“The church is less than 25 years old, and I’ve been here for fifteen of those years.  Bring me up to speed and share why you’re doing this.” Refusing, he restated that “it’s complicated and you don’t understand the history.” Eventually, I learned all the “history,” and discovered that, as suspected, it was not complicated.  Turns out the culprits were things plaguing human beings for eons: jealously, greed, self-righteousness, and hatred — even in a church.

As a conflict in a large church I attended escalated, I contacted an elder to inquire about the situation.  Rather pointedly, I asked about the senior pastor in the center of the fracas.

“Is there sexual sin?”

“No,” he replied.

“Is there financial misconduct?”

“No.”

“Is he preaching heresy?”

“No.”

“So what’s the problem?”

“It’s complicated.”

“My wife’s 30-year medical history is complicated,” I responded.  “This doesn’t sound that complicated.”

Surprised by my remarks, he stammered, “There’s a history you just don’t know.”

“The church is less than 25 years old, and I’ve been here for fifteen of those years.  Bring me up to speed and share why you’re doing this.”

Refusing, he restated that “it’s complicated and you don’t understand the history.”

Eventually, I learned all the “history,” and discovered that, as suspected, it was not complicated.  Turns out the culprits were things plaguing human beings for eons: jealously, greed, self-righteousness, and hatred — even in a church.  Even still, the conflict could have been worked out over a cup of coffee.  Instead, it festered due to personalities and pursuit of (and abuse of) power.

Elites often tell those outside their bubble that “it’s complicated” or “you don’t understand the history.”  Elites seem to believe that others are not important enough to be “in the know” or smart enough to grasp the concepts.  Keeping people in the dark facilitates the accrual and abuse of power.  Verbal skills, inside information, and position can foster intimidation — and even bullying.

Whether in a church or in the halls of government, human behavior is the same.

Clearly knowing human beings’ propensity to deceive and control, America’s Founders established a complex form of government that provided checks and balances on the three branches.  They even established a provision to protect free speech so that a “fourth estate” (the media) could monitor the government.

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