{"id":28631,"date":"2022-08-31T20:33:34","date_gmt":"2022-09-01T03:33:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=28631"},"modified":"2022-08-31T20:33:34","modified_gmt":"2022-09-01T03:33:34","slug":"maranatha-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/maranatha-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Maranatha"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nelson Mandela\u2019s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, <\/em>and Desmond Tutu\u2019s biography, No Future Without Forgiveness,<\/em> are two powerful books demonstrating the influence of resilient leadership to challenge gross injustices with a kingdom orientation. Born in 1918 to the son of a chief, Mandela spent much of his life advocating for the freedom of his people, only to one day become president, but not after a long 27 years of imprisonment. His observations particularly struck me after walking out of prison, ushering in his people’s liberation. He reflected,<\/p>\n

I have walked the long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can rest only for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not yet ended.[1]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Tutu, an ambassador for peace and reconciliation who served as the Bishop of Johannesburg and Archbishop of Cape Town, working in tandem with Mandela, was driven by a similar vision. While much had been done to bring about healing and restoration from the damaging effects of the apartheid, Tutu also acknowledged that significant work was yet to be done as the world still bore the marks of brokenness and oppression. He wrote,<\/p>\n

There is a movement, not easily discernable, at the heart of things to reverse the awful centrifugal force of alienation, brokenness, division, hostility and harmony. God has set in motion a centripetal process, a moving towards the Centre, towards unity, harmony, goodness, peace and justice; one that removes barriers.[2]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

There are a couple of notable characteristics consistent with the examples of Mandela and Tutu. First, both leaders were deeply convinced that all <\/em>people had significant value and worth. Tutu stated,<\/p>\n

the little people whom apartheid had turned into the anonymous ones \u2013 faceless, voiceless, counting for nothing in their motherland \u2013 whose noses had been rubbed daily in the dust. They had been created in the image of God but their dignity had been callously trodden underfoot every day by apartheid\u2019s minions\u2026 just because of an accident of birth, a biological irrelevance; the colour of their skin.<\/em> (italics mine)[3]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Similarly, Mandela fought to oppose the apartheid, which means \u2018apartness,\u2019 the oppressive system that had shackled the freedom of Africans for centuries. He dreamt of a different reality for his people, one in which they would experience the same liberties as their white counterparts.<\/p>\n

Second, both leaders acknowledged that suffering for just cause ultimately resulted in good. Tutu believed that Mandela\u2019s hardship paved the way to greater compassion, ensuring credibility and authority to lead and provide hope for his people.[4]<\/a> Mandela himself held an optimistic view of suffering. He stated,<\/p>\n

the human body has an enormous capacity for adjusting to trying circumstances. I have found that one can bear the unbearable if one can keep one\u2019s spirits strong even when one\u2019s body is being tested. Strong convictions are the secret of surviving deprivation.[5]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I would be amiss if I failed to note an observation that perplexed me. While initially adopting Gandhi\u2019s principles of non-violence, Mandela concluded that non-violence may not always work. He wrote,<\/p>\n

The lesson I took away from the campaign was that in the end, we had no alternative to armed and violent resistance. Over and over again, we had used all the nonviolent weapons in our arsenal \u2013 speeches, deputations, threats, marches, strikes, stay-aways, voluntary imprisonment \u2013 all to no avail, for whatever we did was met by an iron hand. A freedom fighter learns the hard way that it is the oppressor who defines the nature of the struggle, and the oppressed is often left no recourse but to use methods that mirror those of the oppressor. At a certain point, one can only fight fire with fire.[6]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Contrasting this opinion, Tutu held to the conviction of Martin Luther King, Jr., who said, \u201cUnless we learn to live together as brothers, we will die together as fools.\u201d[7]<\/a> Reflecting on a husband and wife who had lost a child by an unjust act, the mother said,<\/p>\n

Though I readily admit that initially I wanted to kill this man with my bare hands, by the time of the resolution of his crimes, I was convinced that my best and healthiest option was to forgive\u2026 I believe the only way we can be whole, healthy, happy persons is to learn to forgive.[8]<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Though I may be baffled by Mandela turning to violence to ensure justice, at least in part, I fully acknowledge that I have not walked in his shoes, nor can I begin to identify with his difficult situation even for a moment. Regardless, I greatly admire both Mandela and Tutu and their conviction to lead as self-differentiated leaders. While their goals had been accomplished, the yearning for the fullness of God\u2019s kingdom for even greater freedom was evident, the day when \u201cthere will no longer be\u00a0any\u00a0death;\u00a0there will no longer be\u00a0any\u00a0mourning, or crying, or pain;\u00a0the first things have passed away.\u201d[9]<\/a> Maranatha. Come, Lord Jesus, come!<\/em><\/p>\n

[1]<\/a> Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom: The Autobiography<\/em> (New York: Little, 2013), 625.<\/p>\n

[2]<\/a> Desmond Tutu, No Future Without Forgiveness<\/em> (London: Rider, 2000), 213.<\/p>\n

[3]<\/a> Ibid., 3.<\/p>\n

[4]<\/a> Ibid., 40.<\/p>\n

[5]<\/a> Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom<\/em>, 416.<\/p>\n

[6]<\/a> Ibid., 166.<\/p>\n

[7]<\/a> Tutu, No Future Without Forgiveness<\/em>, 6.<\/p>\n

[8]<\/a> Ibid., 122.<\/p>\n

[9]<\/a> New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update<\/em> (La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), v. Revelation 21:4.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nelson Mandela\u2019s autobiography, Long Walk to Freedom, and Desmond Tutu\u2019s biography, No Future Without Forgiveness, are two powerful books demonstrating the influence of resilient leadership to challenge gross injustices with a kingdom orientation. Born in 1918 to the son of a chief, Mandela spent much of his life advocating for the freedom of his people, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":142,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2004,1098,2315],"class_list":["post-28631","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-lgp11","tag-mandela","tag-tutu","cohort-lgp11"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/142"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28631"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28631\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28632,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28631\/revisions\/28632"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}