David Hayward shared some thoughts on spiritual independence, community, and authority that are worth considering carefully and reflecting on \u2013 if you choose to, of course. He also shared a cartoon with a rather naughty play on words, but one that works particularly well in relation to this topic! You can catch a glimpse of it in the preview below, and I\u2019ll also include it as a reward for those who read this post all the way to the end. I think a key thing that many people forget is that even if you delegate or give away your authority to decide certain matters, you are the one doing so and thus the authority is still yours. Someone may have the power to punish you in some ways for not going along with them, but even then the authority is yours to decide whether to take a risky stand against them, or to allow yourself to be threatened into silence and compliance. The authority is always ultimately yours, even in the very act of ceding it to another.<\/p>\n
https:\/\/nakedpastor.com\/you-can-be-spiritually-independent\/<\/p>\n
On the other hand, Red Letter Christians highlighted the issue of not being accountable in community to one another as a potential source of problems.<\/p>\n
https:\/\/www.redletterchristians.org\/the-evolution-of-sin\/<\/p>\n
And so there is a problem at both extremes, or perhaps the two ends of the spectrum meet up. Without a sense of community, people can get away with things, and yet a community can also work to hide abuse and silence victims. What is best is perhaps a community that supports people and holds them accountable, regardless of their status or role, while always looking to protect individuals (especially the most vulnerable), rather than merely protecting the reputation of leaders and the community as a whole. (On this point see also Emma Higgs\u2019 post about climate change<\/a>, which touches on individualism and community in Christianity.)<\/p>\n Peter Wehner addressed this<\/a> in relation to politics:<\/p>\n People who are part of a tribe\u2014political, philosophical, religious, ethnic\u2014are less willing to call out their own side\u2019s offenses. That\u2019s human nature. To be sure, some are more willing to show independence of judgment than others, but none shows complete intellectual independence. I certainly didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Some of this has to do with feelings of solidarity, of not wanting to alienate those whose affirmation and support are important to us. Some of it has to do with the fact that our brains filter information differently, depending on whether it confirms or challenges our preexisting political commitments and affiliations. When we\u2019re part of a team, we have a natural tendency to let our sympathies shape our views and opinions of others. As a result, we perceive the world differently, often more narrowly and sometimes incorrectly.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n David Hayward also addressed the natural connection between church culture (not as it has to be, but as it commonly is) and abuse:<\/p>\n https:\/\/nakedpastor.com\/the-abuse-embedded-in-church-culture\/<\/p>\n