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What is corruption?

According to my dictionary, corruption is “acting dishonestly in return for money or personal gain”.  Most people have some interest in money and personal gain because, for most people, money and personal gain are attractive things.  We live in an imperfect world and, inevitably, some people will act dishonestly to get these attractive things.  So, all human organizations will include some people who act corruptly at some time.  Businesses, political parties, government departments, schools, universities, police, armed services and, of course, churches, will all experience corruption at some time.  Corrupt behavior is inevitable

Corrupt behavior is generally regarded as shameful or criminal.  Unfortunately, when corruption is discovered, often the first reaction of people inside an organization is to try to conceal it.  Their reason for concealing it, usually, is that if the corruption becomes known people will lose confidence in the organization.  But when the corruption and its concealment become known, the concealment will make it more likely that people will lose confidence in the organization.  We know that all organizations experience corruption at some time, so people won’t be surprised to hear that corruption has happened, and they may be interested to hear how the organization responds to corruption when it happens.

What we need is a culture in which we recognize that, when corruption happens, it is in everyone’s best interest to ensure that it is not concealed but managed in the best interests of all people who have an interest in the organization – as far as that is possible.

If any member of an organization is tempted to act dishonestly, they are more likely to give in to that temptation if they think they will be protected if they are found out.  If, however, they think they will not be protected, they are likely to give more thought to the consequences of their actions.  Therefore, an organization that admits that corruption has occurred, takes action, and states what action has been taken, will reduce corruption within its ranks.

 

Corruption, abuse and conflict in Churches

Christian organizations are certainly not immune from corruption, and it’s important to remember that corruption is not just about money – corruption is acting dishonestly in return for money or personal gain.  Personal gain includes gaining power over others.  It includes trying to get your own way.  It includes all forms of abuse including sexual abuse, domestic violence, emotional abuse and bullying.

What should we Christians do when these things happen in our communities?  Well, what did Jesus say we should do?

Jesus said:

“If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one.  But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses.  If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” (Matthew 18:15-17)

Jesus said that if you have a problem with a brother or sister in the church, the very first thing you should do is talk to that person, and that person alone.  I know this is difficult, but going and talking to your abuser is treating them, your sister or brother in Christ, with respect and love.  This is treating them the way you would like to be treated yourself – the way Jesus tells us to treat others.  If they won’t listen to you, Jesus says you should take one or two others with you and talk to them again.  If they still won’t listen to you, you take the matter to the whole church community.  This is what Jesus tells his followers to do.  (Note that Jesus does not tell us to talk to a priest or pastor.  Why not?  You might like to read the article “What did Jesus say about church leadership?”  Link below.)

The conduct required by Jesus on these intensely difficult occasions, is very different to what usually happens when we humans have a problem with someone else.  So often, our first reaction is to look for sympathy and support from others – so, we don’t talk to the person we have the problem with, we talk to other people who, we hope, will see things the way we do.  This is how conflict starts in a community.  This is how factions form.  Talking to others, rather than the person we have the problem with, is opposite to what Jesus tells us to do in these situations.

I know how difficult it is to talk to an abuser from personal experience.   I know it can be very, very difficult for the victim of abuse to talk to their abuser about the abuse.  It is particularly difficult when the abuser has power and/or authority within a community or organization.  (Again, you might like to read the article “What did Jesus say about church leadership?”  Link below.)    But Jesus tells us to do this just once.  If the abuser refuses to listen, Jesus tells us to get support from others.  It’s difficult, but this is what Jesus tells us to do, and if we are doing what Jesus wants us to do, our loving Father will give us the strength and wisdom we need to do it.

Experts disagree on what the reference to “a gentile and a tax collector” means.  It is unlikely that it means we should shun them, because Jesus went out of his way to hang out with tax collectors.  So we can’t be certain what he meant by this.  However, the first three steps we are to follow when someone abuses us are very clear.  First, we talk to the abuser.  Then, if they won’t listen, we talk to one or two others (no more than one or two) and ask them to go with us to talk to the abuser.  Then, if the abuser still won’t listen, we take the matter to the whole church community.  Imagine what Christian communities would be like if we all adopted this as our way of handling abuse and conflict.  Imagine how non-Christians would react if it was widely known that this is how Christians handle abuse and conflict.

We must do it because Jesus tells us to do it.  We must encourage each other to do it and we must support each other as we do it.  Our loving Father will bless us and heal us when we do.

May our loving, heavenly Father bless us, strengthen us, and keep us safe.

Jesus is Lord.

Peter O

 

Related Articles

“What did Jesus say about church leadership?”

“What did Jesus say about sin?”

“What did Jesus say about loving others?”

“What did Jesus say about forgiving others?”

“What did Jesus say about judging or condemning others?”

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