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I just finished writing a paper where I had to classify an organization as either enabling or hindering, and mindful or mindless. I’m curious, how might you classify our own church on these two dimensions? An enabling organization has rules and bureaucracy, but the rules and procedures are at high enough level (conceptually) to allow for person freedom and choice. For example, an enabling policy might be “made important decisions after data”. Or, “your unit should have an employee satisfaction improvement program”. A hindering policy is one that reduces or takes away individual choice to the point it often impede’s the organization’s ability to achieve its goals.
A mindful organization is one where its member regularly challenge existing ways of doing things, while still achieving the goals of the organization. They also anticipate problems in the future, and make adjustments to deal with them. A mindless organization is one that reads the policies and rules, and follows them blindly.
Given these rough definitions, how might you classify our church?
Quote:I just finished writing a paper where I had to classify an organization as either enabling or hindering, and mindful or mindless. I’m curious, how might you classify our own church on these two dimensions?
as both
I think there are elements of both aspects at all levels, but I think, in practical terms, it ends up being decided eventually by the individual members and leaders and which aspects they embrace and prioritize. (The same things that can be hindering to some people actually can be seen as enabling by others – or by the same people at different times in their lives.) I’ve seen both in every ward, branch and stake in which I’ve lived, and I see it in the Q12 and FP.
I also think there is nothing wrong whatsoever with a relatively large organization having elements of hindering and mindlessnes, simply because in any large organization there are going to be some people (a small or large group) who, for whatever reason, need those elements at some point, for some amount of time. It’s the balance that’s critical to me – and I think the Church, like any changing organization, has seen pendulum swings with regard to that balance over the years. I think the pendulum was WAY too far toward the hindering/mindless extreme a few decades ago, but I think it has been swinging back toward the middle over the last 20 years or so.
I would agree with Ray that elements of all can be seen in the church. But if you held a gun to my head and made me classify it, I’d say it is enabling and mindless. Kind of a strange mix, but I don’t think we challenge ourselves enough. We value obedience and humility. But I see the CHI as pretty high level to enable local members to work things out, which sometimes leads to dysfunctional local units, and other times the freedom for really loving people to follow the spirit and have wiggle room to apply rules to personal situations. However, once a leader has made a choice, it is hard to challenge them on it.
I would vote for enabling. I’m not so sure about the mindless part. I’m retired & trying to find away to keep active in something meaningful.
I haven’t had much luck yet. But, I’ve run across the following church web site for Senior Missions.
http://www.lds.org/csm/pdfs/MissOpp.pdf I don’t know of any other church that give members opportunities to service like the LDS church.
(This is not a paid commercial message.)
I thought it was interesting.
I have to admit that, on a ward & stake level it can seem like alot of busy work. (hindering & mindless)
Maybe it depends on the amount of effort a member puts into the calling too.
Mike from Milton.
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