The Use and Abuse of Power
Many of you have been surprised to learn that an innocent woman (Dawn=20
Rowan) can have her property =91legally=92 stolen by the Australian=20
Government. Not only that: Five S.A. Government departments =91lost=92 th=
e=20
relevant cohort of documents before the court-case began. Was anyone=20
prosecuted for that? No. A thick folder of many of these documents =96=20
carefully pasted together from quotes in other memos =96 was stolen from =
a=20
friend=92s house where they were lodged for safe-keeping (nothing else wa=
s=20
taken). Who would have done that? [1]
Reinhold Niebuhr used to say that the worst evils in the world are=20
perpetrated by =91good=92 people who do not know they are not doing good.=
=20
The evil in institutions is greater than the sum of the evil of the=20
individuals within them (Robert Merton).
Power is mostly abused by humans on the basis of race, class/poverty
and=20
gender. On the last one: conservative Brethren scholar Professor=20
F.F.Bruce said you cannot begin a Christian theology of gender unless=20
you look through the lens of Galatians 3:28: the old racist, classist=20
and sexist divisions were removed by Christ. The early Christians dealt=20
with the race issue fairly well; the abolition of slavery had to wait
18=20
centuries; and freedom for women 20 centuries!
So women are free in Christ to exercise any ministry consonant with=20
their Spirit-gifting (but sensitive sometimes to cultural constraints,=20
as Paul suggested to the Corinthians about head coverings). Twelve
women=20
in the N.T. are described as =91ministers=92 etc. =96 the same words used=
for=20
men. [2]
So if God wants a woman =96 Deborah =96 to lead the people of God, then=20
that=92s O.K. (Some of us wouldn=92t have let God do that!). I live with =
one=20
of the best =91ministers=92 I=92ve known: she was an elder and baptized p=
eople=20
back in the 1970s (we didn=92t know any Baptist woman who=92d done that) =
and=20
has been an excellent pastor at three of our churches!
Rowland Croucher
http://jmm.aaa.net.au
[1] http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/4728.htm
[2] http://jmm.aaa.net.au/articles/8195.htm
--=20
Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher
http://jmm.aaa.net.au/
(20,000 articles 4000 humor)
Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/
Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/
Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/
