There are many Ethical Dilemma’s that face those with the Christian Worldview in today’s society. With a culture who is currently going through a phase of tolerance and acceptance, Christians face steep criticism for their strict morals. Although Christianity rejects religious plurality and embraces absolute truth, Christianity is one of the more tolerant religions (for lack of a better word) due to its core belief that all have fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23, New International Version). Despite secular society’s belief, Christianity is the only religion that truly says that no matter who someone is, they all have the same chance to receive salvation. However, because of Christianity’s goal to change lives that have been saved, …show more content…
Due to legislation and the supreme court’s interpretation of the 1st amendments freedom of religion, state university (which are a government body) are not allowed to support or deny religious clubs any more than they would a non-religiously affiliated club. The problem occurs when the clubs religious values conflicts with what the university has listed as requirements for recognition of clubs. This conflict is modeled in the case of the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship in California which was no longer recognized as club because a condition of leadership (not membership) in the club is that the person must have a strong Christian faith. According to University policy, clubs cannot deny positions in the club on the biases of religious preference. Thus InterVarsity Christian Fellowship lost its status as club losing privileges such as access to meeting areas, advertising and engagement with students and …show more content…
Although some conveniences may be losses, at the end of the day having a leader that knows the conditions of leadership is vital to the health of the church or in this case the organization. In Adjunct Instructor at George Fox Evangelical Seminary Ron Clark’s examination of the necessity for strong leaders, he noted that Jesus was the prime example in how he was involved in living out what he taught, Ron Clark stating that “Jesus, as the chief shepherd, will hold leaders accountable for the flock of God (1 Pet 5:4). Accountability means that leaders understand their responsibility to reflect God's oversight and attention to the congregation.” (Clark, 2006, pg. 244). From what Clark is saying the leader of InterVarsity is responsible for the health of the organization, and the only way to rise to the task is to be involved in living the same life the leader is expected to describe to the members. Although their outreach may not be as great without the benefits given by the university, they still will be reaching people in a way God has deemed God lead by a leader who fits the qualification set forth by
The Christian faith focuses on the orientation of the human heart behind human thoughts and actions. Living by faith is a beautiful alternative to the way people think of themselves and the way they live in relation to others in their daily lives (Merrick, 2014). Christians see themselves in terms of God’s profound love for them but not in terms of what they do. The teachings of the Christian faith; nonviolence, non-retaliation, inward integrity, selflessness, and love your neighbor as yourself provide the framework for ethical thinking. Although, adopting belief in Christianity can bring forth confusion in the heart and mind causing agony of learning to sacrifice one’s rightful claims for personal justice for the restoration of another (Merrick, 2014). Unconditional forgiveness is difficult to understand because spiritual forgiveness and actual costly forgiveness is viewed as the same in the gospel. If you do not forgive, then one does not have faith in God’s forgiveness as it really is. Christianity influences a person thinking and behavior developing wisdom which requires faith. The faith that is needed to reorient the heart away from selfishness to selflessness.
I believe if a person calls themself a Christian they should be held to a higher standard of their ethics. As a Christian, you have been called to exemplify God in all that you do, whether that be in ministry, child rearing, or everyday normal life. Just because you are a Christian does not mean that you are not going to mess up. We fail God daily, and those decisions bear consequences just as they do for anyone else. Holmes (2007) states that “consequences play an important part in moral decisions, and not least for the Christian. The problems with basing ethic on consequence alone must not blind us to this fact. Christians should be more concerned with doing good to others and should doubtless make decisions that contribute to God’s purposes in this world” (p. 51). A good example of this would be tithing to the church. A single mom with one income and 3 children, who is a Christian and “follows all the rules” does not tithe because she needs to use every penny she gets to care for the needs of her family. We have been commanded to seek His kingdom first, and our tithes go to the church to help reach others. On a personal level, I understand her resistance to doing this, but we are to put the kingdom of God before our own needs and trust in Him, that He will provide what we need. “Our highest end, as Jesus said, is to love the Lord our God with all our being, and for his
Christianity has its challenges. It places demands on us that set us apart from the rest of our world. The bible calls us a peculiar people, who navigate the challenge of living IN the world, without being OF the world. When we say ‘no’ to temptations that are enjoyed by the masses, we are labeled as self-righteous snobs, religious weirdoes, or worse. But we persevere, and we press toward that invisible line the Apostle Paul drew in the sands of time…for the high calling in Christ Jesus.
Although written for church leadership, everyday church members would also benefit from understanding the concepts that Dawn is directing at God-empowered leaders. Ms. Dawn's work is predominantly scholarly, and she cites several other works at great length.... ... middle of paper ... ...
With respect to the leadership part, the leader builds the organization by effectively using people as resources; the emphasis here is on leadership skills, such as vision-casting and team-building” (Wong & Page, 2003, p. 5). Wong and Page explain how a hierarchical system cannot follow a servant leadership, however, they note that in order “to overcome the barrier of needing an authoritarian hierarchy to lead an organization, leaders need to take the risk of intentional vulnerability – willing to lose their job and even lose their life in serving others as Jesus did. They overcome a sense of insecurity by embracing it in serving a higher purpose” (Wong & Page, 2003, pp. 7-8). Wong and Page reveal that servant leadership consists of a leader; “developing and empowering others, power and pride, visionary and leadership, servanthood, responsible leadership, integrity (honesty), integrity (authenticity), and courageous leadership” (Wong & Page, 2003, p. 10).
Over the years LDSP has been looked at, defined, and studied in many different ways. By looking at all the information gathered there are two essential ways to view leadership. One is by focusing on the leader and his/her qualities. The second is by looking at the situation and the interaction between the leader and the follower. By looking at readings from all perspectives, social sciences, natural sciences, and the arts and humanities, it is clear that the best way to view and understand leadership is by looking at it as a relational process, focused on the interaction between leaders and followers.
God is the focal point for spiritual gifts, talents, and training for leadership. The disciples were trained by Jesus. He did not take disciples into a classroom but He taught by examples.9 Many times the disciples were put in situations by Jesus to help them learn on-the-job. Even in missions, leaders cannot be prepared for every circumstance that may arise; however; with his talents, spiritual gifts, and the Holy Spirit, one can have the resources necessary to be successful. With one’s failures, spiritual gifts, and talents, the Holy Spirit will use these things to train leaders as they continue to aspire in
Snider, M. A. (2004). Viewpoint discrimination by public unversities: student religious organizations and violations of university nondiscrimination policies. Wash. & Lee L. Rev., 61, 841
Robert Clinton states “The central task of leadership is influencing God’s people toward God’s purposes” (Clinton, 1988). George Barna defines a Christain Leader as “someone who is called by God to lead; leads with and through Christlike character; and demonstrates the functional competencies that permit effective leadership to take place” (Barna, 1997). It is a shame we as Christians fail to recognize that Christ would have us be leaders in more than the church.
Christian school leaders should sense a calling to leadership based on the conviction that the Lord has placed them in this position at this particular time. Leading like Jesus starts on the inside; it is a heart issue and a heart motivated by self-interest will result in a barrier towards this end (Blanchard & Hodges, 2005). The leader must view all aspects of the school and of leadership through the eyes of Christ and be the chief leader of the development of a Biblical worldview in the spiritual formation of students. In addition, spiritual leadership requires the personal discipline of prayer.
In the final analysis, recognizing that life can and should be just, though not always fair, Christians
There are countless social justice issues that Christian ethicists have the opportunity to address. The aim of Christian ethics is to determine one’s moral responsibility based off of a biblical framework. When discussing many social justice issues, it is easy to decipher precisely what scripture has to say, and what humanity’s moral stance should be. Yet, in many ways, humanity will still struggle to accept that moral and ethical responsibility, even when that moral stance is clearly mapped out in scripture. One such issue is poverty. This paper will look closely at the biblical teachings on poverty, the key ethical standpoints of sacredness of life, love, and justice, as well as the moral responsibilities Christians face. It seems,
To understand the basis of the ethics that Christians live by the Biblical story must be interpreted. The Bible passes judgement on many things that Christians would come into contact with at some point in their lives. These things include cases such as; abortion, contraception, euthanasia and homosexuality. All of which are negatively referred to in the Bible. However authority today views these issues differently because they use secular ethics in conjunction with their decision making. Examples of authority include governments and work places. This is so that a good outcome may be maximized and had by most of a population, known as a Utilitarian approach. It is inevitable that a few will disagree but this number outweighs the good of the plenty. This secular schemed way of thinking can sometimes severely conflict with the ethical interpretation that is put forth in the Bible. Ultimately when Christians follow the Bible’s ethical basis they will gain the reward of their soul ascending to heaven in the afterlife. This is an incentive to follow Christian ...
Leadership is an awesome responsibility, and regardless of where leadership occurs, followers want leadership that is trustworthy, inspiring, consequential, and most importantly, effective. Thus, effective leadership is often weighed in theory and common indicators such as the impact on a team or process, follower attitudes and perceptions, and even career longevity (Yukl, 2010). Furthermore, leadership effectiveness may also be determined by the leader’s title, position, skills, traits, and moral behaviors (Carolina College of Biblical Studies [CCBS], n.d.). Often overlooked in all these things are God’s purpose for leadership, and the call for the leader to remain obedient to God while leading (CCBS, n.d.). Since mankind is sinful by
Morality (proper behavior) is the difference between decisions and actions of those that are classified as right and wrong. It is a list of standards that one must follow either from their religion, culture, or even the laws/rules of their country. A dilemma is a situation in which one must decide between two or more difficult decisions. This doesn’t mean one deciding between if they should eat steak for dinner or chicken, but a decision that can affect the rest of their lives. With whichever decision they make there will be consequences. Putting those together is called a moral dilemma. A moral dilemma is a complex situation that often involves an apparent mental conflict between moral imperatives, in which to obey one would result in transgressing another. Ethical dilemmas are hard to decide between