We need institutions, and they disappoint us. That puts all of us in a bind.
We depend on institutions to organize our daily activities, from driving to schooling to recycling. We may feel compelled to entrust our health care, our search for information and our spiritual vitality to institutions. Even when we don't choose to interact with institutions, we rely on their structures, traditions and services.
Yet sometimes, the more we know about an institution, the less we trust it. Why? Because over and over again, we witness institutions acting to preserve themselves even as their employees and constituents suffer.
Occasionally, we get our hopes up that we can trust a particular institution. Maybe one champions a cause that is beyond itself, like universal clean water or freedom for the unjustly imprisoned or health care for the forgotten. Perhaps we see the institution reflect its missional commitments by selecting women or people of color as senior leaders. From the outside, we can see evidence that the institution is creating the conditions for all people to thrive.
But from the inside of the institutions where we serve, what does trustworthiness look like?
Read more from Dave Odom » |
Given the nature of human beings and institutions, at some point relationships become unsteady. And repairing trust can be a challenge for leaders, writes the managing director of Alban at Duke Divinity.
Read more from Nathan Kirkpatrick » |
At a time when the social fabric is frayed, the church has an important role to play in reweaving community, drawing on the practices of hospitality and trust, says a theologian and professor emeritus of Christian ethics.
Read more from Christine Pohl » |
It might feel silly -- or even scary -- but improvisational theater can help people develop confidence as individuals and as members of a team.
Learn more from Greg Hohn » |
| | NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER |
A Guide to Ministry Self-Care: Negotiating Today's Challenges with Resilience and Grace by Richard Olson, Ruth Lofgren Rosell, Nathan Marsh, Angela Barker Jackson
Ministry has never been an easy path, and the challenges of today's changing church landscape only heighten the stress and burn-out of congregational leaders.
A Guide to Ministry Self-Care offers a comprehensive and up-to-date overview of both the causes of stress and strategies for effective self-care. Written for both new and long-time ministers, the book draws on current research and offers practical and spiritual insights into building and maintaining personal health and sustaining ministry long term. The book addresses a wide range of life situations and explores many forms of self-care, from physical and financial to relational and spiritual.
Learn more and order the book » |
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