loyal radicals and benevolent subversion

bob hopkins is someone who is a friend and has taught me loads. he and mary have patiently encouraged and taught leaders planting churches for about 25 years now through ACPI, beginning when it wasn't really a very welcome concept in the uk (why plant churches when there is a parish covering every inch of the uk?!). a year or so back i was invited to speak at princeton on mission shaped church and specifically how a mainline denomination can change towards being mission focused. i rang bob to ask what his advice would be and he suggested several things. one was the notion of loyal radicals. somehow, perhaps against the odds the church of england has managed to retain some people who have remained loyal and radical - i'd say bob and mary are two shining examples. the notion of loyal radicals struck a chord. bob has now written a piece loyal radicals for the ACPI web site. in it he also introduces another idea that i like - benevolent subversion...

Comments

[emma]

Thanks for that link, really interesting article to have a read through!

[Kester]

In a recent talk I gave to a group of 6th Formers - basically about TCC - I was asked what the difference between a trickster and a terrorist was... And I think this idea of loyal radicals is about right.

A terrorist has no loyalty to that which he/she is trying to change. Whereas a trickster, even though they may agitate, frustrate and seriously challenge an organization, do so out of loyalty: the want things to change and can't stand for things to be left to rot.

As an aside, we then reflected that perhaps what the Palestinians had lacked - and what the Indians and US Blacks had had in Gandhi and MLK - was someone to play trickster, not terror...

[emma]

Trickster... interesting take on it. Reminds me of some of the prophets roles - while most traditionally view prophets as rebels, outcasts, on the fringes of society, more than a few (Elijah and Elisha to name two) where actually regularly at the court/palace. They functioned kind of like 'jesters' in a way - they were allowed to provoke the king in ways other people weren't.

[jonny]

i like your thinking though i think trickster can be more malevolent in the mythologies...

but the notion of benevolent subversion is saying that - yes be subversive but out of a sense of caring about what you arte subverting because you see it needs to change to move on (or be called back to its roots - radical).

[Jeremy]

Two really nice phrases. I'm going to use those.

And vaguely related on the trickster theme: knowing your interest in Banksy, have you heard about Sheone's show Exit, at the Union Works? Looks intriguing.
http://www.illuminateproductions.co.uk/

[John Cooper]

Nice post Jonny...