A friend and colleague in ministry, J. Herbert Nelson, has just been appointed to head the Washington Office of the Presbyterian Church (USA). Some of his remarks speak directly to the issue of what it means to be a leader in this difficult time.
Working for transformation is never easy, Nelson said, adding that there are plenty of challenges ahead.
“We are in a time in which there is intense fear,” he said. “There is fear of the future and fear of letting go of the past.”
When such fears show themselves, it’s easy to blame some one — or some office, Nelson said. But it’s important to look at the prophetic and priestly images in scripture. These images show an inextricable link between righteousness and justice.
In fact, Nelson said, righteousness and justice come from the same Hebrew word, but are sometimes separated in life: we are righteous on Sundays and see justice as merely an option, he said.
Sometimes being prophetic and priestly can seem contradictory, he said, adding that Christians are called to be indignant while exhibiting excellent character.
“How can we be indignant and still be righteous?” he said.
By helping to create a new reality, one that addresses such issues as health care, the environment, immigration and fiscal responsibility, he said.
“We’re called by God to address these realities,” Nelson said. “(We’re called to be) priestly in love and prophetic in speaking truth to power.
“These are not contradictions in terms,” he said, “but expectations for God’s people.”
That dual image of the role of prophet and the role of priest is the type of tension that good leaders must walk as they seek to be faithful to their call. How can we be prophetic without being self-righteous and arrogant? How can we be priestly without being captured by the fears of our constituency?
