The paradox of change

We shall not cease from exploration

And the end of all our exploring

Will be to arrive where we started

And know the place for the first time

T S Eliot

That verse has always intrigued me – as I often am by poetry that carries great depth of meaning which I rarely manage to comprehend. But what strikes me about these words, now, is the paradox they contain, as it might relate to the movement of Initiatives of Change.

The review of IofC’s Mission and Principles, currently reaching its climax, is an exploration into its essence: an attempt to renew its expression and revitalize its outreach; a search for deeper insights for a new era. Will this lead IofC back to where it all started, so that we may know it afresh? That’s a fundamental question whose answer will emerge in time.

One of the challenges facing the Review team – the group of people who re-wrote the Preamble that contains the M&P – was the frustrating shortcomings of language to express deep truths. Concepts that might be OK in one language either do not translate at all or don’t have the same richness of meaning when recreated in a different idiom. That’s why the final result will probably be something nobody’s fully happy with, but that’s accepted as adequate for the time being. And perhaps that’s the best one can achieve with mere language.

But one issue that I think will continue to be an underlying source of low level disagreement once the Review is concluded is the so-called ‘secularization’ of IofC. And that does go to the core or essence of the movement. Can IofC’s purpose be fully summed up in ordinary secular terminology? Or does IofC bring a different dimension to its work that takes us beyond what can be achieved through the application of only reason, emotional intelligence and focused energy?

In his very thoughtful commentary on IofC and the M&P Review, Mike Brown warns against being over-sensitive about how IofC is understood by a ‘Western-centric post-modernistic world’. In other words, don’t apologize for having absolute standards and a faith-basis.

Business, science and politics were founded by people whose principles were shaped by belief in a Divine Being. These institutions have largely moved far from that – with some exceptions – and have imposed a ‘modern’ mindset that suggests, at best, that faith is a naïve throwback that has been demolished by science; at worst, a vicious code responsible for most of the conflict in the world. So, the temptation is to be sucked into agreeing with this construct. And, of course, IofC also needs to move to a more modern expression of what we are and how we think about change.

Then various expressions of ‘God’ do not sit well with secular institutions. There is a preference for a shutting of the door on that one. The pendulum has swung from the religious intolerance of an earlier age to a secular intolerance of any expressions of religious belief.

In his fascinating book about leadership at a deep, deep level, Synchronicity: The Inner Path of Leadership, Joe Jaworski writes an epilogue about an extraordinary gathering he was part of – 350 people, business and organizational leaders, meeting in Bretton Woods in the US. The underlying theme was new learning and change in organizations. Soon the role of the Supreme Being emerged. Should God be brought into the discussion, one person asked?

The answer was an interesting one. ‘Invoked or not invoked, God is present,’ Jaworski answered, quoting the inscription in Latin above the door of Carl Jung’s home in Switzerland.

It’s very difficult to find the language to talk of things of the spirit in a world much more secular than that in which IofC grew up. Does that mean we should stop trying? I think not.

The deepest questions around our human condition are often clothed in paradoxes. Reviewing what IofC is and does leads us into the corridors of paradox. For some, fullness of meaning comes from the relationship with God or a divine being – difficult and mysterious as this sometimes is. For others, another philosophical framework provides context and meaning to their life and work.

But both are united by an ideal. To change society for the better, to heal the hurting and to build bridges of reconciliation. From two sides, they build the bridge as they walk on it.

Anthony Duigan is a communications and management strategy consultant who lives in a nature conservancy called Rhenosterspruit outside Pretoria and Johannesburg. He and his wife, Helen, are very active in both green and brown conservation issues and believe eco-spirituality and living simply are vital to the future of our planet.

NOTE: Individuals of many cultures, nationalities, religions, and beliefs are actively involved with Initiatives of Change. These commentaries represent the views of the writer and not necessarily those of Initiatives of Change as a whole.