative information to the contrary.
Jesus, when asked by a gentile woman for help because her daughter was ill, took the advice of the disciples (leadership) and told her to go away. However, the woman, bless her, stood her ground and told Jesus he was wrong. Very respectfully I'm sure!!! That must have set Jesus back on his heels, but HE LISTENED! and had the grace to think about her retort and, realizing the truth of her words, conceded she was right, praised her for her intestinal fortitude and faith, and healed her daughter. (Matt15:20-28)
A cataclysmic moment!! Jesus, a JEWISH RABBI admitting he had been wrong to a GENTILE WOMAN! In front AND in spite of his followers. Wow!! He had humility and an impressive degree of self awareness which subsumed his male ego enabling him to see the truth of the situation. I wonder if Tony will ever be able to do likewise? Would we be able to do likewise?
Our General Elections are soon to be held. Whose leadership are we going to follow?
Whose policies are most aligned to foster gospel values of care and compassion, supported by an ethical economic system where justice and fairness for the most vulnerable are at the top of the pyramid rather than the bottom. Maybe this was what Jesus meant when he talked about 'the last being first and the first being last' ( Matt 20: 16 ).
Following any sort of leadership requires us to ask questions of it. If that leadership is worth its salt it will welcome questions and the subsequent debate and listen carefully.
It is the hallmark of authentic leadership and authentic following.
Trish Patrick