Governing and obeying

WE need to take a closer look at our understanding and attitude towards these unavoidable human affairs of governing and obeying, leading and following. While in general there is still an observable stability in this area of our social life, we cannot deny that a lot of problems also hound it.

We should not wait for things to degenerate into a big crisis before we start correcting basic misconceptions and wrong attitudes and ways in it. Disturbing symptoms are gathering in families, offices, schools, dioceses and parishes, and of course, the country in general. We can commence clarifying issues now.

Truth is, this business of governing and obeying has been detached from its proper foundation, context and purpose. Instead of basing it on our human nature and God’s design for us, it simply operates under the impulses of sheer practicality and convenience that cannot avoid the play of dirty tricks and deception.

Instead of doing it in its ethical and moral context and purpose, it cannot help getting trapped by human machinations and schemes. It seems it’s not anymore a matter of whether something is right or wrong, fair or unfair. It’s more whether it is smart and clever, period.

Because of these, both those who govern and those who obey get suspicious and uneasy with each other in varying degrees until they reach a flash point. Those who govern tend to abuse their power. Those who obey feel taken advantage of. Those who govern think they are better than those who have to obey.

Lost is the original reality that both governing and obeying are actually two sides of the same coin, different in function but equal in dignity, since they correspond to our human need to organize ourselves in any level of society.

They are supposed to be done out of love so that the common good can be attained. Outside of this context and purpose, we would be distorting things and generate wrong attitudes and working and living habits.

Sad to say, these are what we are seeing aplenty these days. Governing cannot seem to avoid the trappings of pride, arrogance and vanity. Its idea of leading and managing is easily contaminated with a control mentality, instead of doing it as sincere service and enhancing the free cooperation of the others.

Obeying is seen as an assault to freedom, and is given mainly because of a monetary price or other material and worldly considerations. It’s hardly viewed as fostering one’s personal dignity. It’s over-all effect on one’s soul is more negative than positive.

No one, strictly speaking, whether he governs or he obeys, is superior or inferior to the other. The unavoidable ranking in our society is just a functional necessity, given our human condition. It does not erase the basic equality among all of us.

There is still a lot of clarification, purification and enrichment to be done in our culture so that it can reach the fullness of its understanding regarding governing and obeying. We need to liberate this part of our culture from its parochial framework. It has to be updated, since it seems trapped in the ancient past of pagan culture.

This Christian concept of governing and obeying can flow from St. Paul’s description of the different parts of the body working together in different ways for the good of the body.

That’s in Chapter 12 of his First Letter to the Corinthians (12,12ff) where he also said that those parts that seem to be feeble, less honorable and uncomely are actually more necessary and ought to be given more honor and comeliness.

But, alas, these Christian refinements are hardly reflected in our culture where there is a strong fascination and lusting for dominating others, for public and earthly honors, for positioning, and where manual work is automatically considered as lowly if not demeaning and inhuman.

Thus, it made a big, indelible impression on me when as a young college student back in the 70s, I witnessed for the first time in a very clear, patent way, how this Christian and human way of governing and obeying in a spiritually inspired organization I got involved in was lived.

I saw how the head of the organization became one day the gardener of the house, and vice-versa. The switch was just in a matter of a day, and I didn’t see any trace of crisis on the faces of those involved. On the contrary, they were both happy and eager to take on the responsibilities.

That observation changed me deeply.