August 28, 2014

Leading from the Side: Authority and Power

Part 2 of 4. Read Part 1 here, Part 3 here, and Part 4 here.

When you begin to lead from the side in your church, I have found that people will question your authority, question your power, and question your ability to be a leader. To stand firm in my commitment to lead from the side it has helped me to be able to explain why I am allowed to do this, why I am encouraged to do this, why I am called to do this. You can do this, and while you are at it, you can explain to your fellow congregants that they are called, too.

Calling is a big word, and the authority to lead is a big idea. How can I so broadly claim that you have this authority? Quite simply, baptism is a call to ministry, Church is a gathering of ministers, ministers lead both in the church and in the world. Ordained leadership is a good and powerful thing, but it is not the only thing, nor even the primary thing, that keeps a church gathered together discerning God’s ministry. The primary thing is the people of the church listening for God’s guidance for being in the world. It would be great if every church was developing programs to help you discern your calling, and was empowering you to lead ministries both within your church and in the world. But whether or not your local congregation is helping you with your calling, God is calling all baptized Christians to ministries of leadership. If you wish your congregation would change, you have the authority to be one of the leaders of that change.

Formal authority comes from titles, informal authority comes from trust. To be an effective leader of a team, a guild, a committee, a project, a board, a vestry; to be an effective lay leader, moderator, warden; to be an effective leader with or without a title; to be an effective leader of any kind, you must be trustworthy. And if you are trustworthy you already have informal authority that you may or may not be using. What keeps many trustworthy people from using their authority is fear of power. 

Honestly, I find myself wanting to deny my power, deny my autonomy, to deny my ability to make change. In doing that I am forgetting how often change is started by people who are not in charge. Women got the vote without being able to vote (they didn’t wait for it to be handed to them). African Americans fought against slavery while they were slaves (they didn’t wait until they were free). Colonialized nations brought down colonial rule while they were not in government (they didn’t wait to be handed the reins).

Power is not only a force that oppresses; power is also resistance against oppression. Power is not only pushing people around; power is supporting people against pushers. Power is not only top-down; power is side-by-side. Power is the force of working together, the honesty of speaking truth, the humility of making space for those who are silenced. You have power; I have the power, the question is only whether we will develop your ability to use that power effectively.

You can learn the skills needed to use power effectively, to wear formal authority lightly, to embrace the informal authority you have been given. You can learn to be a leader who works from the side.

This post first appeared on The Mission Institute website and is reprinted with permission. 
The Mission Institute is a collaborative venture of Episcopal Divinity School, Episcopal City Mission, and the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts. It offers congregations and communities innovative learning opportunities that nurture leaders, strengthen communities, support spiritual growth, and advance positive transformation in our societies. Learn more about The Mission Institute here or visit their Facebook page