Redefining the Seven Basic Principles: Authority

It is difficult for me to remember as I write these posts, that my purpose is not to 
speak about these principles as they have been taught to me, but rather that I am looking
for the underlying truths that can be taken away from those teachings. This does not mean 
that I will not be relating the principles as they were taught to me by word and deed.
but as a reminder to myself not to get bogged down in the dogmas of the principles.


The principle of authority is probably one of the most controversial of the Institutes' 7
Basic Principles. It is the lynch-pin of the seminar...the "one to rule them all." the
success of each of the other six principles hangs on this one.

Day two of the Basic Seminar (or just "the Basic" as we called it) started promptly at
7pm, and the next 4 hours were spent explaining how the Principle of Authority is
honoring the responsibilities of parents, church leaders, government, and other
authorities and learning how God works through them to provide direction and protection.
On the surface this sounds innocuous enough, right? I'll go so far as to say it even
sounds good.(Especially if you happen to be the parent of a teenager.) but, as is
demonstrated by the Turkey Vulture in Character Sketches... things are not always what
they seem.

There is an absolutism to the concept of authority as taught by Mr. Gothard. Almost
militaristic in it's definition, respect is given to "office" or "position" rather that
character(which, ironically enough is at odds with other core teachings of the 
Institute). Young people are taught that character is the end all, be all... but then are
expected to honor(read: unquestioning, immediate obedience) any authority figure
regardless of their character, or lack thereof. The concept of earned respect was unheard
of unless you were a child, and a child could only earn respect by continual 
demonstration of a meek and quiet spirit, unquestioning, immediate obedience,
and a single infraction destroyed months, even years worth of good behavior.

One of the worst things for me was that every time anything untoward happened...down to a
paper cut... it was the result of my being out from under authority, that any negative
occurance was the direct result of moral failure on my part. The guilt from carrying that
much responsibility for circumstances beyond my control was agony. I think the biggest
problem with this part of this system is that it seems to breed abuse since the gist of
the teaching is that the father is right, even when he is wrong. This attitude that
"whatever I say is right because I am the father and God put me in charge", is the epitome
of a power trip and creates an extremely nurturing environment for abusive authorities.
Because this authority is so absolute there is a sense that, rather than being held to a
higher standard, parents are above the rules.

I think this is the most difficult of the principles for me to reconcile with any
positive take-away.The obsession with authority is unhealthy at best. While it is true
that the purpose of authority figures is to provide direction and protection, they do not have
a direct line from God and should never have absolute power over any individual but
themselves.

But the Institute's idea of authority moves in two directions. The first deals with the
one in authority... whose primary responsibility is to make the rules and enforce them.
The second is the one who should be under authority. Unfortunately a disservice is done
to both parties. It was said long ago that absolute power corrupts absolutely... while
this is very true, it also works in reverse...Absolute submission stunts subconsciously.
The biggest problem, in my opinion, with this principle is where to draw the line. Within
this system, fathers are still authorities over daughters(regardless of age) until they
marry. Sons are also still to remain "under authority" until they marry, and while in
concept this could be a good thing, logistically it is a nightmare. Children do not learn
how to make the "wise decisions" that they are expected to make.

So, what do I take away from this twisted view of authority?

Honestly?... a healthy respect for people who do not have this view of the subject.


To this day the word AUTHORITY leaves a taste in my mouth that is somewhere between
rotten milk and the backspray of a concentrated bathroom cleaner. I cringe and bristle when
someone dares to tell me that I should give them respect that they haven't earned. Maybe
my takeaway is that I do not have to respond the way that I was taught, understanding
that this is not a healthy lifestyle for me. The realization that authority is given to
others regardless of their worthiness, but true power to change my life or the lives of
others is only manifested through mutual respect. The idea that having a position of power
is not the same thing as having power and that no-one regardless of position can have any
power over me that I do not give them or that I cannot take away from them.
The reality is, though, that the idea which carries the least weight is the one that is
expounded on and multiplied and carried to a whole 'nother level, and authority is that
idea.

Redefining the Seven Basic Principles: Design

I was twelve years old when I attended my first Basic Seminar. My parents had to get special permission due to my age. I believe I was much too young to attend, but I was hungry to learn, eager to be an adult. The Basic Seminar has been likened to taking a sip from a fire hydrant, and I eagerly soaked it all in like a parched, sandy desert.

The first day of the seminar focused on causes of conflict and the Principle of Design. Four hours of furious note taking dedicated to "understanding the specific purposes for which God created each person, object and relationship in my life and living in harmony with them."

Looking back as an adult, this concept seems like a given, and innocuous enough, but to a twelve year old having tremendous identity issues this was agony.

The basic premise of this principle has been reiterated by parents for years. "God don't make mistakes." and "Everything happens for a reason." While these two things are  true, there was, for twelve year old me, an undercurrent of defeatism held in those words. My purpose was planned and there was nothing I could or should do to change it. There was only one plan... a son or daughter could look forward to ministry, marriage and more ministry. Even this early in the seminar there was emphasis on ministry over career, marriage over career. Great lengths were taken to reinforce the social and gender strata of the 1950's and earlier.

We were taught that there were ten unchangeables that we must accept to receive God's blessing.
These unchangeables were:
1. Our Parents... who we could not choose(and subsequently they couldn't really choose us either...)
2.Our Gender... again with the God makes no mistakes rhetoric... You are either a boy or a girl, this is a fact that could never be changed... (funny no mention of the multitude of varieties of intersex characteristics. How can you be either or if you are both?)
3. Our Physical Features... yes that includes the schnaz... but more importantly it includes those things that are considered "non-life threatening deformities" that can be surgically corrected to improve ones quality of life.
4. Mental Capacity... Somewhere in here is hidden the idea that you can't change stupid...That each person can only learn so much... That individuals with disorders like Downs' Syndrome  or Autism Spectrum Disorders are not intelligent and should never try to be.
5. Race/Nationality... Ok, so one cannot change their ethnicity, but why is this even coming into the picture? especially since many individuals issues with their own race comes from classism and stereotyping.
6. Birth Order....because how many kids there were before or after you determines what your character is... in exactly the same way that being born under a certain astrological sign does (ok, maybe they do, but while birth order seems to be the holy grail in this system, astrology is evil incarnate.)
7. Brothers and sisters... yep, we can't choose that...but this system looked down on my parents because they were unable to bear more children... how is that congruous with this teaching?
8. Time in History...So, I must accept that I was born in the 70's... by recreating the 50's?
9.Aging...I will agree with this... we cannot control the fact that our bodies age, but we can control the speed at which it ages and the degree to which it breaks down.
10. Death... yeah, the final act... death reaches us all.

There is an idea within the confines of the Institute that mirrors basic occult teaching (which is in and of itself ironic since the Institute decries anything vaguely and remotely "occult" except maybe birth order and spiritual gifts...) that a persons' name is powerful and can intentionally or inadvertently direct their life. Part of the principle of design, though not taught directly is that the name given to an individual by their parents is God's choice of name for that person. This ties directly, as do all of the other principles to the principle of authority...which we will get to later. There is implication, if not direct teaching that an understanding of the meaning of one's name can alter the course of one's life...with many anecdotal illustrations given to support this idea.

I think that many of these ideas were well intentioned, but to my twelve year old mind this principle was not the empowering guidepost it should have been, rather it bred in me a form of nihilism that I have fought since that day.

"Why try?" is a question I have asked myself too many times to count.

As an adult, sitting here trying to sort out the mess of my past, I have to ask myself "What is this principle all about?"
Today my worldview is decidedly different. Today I do not claim a particular religion or spiritual path, so if I use the term God it is for simplicities sake. I mention this because at it's core IBLP is a Christian organization, but many who have experienced these teachings have moved to other faiths or none at all. I may use many different terms to denote the concept  commonly referred to as God.

I believe the purpose of the concept of the Principle of Design is to empower the individual. This principle speaks to all six of the basic human needs: significance, certainty, uncertainty, connection, contribution and growth. That each individual has a purpose, a goal to strive for, a personal journey of growth or what some would call enlightenment is the take away truth of this principle.
The signpost of the principle of design is to embolden us to seek our purpose, to give us the confidence to make choices that are in harmony with that purpose and give us the ability to see every circumstance and relationship of our lives as being preparation and proving ground for the successful fulfillment of the purpose we have found.
The late Joseph Campbell once said "Follow your bliss." This statement has confounded me for years until I heard a message by Rev. TD Jakes about living on purpose. He said that everyone has a gift, and you know you are operating out of your gift when you lose all track of time. When I heard that statement my heart echoed "Follow your bliss!" and I realized that  finding your purpose is as easy as losing track of time.

I have come to realize that many of the things I was taught about this principle were simply one man's understanding and my misunderstanding of this truth. I see now that social constructs of position and gender can in many cases help one find their purpose, but that there are those who must, like Bilbo Baggins, leave the shire to fulfill their destiny.

Redefining the Seven Basic Principles

As messed up as the IBLP system is, and as messed up as Bill Gothard is, there is a part of me that says there is truth in what he teaches. One must not read that, however, as "what he teaches is THE TRUTH", but rather that there are truths in the principles.

I believe that at the core, the Institute teaches a version of the law of attraction, however it is being taught as a form of illusory freedom. Principles are much like scientific theory, in that they are guideposts to expectation. Principles are like footlamps, they give you enough information to take the next step. A footlamp does not tell you where to step, it simply shines light on the places that can be stepped on and illuminates the nature of the ground around you. Their purpose is simply to give you enough information to make a rational decision.
I would like to look at the principles with both a critical eye and an open heart, to find the needles in the haystacks.
I have a feeling, deep in my gut, that this exercise may be painful. There has been so much pain for me through this system, and I am sure that a deep investigation will be more intense than the cursory glances that I have afforded myself to date. The reality, however, is that these wounds will not heal until they are reopened, debrided, cleaned and properly dressed...and the anger, frustration and pain have been inflamed and infected for far too long.

The world of IBLP is strikingly similar on many levels to that of Tolkien's Middle Earth. Segregation, fear, blame and distrust have been bred from decades of higher standards and a "calling" to "give the world a new approach to life". Few are those who have passed through those hallowed halls unscathed. Marriages have failed, lives lost, families destroyed through fanatical misapplication of truths. Judgments have been made and those most damaged are hard pressed to find any redeeming value in the message.
I have come to a place in my life that I must address these issues. Not the pain itself, but I must look at my experience with this organization and find the redeeming factors not only for my own sanity but as my part in helping others who have been damaged by being "Institutionalized".

So back to Middle Earth and Mordor.....

In the wake of the free love movement and that new thing called Rock-n-Roll, Seven principles were forged, imbued with the power to give the world a new approach to life. In secret however, one principle was singled out and infused with the power to rule them all...

Like the rings of the fellowship, no one realized  that the other principles were inextricably tied to the one, and in the beginning no one knew the chaos that would ensue.

I must be honest here, although I will try, I cannot write this objectively... I am not an outsider looking in... My own journey has been fraught with anger, weariness and bitter tears. I have been unable to live up to the expectations of the organization and had my hopes of making a difference as a part of this ministry dashed to a thousand pieces time and again. I write this out of a profound need to find some positive in what I feel has been a wasted lifetime. I write in part to recreate my story, that I might be freed from the tyranny of principle and no longer be a victim of my past. I write in part that others may not see those years as wasted in their own lives, and I write to reconcile the truths of my heart with the experience of my life.

The Change You Wish to See

We have heard it a thousand times...the familiar mantra...."Be the change that you wish to see in the world"

Inspiring.

Empowering.

It is a call to action with tremendous  appeal, I mean, let's face it. Who doesn't want to think of themselves as a catalyst for positive change? Right?

Unfortunately it is a call to action that falls flat more times than not. The shortcomings of the call is not in the call itself, but rather in our understanding of what it means "to BE". Shakespeare voiced the quandry himself, those eons ago when he penned "To be or not to be, that is the question."
What most of us fail to realize is that with every waking moment, every breath we take, we ARE the change we wish to see in the world. The harsh reality is that most of us would rather bitch about the status quo than see actual change.

Think about it....

Our favorite grocery store... you know, the one with the really low prices... is understaffed in order to keep the prices low... so we bitch about the quality of the customer service, the length of the lines, the cleanliness of the building.  Management hears the complaints and adds more staff, raising the prices a bit to pay for the changes... which only adds to our list of things to complain about.

Change has a price... sometimes that price is just the cost of getting up off of our lazy asses and doing something.

We can wish to see ourselves 20 lbs lighter and in better health, but until we start doing something about it, all we will see is ourselves packing on the pounds.

the reality is, when we want something badly enough, we do get up off our duffs and go for it...

If we are not willing to pay the price, well, I guess we just don't really want it...

losing the freedom of wonder

I don't even know what I want to write, I guess I am just hoping that if I start it will make it's way out. I understand that the journey is more about the process than the destination, but I would like some clue as to where I will end up. I guess I fear getting lost. I don't know why, but I think that maybe that is one of my biggest fears in this journey called life.

I've never really followed a rabbit trail to it's logical conclusion. I have always fought to bring myself back "to the plan". In our society rabbit trails and wild goose chases are frowned upon. The exploratory mind, with all it's wonder and enthusiasm, is labeled a medical malfunction.

We take trips and see not what surrounds us, but only the dotted line before us and the looming clock of our itinerary. Our only conscious concern is "Are we there yet?" We reward punctuality and tolerate discovery only when it fits within budgetary and time constraints. Time pieces encroach upon our lives, forcing out curiosity.

What we lose becoming adults is not the lack of responsibility of childhood, but the freedom of wonder. Natural curiosity is reduced to occasionally pushing boundaries. But that is how it is in larger society, and I am attempting to go deeper into myself. It is easy to remove the scrutiny of the self, replacing the personal with the royal. Often it is preferable to shift one's gaze outward rather than inward, to rail against the injustices, oversights and accusations of the group, hoping that the whole will learn that which the parts refuse. To look inward requires illuminating the darkness within... not the unknown, but rather the unacknowledged. To peer into the depths of the Soul and see that my failures and my successes are mine alone. To see the reality of choice for what it is... independent of external influence or theistic coercion.
Too often I don not wish to see these truths. The points along the journey when I have stumbled and fallen. Unwilling to learn the lessons before me out of pride. Unwilling to shine the light of truth on the demons of my past because I KNOW they are simply exaggerations of myself. Knowing that the blame I lay on others is unfounded, for although others may bear fault for their actions, I alone am responsible for mine. It is to accept that it is not my place to judge others for their role in my journey. To acknowledge that others have simply accompanied me for a time. For MY choices they are guiltless.

The landmarks of my journey have thus far been seen as unimportant, this is the reason for my fear of getting lost. I have not taken the time to pay sufficient attention, therefore I do not think I have the necessary information to find my way. But that is neither true nor relevant. The truth is that I DO know the way. In moments of extreme desparation I see it clearly and my despair is magnified. For I see the path and it's obstacles, not the joyous resolution.

To this point, my focus has been entirely on failure. Failure has determined my actions and reactions, caused me to remain inactive and steeped in self-pity. I have been unable to see my successes and when I make a mistake I have allowed it to ruin my entire day. I determined at one point not too many years ago, not to beat myself up. To accept my culpability, learn and move on. Not to heap on myself more blame for a situation that I deserve. I often find myself again in the place of excess blame having not even realized I had returned.

In truth, there are many situations in my life where my choices could have been different, but as I look back I can only wonder, "who would I be if I had?"
Certainly not the man sitting here writing this blog. I know that perpetual success is not success at all, but mediocrity, for I cannot reach beyond my known limits without some failure. Perpetual success is the realm of complacency, for if I only attempt to do that which I know I will succeed at, I will succeed at doing nothing at all.