From the People's Warden
Insight, Authority and Power
by Adrian Peetoom
Those of us who were then already well into adulthood will remember the social unrest of 1968 and subsequent years. Student riots in both Europe and the US. One of the most shocking events was the Ohio National Guard killing four university students. The ongoing Vietnam War was increasingly met with sit-ins and other forms of civil disobedience. But all this was about more than Viet Nam. As a number of writers have pointed out, a profound disillusionment with political and institutional authorities was in the air. Power was a matter of grabbing it and keeping it at all costs, democracy was a farce, and justice hard to find, so many believed, including those who were engaged in the Civil Rights movement.
Against that background Dr. Peter Schouls, for a time Head of the Philosophy Department at UoA, wrote a slim book called "Insight, Authority and Power: A Biblical Appraisal." I remember reading it and discussing it with friends. And while I don't own it any more (some books simply disappear without owners being aware!), and has long been out of print, its impression on me at the time has survived for well over 40 years. Prompted undoubtedly by recent developments in politics (Senate scandal, "Rob Ford" and recent revelations of governments spying on citizens and other governments so as to control them), memory of what the book told me at the time has been revived. So what did it say, if I remember correctly?
In a nutshell, power should only be given to those who have genuine authority rooted in demonstrated and acknowledged insight. That goes for power in political as well as institutional governments (including churches?). I no longer remember, and can only imagine, the specific biblical reasons Schouls offered at the time. But surely insight is a matter of wisdom, a quality of humanness lauded especially in the Bible books of Ecclesiastes and Proverbs.
So what is insight? We have all met people who seem to be unusually adept at grasping what is required for the wellbeing of themselves and others. Who in their silences, in their words, and in their deeds, clearly indicate that they profoundly understand the situation, and know what should be thought and done. The recently buried Nelson Mandela clearly was such a person. He knew that reconciliation, and not revenge, was the required road ahead. Insight of the highest order. That insight resulted in Mandela instantly acquiring (being given) authority: the moment he was released he became the most powerful politician in South Africa. The existent power structure couldn't move anymore without his input. Before long that authority culminated in him being given power, that is, being elected President of the new South Africa. He demonstrated his insight also when he proceeded to single out the (then "white only") South African rugby team for special support during the world championships, risking alienation by black South Africa but demonstrating the true meaning of love for all.
I have seen insight demonstrated all through my life. I have served on many boards and in many committees, and have regularly met board and committee members whose word (often few words but at the right time) tended to settle matters. They knew how to place the facts within large frameworks and point the way towards shalom for all. They were not always the most educated, nor the most eloquent. But their insight (wisdom) found instant recognition from those who witnessed them, and these witnesses gave him or her authority, that is, support for what he or she proposed or pointed to. And in most cases, those who recognized insight also elected such an insightful person to official power positions, chairpersons, delegates, etc.
I think especially of one such person I have known. Born in a family of limited means, he didn't finish high school but began his working life early. As husband and father he delivered milk to homes in the city in which he lived. People in his church noticed the insight of this young man, and his reputation grew enough for him to become a preacher even with only partial formal educational requirements. As a minister in a number of congregations his reputation continued to grow, and he came to become president of the Christian Labour Association of Canada (CLA C), as well as the Institute of Christian Studies (ICS), the latter a highly specialized post-graduate academic school in Toronto. And officially he didn't even have a high school diploma! His demonstrated insight gathered recognition of his authority, culminating in his being elected to positions of power. (He also understood the biblical injunction which designates power as opportunities to serve.)
It seems to me that this sequence is often forgotten these days. Instead, we are surrounded by naked tussles for power, for power as an end in itself, power separated from insight and earned authority. It seems to me that is what the recent Senate scandal, the machinations of the PMO (the whip of our PM), and the Toronto Ford brothers are demonstrating. Power for its own sake. But I see it also in the pressure large corporations are putting on the Alberta government to put no thoughtful (insightful) barriers on the roads to unlimited exploitation of oils sands resources. Naked economic power in action. And I've seen this kind of power tussled for also in far more modest organizations, "little" committees and boards. (I'd rather not review my own organizational past too closely!).
Perhaps Schouls' legacy should remain alive amongst us. When we consider who should serve us with power, perhaps we should give careful consideration whether insight (wisdom) is demonstrated and authority is earned. Not so easy to judge. But a safeguard against us becoming party to the establishment of tyranny.
