Thursday, February 5, 2009
The Value of the Institution
Interesting op-ed. Can't help but think about how these insights relate to the church (particularly those who over-criticize the institution). I also think of the Brown House, that institution par excellence.
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6 comments:
good find, mike.
i can't help being all romantic about the aim of liberal education as described in the beginning: "to unsettle presumptions, to defamiliarize the familiar, to reveal what is going on beneath and behind appearances, to disorient young people and to help them to find ways to reorient themselves.” if liberal education actually accomplished that, then i don't think there would be a problem. but i think that it generally falls short in the synthesis stage of "helping them find ways to reorient themselves." my best example of this is rock'n'roll camp, which did a great job of teaching me to question everything and break everything down but never allowed me a foundation to start rebuilding. but if liberal education can succeed in helping students develop the skill set to build as well as to tear down...that's a goal worth pursuing.
there is a difference between what sandberg talks about as "respect" and the valor of blind obedience i see between the lines of brooks' article. i wholeheartedly agree that virtues like loyalty and respect are in need of a boost in our culture. but if i follow an institution because it is the institution and because it has authority and not because i believe in it, that is a degrading and hopeless life. (don't i know it.) sandberg talks about doing what he did because that's what he was supposed to do. but if he didn't believe the authenticity of the game was valuable, he would have been like every other over-inflated athlete, pushing himself to make sports center highlight plays and upping his contract. but with that respect piece springing out of a love for the game, that's what made him great. and i don't think that starts with entering an institution. i think it starts with cultivating a life that seeks out truth and beauty and Life and sets up camp there. if we're never taught to look for that, how will we ever be great?
when i think about the "institutional mindset," with the quote "in the process of absorbing the rules of the institutions we inhabit, we become who we are," and "her social function defines who she is" ringing in my head, it's all i can do to keep myself from running from the building, screaming all the way. but in a society where those things are true, where we are all defined by our roles and social functions, is it not that much more important that we are taught to think for ourselves, if only to be able to find an institution that we can respect and honor? and if we're not taught to question face values and search for hidden truths, how could we ever be more than children obeying rules "because i said so"? i think the problem isn't in the values of "individualism...personal inquiry, personal self-discovery and personal happiness" but that we are never taught to re-synthesize our fragmented disappointments into a whole. maybe we're all just too lazy. we lack imagination. so we settle for one of two extremes: saying "damn the man" with the way we live our lives or giving up on principle and following blindly so we don't have to think for ourselves. but the problem isn't free thinking. it's incomplete thinking processes.
unfortunately, on a personal note, my response here has a lot to do with how i'm relating to God these days. caught in a season where His authority over me (as opposed to my love for Him) is what motivates me, i desperately desire some sort of balance or coexistence of doing what's right and believing in it. because i believe that i'm more than this life tells me. but i also believe it is God's edict that i am here. so do i blindly follow The Institution, or do i walk away towards my own ideals? most days, it's an unhealthy mixture of both. i've considered the possibility that my individualism and desire for personal happiness are the problem. but that doesn't seem quite right. i've considered that The Institution is a slave driver, and it's time to jump ship, but that doesn't ring true either. so maybe the problem is that i'm just way too narcissistic, and this article isn't about me at all, but battered as my spirit is, i'll reach out to anything other than the Healer to heal my malfunction. yeah...that sounds about right. :o/
wow...longest...comment...ever. sorry, folks. and hugs to anyone who actually read through to the end.
There's a great quote in the comments section for this Times article in which the reader notes that Ryne Sandberg's devotion to the institutional traditions of baseball is admirable, but no more so than Jackie Robinson's courage to change those traditions.
I think this catches the one truth that everything seems to come back to: a little bit of both. Which is what Robin said too, I think. I sort of skimmed the last 8 paragraphs.
jerk. :op
but yeah...it was a choice between writing a ridiculously long comment that no one would actually read or cutting into the crap-load of meaningless work that has come to define my existence. the former seemed the less depressing option.
Robin, you know how I'm a Life Directions Advisor, right? Here's some expert advice: Your job may never be the ultimate end of your life. Humans are made to work, yes, but I'm not convinced God guaranteed any of us a life where our vocation is our greatest purpose. I know this by looking at the career options of 80% of the world population. However, we are blessed to live in America, a place where at most times (when the economy isn't crumbling) we have the luxury of thinking about things like our strengths, "institutional fit," and the esoteric idea of "purpose." We shouldn't neglect that, even as we stand in solidarity with those who aren't similarly blessed. What I mean is: Stop doing jobs you hate! It's not worth the cost to your soul.
thanks for the expert advice, teetz. i guess what i'm waiting for is this:
1) skies open up, and a voice from heaven says, "Robin, i made you for this purpose: _______. Go do it."
2) i quit my job and start pursuing a career in _______.
3) somehow, doing ______, i have enough time to have a family life, and i make enough money to help support our family and a big, lovely house with a gorgeous kitchen where all my friends can come and stay and eat whenever they're passing through.
5) i live happily ever after.
all i need is that initial catalyst. so how, bout it, God? role back those clouds. or i guess if He's busy, got any ideas, almighty Life Directions Adviser? :)
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