Letter and Spirit

How is Pastor DeSilva’s interpretation of the conference’s recommendation that the church board study the Church Manual contrary to both the letter and the spirit of the recommendation?

If we were engaging in the much-abhorred elementary school exercise of diagramming sentences we would find that the subject of the sentence, “The newly renamed Church Board should study pp. 90-92 in the manual to make sure the Board functions as stated,” is “Board.” It isn’t “individuals” or “members [of the board].” If the recommendation had used either of these terms Pastor DeSilva’s interpretation would have merit, but it didn’t use either of them. The action of this sentence is clearly targeted at a corporate body known as a “board” in its official, assembled, corporate capacity.

The verb applied to this subject is “study.” This specified action requires something deeper than the simple “reading” that Pastor DeSilva called for. It also requires more than being notified of the contents by a third party, which Pastor DeSilva stipulated as the proper course of action should any board member discover a deficiency in the board’s function. “Study” requires “a close and prolonged process of observation, inquiry and thought.”

The “letter of the law” in this recommendation, therefore, is that the corporate body which is the “board” must come together in an unhurried official gathering and not only read but discuss and carefully think about the contents of the specified material for the purpose of gaining a corporate understanding thereof.

Why would the conference executive committee make such a recommendation? In The Lord’s Anointed, Pt. 3 (posted 12-4-09) we discussed the concept of different levels of knowing. Here we see the concept come into play again. What this recommendation calls for is the highest, most direct and personal level of knowing. It is not enough for the board to be told by one or even several of its members that something isn’t right. Even if they were to accept such a declaration it would be far too easy to slip back into the old way of doing things without a personal conviction about the importance of the change. Another difficulty with such a scenario is that those who accept the declaration of a few without knowing the truth for themselves can be accepting error. Finally, direct corporate study is necessary for the members of the board to take ownership of the principles covered in the specified material.

The “spirit of the law” in this recommendation, then, is that the members of the board cease to be passive agents swayed by the pastor or anyone else with passion and charisma and become knowledgeable, rooted leaders who clearly understand and can articulate, defend, and act in accordance with the principles of the Church Manual. This is what Pastor DeSilva refused to permit because it would be a waste of time. The result of this refusal was that the recommendation, which had been approved by the business meeting, was set aside and ignored.