christianity and management
DESCRIPTION
The aim of this report is to cover the relationship between Christianity and management. The first part of the project will reveal the basic concepts of Christianity. We will discuss what Christian philosophy has to offer in terms of management. In the second part, we will inspect Christianity as a social institute and see how the world of Christianity has been managed through the history. Written by: Kerem Koseoglu, Akin UgurluTRANSCRIPT
T.C. YEDITEPE UNIVERSITY
INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SCIENCES BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
CHRISTIANITY
AND
MANAGEMENT
Kerem KÖSEOĞLU Akın UĞURLU
İstanbul, 2006
Table Of Contents
Table Of Contents ..........................................................................................................2 Introduction ....................................................................................................................3 Literature Review...........................................................................................................4 1. Christian Philosophy And Management ....................................................................6 1.1. What Is Christianity? ..............................................................................................6 1.1.1. General Information About Christianity ..............................................................6 1.1.2. Common Beliefs Of Christianity .........................................................................6 1.2. The Link between Christianity and Management ...................................................8 2. Christian Community and Management ..................................................................17 2.1.2 Beginnings of the Church ...................................................................................18 2.1.3 Acceptance by the Roman Empire – Church division ........................................19 2.1.4. Christianity at middle Ages and Early modern period.......................................20 2.1.5. Worldwide expansion ........................................................................................21 2.1.6. Controversy and criticism ..................................................................................21 2.2. Christian Organization and Management .............................................................22 2.2.1. Entrance at Christianity (Church) – Baptism.....................................................22 2.2.2 Exit from Christianity (Church) – Excommunication (Anathema).....................23 2.2.3. Confession..........................................................................................................25 2.2.4. Organization of Church......................................................................................27 2.2.4.1. Leadership positions and functions.................................................................27 2.2.4.2. Basics for Leadership......................................................................................29 2.2.4.3. Contrast between worldly and spiritual leaders ..............................................30 2.3.4.4. Decision Making & Biblical Approach ..........................................................30 3. Conclusion ...............................................................................................................31 List Of References .......................................................................................................33
Introduction
One of many functions of a religion is to provide a guideline for people to
show them the correct way to live. Therefore, they have rules to organize many things
in the human life. Social relationships, interaction with the nature, the forms of
worshipping, spiritual growth and most, if not all, of similar topics are covered.
Being one of the widely accepted religions on the world, Christianity also
has its own characteristics. Jesus, the Christian prophet, has affected many people
through the generations and his teachings provided a foundation for many systems
and ideas which still exist today. Management is no exception for that.
The aim of this report is to cover the relationship between Christianity and
management. The first part of the project will reveal the basic concepts of
Christianity. We will discuss what Christian philosophy has to offer in terms of
management. In the second part, we will inspect Christianity as a social institute and
see how the world of Christianity has been managed through the history.
Christianity is a sensitive topic which is still being discussed by many.
Different ideologies, even Islam, refuse many key points of Christianity and provide
alternative approaches to Jesus and his life. However, revealing the truth about
Christianity is way beyond the scope of this project. „Christianity as believed by
Christians“will be our main focus in terms of philosophy.
Literature Review
To be able to talk about a religion, the researcher must have a good
understanding of the religion. Because “The Bible” is the foundation of everything
Christian, it is be the main source of the religious point of view of this project.
“The History Of Management Thought” discusses many key points of
management. It is possible to see the historic evolution of management and how it
was developed through the time. Christianity and Management is also one of the
topics of this book. It is possible to understand how the social and managerial form of
the Catholic Church has been developed, and how the cultural rebirth has been taken
place with the Protestant ideology. The classical, neo-classical and modern
management theories are also part of this book. Especially these sections were really
helpful to build the managerial side of the bridge between Christianity and
management.
“Organizational Behavior” covers the human factor in business
organizations. Common sociological and psychological motives of the human are
discussed. Values, attitudes, satisfaction, emotions, motivation, and group behavior
are some of these points. This book is a very comprehensive source on the subject,
and it has provided the foundation of human psychology in a social environment for
this project.
“Dinsel İnançlar ve Düşünceler Tarihi” is a large set of 3 books, providing a
chronological review of all major beliefs, as well as organized religions, in human
history. This book can be recommended to anyone who wants to make a research on a
spiritual doctrine. It has been helpful to understand the efforts of Pavlus to spread
Christianity and how he connected the daily life of business with Christian doctrine.
Although it is not one of the most recent resources, “An Approach to the
Psychology of Religion” reveals the basic relationship between human psychology
and religion. It is not focused on a single religion; instead, religion has been discussed
as a general concept. It provided an alternative point of view to differentiate the
cognitive and affective effects of religion.
“Son Üç Peygamber” provides a good summary on the lives of three
prophets: Moses, Jesus and Mohammad. Comments from different points of views are
also included for certain important events. This book has been used as a support
resource to understand the life of Jesus.
“Toma’ya Göre İncil” includes 114 commitments of Jesus Christ himself, as
well as comprehensive comments on each commitment. Some of these commitments
were used to develop a better understanding of the concepts in The Bible.
“Christianity: A Very Short Introduction” of Linda Woodhead provides a
very good summary of Christianity and the common beliefs among Christians. It
covers concepts like Jesus, signs and symbols of Christianity, and modern Christianity
in the west. It is offered to anyone who would like to have a general idea about
Christianity.
Published at http://www.bibleinfo.com , Bible Info is a very comprehensive
source to research The Bible. It has split the Bible into different topics, and excerpts
about each topic can be viewed together.
Published at http://www.wikipedia.org, Wikipedia is one of the largest and
most respected online encyclopedias. Information about almost anything can be found
here. This resource has been used to gain a general insight about the structure and
history of Christianity.
“Biblical Management Principles” course is part of the Harvestime
International Institute, a program designed to equip believers for effective spiritual
harvest. The basic theme of the training is to teach what Jesus taught, that which took
men who were fishermen, tax collectors, etc., and changed them into reproductive
Christians who reached their world with the Gospel in a demonstration of power. It is
a single course in one of several modules of curriculum which moves believers from
visualizing through deputizing, multiplying, organizing, and mobilizing to achieve the
goal of evangelizing.
1. Christian Philosophy And Management
1.1. What Is Christianity?
1.1.1. General Information About Christianity
Being one of the three largest religions on earth, Christianity is a
monotheistic religion based upon the life and teachings of Jesus. With an estimated
2.1 billion adherents, Christianity can be defined as the world’s largest religion and is
predominant religion in America, Europe, and large parts of Africa1.
In the chain of Abrahamic religions, Christianity takes the second place
between Judaism and Islam. Jesus himself has claimed that his purpose isn’t to change
the religion of God, but rather to complete it.
However; the Christian community has a large diversity of beliefs; and it is
very hard to define Christianity as a globally accepted static doctrine, let alone being
one with Judaism and Islam. There are three main groups; which are Roman
Catholicism, Eastern Christianity and Protestantism2, and each group has different
subgroups. Does any of these groups represent the original doctrine of Jesus himself?
We will never know for sure. What we can say confidently is, that they all share some
common beliefs.
1.1.2. Common Beliefs Of Christianity
Christianity is shaped around a person, Jesus Christ3. In general, Christianity
is based upon the idea that there is only one God, and that Jesus is his messenger –
and (arguably) his son. Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a virgin when she was
pregnant; the pregnancy was a result of God’s grace.
After growing up in terms of age and power and being tested by the devil in
the desert, Jesus wandered his whole life, teaching people about God’s religion. Jesus
1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity 2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity 3 Woodhead, Linda (2004), Christianity: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, P.1
was also able to cast miracles. For example, he healed many people, walked on water,
demonstrated scenes of exorcism, and even raised the dead.
Because of his deeds, many Roman authorities were uncomfortable.
Therefore, they catched and crucified him. However, Jesus was resurrected and he
kept wandering amount for some time.
Being the messenger of God, Jesus was free of sin; and he successfully
resurrected himself. Therefore, Christians share the common belief that the salvation
from sin and death is possible by following Jesus’ doctrine. They believe that Jesus
paid off for all the sins of his followers in exchange for his pain during his
crucification.
Among God and Jesus, Christians share one more important concept: The
Holy Spirit. It is believed to be the implementation of God’s power on the earth, and it
is the source of the supernatural powers of Jesus Christ; as well as other holy men in
the history of religion.
Devil is an important character of Christianity. He disobeyed God when he
ordered him to kneel in the presence of a human, and was doomed to go to hell.
However, he was given a chance to live on earth and try to tempt people not to follow
God’s path.
It is believed that people will be resurrected in a judgment day, and
according to their deeds, their next destination will be heaven or hell. People, who
made good deeds and followed God’s path successfully, will be the folk of heaven
and have a peaceful eternal life there. On the other hand, the followers of Devil will
be the folk of hell aside him.
The key requirement of the path of God is to have faith in God and his word.
Although there are different versions, Christians accept The Bible as the main source
of God’s word. The Book is believed to be written by humans under the inspiration of
The Holy Spirit. The key concept of The Book is the love for people. A good
Christian is expected to follow the orders in The Book, and organize his life
accordingly. Other important concepts are sin, salvation and The Spirit.4
It is also important that the faith and the love is sincere. Religion as we
commonly use the word stands for at least two distinguishable things: (i) Behaviour as
actually observable, and (ii) Experience, which may or may not issue in behaviour
which is observable5. This means; a Christian will have a visible part of religion,
which is consistent of his observable behavior. He will also have an invisible part of
religion, which is consistent of his inner world. A good Christian believer is expected
to have both at the same time, and sincerely.
1.2. The Link between Christianity and
Management
1.2.1. Management Functions
Beyond all the details, it can be said that Christianity does support the
business life. This is significant in the letters of Pavlus, which order Christians that
people must work to deserve their food. Of course, “to work” is an activity which
evolved through time, but the basic idea didn’t change: it is the effort of production.
Because Christianity orders people “to work”, it is reasonable to say that it also
supports the concepts of business – as long as they don’t happen to provide a
contradiction with the path of God.
Business is basically about production, which is made by people. People
must be managed during the production process. If Christianity supports production
and business, it must also support management. This is the fundamental link between
Christianity and Management.
1.2.1.1. Planning
Planning is one of the most important functions of management. From the
macro point of view, managers are expected to develop strategies to reach the
4 Woodhead, Linda (2004), Christianity: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, P.24-45 5 Flower, Cyril (2001), An Approach To The Psychology Of Religion, Routledge, P.2
organizational goals. Beyond that big picture; before each decision, the management
is supposed to build a good plan of resource usage to make sure that the decision is
efficient and that the organization has enough resources to complete the process. The
Bible supports the planning function of managers as well. "Suppose one of you wants
to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has
enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it,
everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not
able to finish.’”6
It is the responsibility of management to plan ahead. But is it always the case
that the management has enough information and experience to make a plan? Not
really. A typical oppositional scenario is the case where a company wants to enter a
new market. In such cases, support of consultants is needed. This is also suggested by
The Bible. “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.”7
1.2.1.2. Organizing
In an organizational structure, the concept of “Span Of Control” has an
important place. It defines how many employees a manager can direct. A structure
where one single manager directs all the employees would not be efficient. Therefore,
a common organization will have a pyramid-like shape of structure where groups of
employees are directed by mid-level managers and mid-level managers are directed
by top-level managers. This concept has been stated in The Bible clearly. We
understand that the span of control pyramid is also supported by Christianity. "But
select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who
hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties
and tens."8 . We see that The Bible also suggests the number of people to be managed
in each level of the pyramid.
Staffing is another important concept in terms of organizing. To be able to
reach organizational goals, it is important to build a group of employees which can
provide a diversity of skills and expertise. This is also supported by Christianity. In
the example of Levites, it is stated that different people have different abilities, and 6 Luke 14:28-30 7 Proverbs 15:22 8 Exodus 18:21
they should be brought together to achieve a goal. “They hired masons and carpenters
to restore the Lord's temple, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the
temple.”9 “...had charge of the laborers and supervised all the workers from job to
job. Some of the Levites were secretaries, scribes and doorkeepers.”10
Introduced to management theory by Taylor, specialization suggests an
organization where each employee is concentrated to one (or a limited number of)
main responsibility. This idea is the source of departments and job descriptions of
todays modern organizations. Specialization is also one of the key concepts of
Christianity. “And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second
prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing,
those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in
different kinds of tongues.”11 We understand for instance, that a teacher is not
responsible of healing others, and a healer is not responsible of teaching others.
1.2.1.3. Leading
Leadership is the ability to lead others towards the goals of the organization,
and is one of the key functions of management. Leadership is a deeply discussed
subject, because management and leadership are not always the same thing. An
employee with a high level of charisma and technical skills can be the leader of others
while the manager of the department is someone else. Leaders are people who
motivate and lead people towards specific goals. A leader is a model for his followers;
and he should be able to communicate and motivate others to do what they are
supposed to do.
In The Bible, David provides a good example of leadership. His army was
afraid of the foes. However, when he slayed giant Goliath with one single sling shot,
he provided an example to his army that size doesn’t matter at all.
When talking about motivation, Goal Setting Theory suggests an approach
where reachable goals will increase the motivation of an employee when they are
9 Chronicles 24:12 10 Chronicles 34:13 11 Corinthians 12:28
stated clearly and measurably12. It is far better than saying “Just do your best”. When
we come back to Christianity, we all see that Christians have a goal for motivation: If
they walk in the path of Jesus, they will live in Paradise forever in the afterlife. “I
press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in
Christ Jesus.” 13
At this point, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that Christianity itself happens to
be the strongest source of motivation for the workers by stating that people should
work as if God is their boss. "Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord,
not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he
does, whether he is slave or free."14
1.2.1.4. Controlling
To make sure that the organization is performing well, managers have to
monitor the activities. The performance in a specific time span can be compared with
previous periods, or with other organizations. If a deviation is detected, the
management should make a new plan to get things back to track.
The data needed to perform the controlling activities is usually provided in
forms of reports. People with lower ranking gather information from their span of
responsibility, and report it to the higher ranks. This behavior is also the case in the
life of Jesus. Because Jesus was not able to travel everywhere he wanted within his
lifetime, he trained apostles and sent them to teach his doctrine. “The apostles
gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught.” 15
Evaluation is another key point of controlling. If a manager evaluates the
reports within the organization only, the only thing he can measure is the productivity.
However, efficiency is also a very important term of measurement. To be able to
determine the level of efficiency, the manager should be able to compare the
organization with others; which is also suggested in The Bible. “We do not dare to
classify or compare ourselves with some who commend themselves. When they
12 Robbins, Stephen P. (2005), Organizational Behavior, Pearson Education, Inc, 11th Edition, P.180 13 Philippians 3:14 14 Ephesians 6:7-8 15 Mark 6:30
measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are
not wise.”16
1.2.2. Management Skills
The Bible has made a clear statement that not all people are capable of
leading others. We understand that every person has his own abilities, and we all
should do the best thing that we can. If we have the abilities to be a good leader, then
we should take responsibility and play a leading role. Otherwise, we should act as
workers. "God has given each of us the ability to do certain things well… If your gift
is that of serving others, serve them well… If God has given you money, be generous
in helping others with it. If God has given you administrative ability and put you in
charge of the work of others, take the responsibility seriously."17
This statement makes a perfect match with the modern idea of Robert Katz
that there is a set of skills that a good manager needs to have. These can be
summarized in three categories: technical skills, human skills and conceptual skills. 18
Just because someone has very good technical abilities doesn’t mean that he can be a
good manager, there is much more to that.
1.2.2.1 Technical Skills
Management without the technical knowledge about the scope of the
organization can’t be expected to be successful. To be able to manage others, a
manager must know what the employees are doing; and he should be able to guide or
replace any employee in unexpected situations. The technical knowledge can be
gained in trainings. However, it is also a common scenario to have someone work
among other employees for some while and promote him as manager afterwards.
This is also suggested by Christianity. It is stated that a successful manager
should have worked as an employee before managing others. "And whosoever will be
chief among you, let him be your servant” 19. Working among employees before
16 Corinthians 10:12 17 Romans 12:6-8 18 Robbins, Stephen P. (2005), Organizational Behavior, Pearson Education, Inc, 11th Edition, P.7-8 19 Matthew 20:27
leading them would also help the manager to have a better understanding of his
employees.
1.2.2.2. Human Skills
A good manager is expected to have human skills; which means, he should
be able to communicate, understand the needs of others and handle the conflicts
between members.
In Christianity, the prophets are held responsible of providing human skills to
solve conflicts between believers. “...have them serve as judges for the people at all
times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can
decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with
you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all
these people will go home satisfied."20
Christianity suggests that solving interpersonal conflicts has a higher priority
than anything else; even offering a sacrifice to God. “Therefore, if you are offering
your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against
you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your
brother; then come and offer your gift.” 21
Before making any decision about the conflict, it is essential to listen to all of
the parties. “Any story sounds true until someone tells the other side and sets the
record straight.”22
Although it is the managers responsibility to make sure that conflicts don’t
affect the organizations success, is it always the case that a manager has to intervene
to solve the conflict? Not really. If that would be the case, managers would have a
hard time being able to do anything else but conflict elimination. In many cases,
conflicts can be solved with the proper communication among employees; which is
also suggested by The Bible. “If your brother sins again you, go and show him his
fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother
20 Exodus 18:21-24 21 Matthew 5:23-24 22 Proverbs 18:17
over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may
be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to
them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as
you would a pagan (...)” 23
1.2.2.3. Conceptual Skills
A manager with good conceptual skills will be able to analyze complex
situations, seek for alternative solutions and make accurate decisions24.
Let’s look deeper into this statement. The first step of a good decision is to
analyze the situation. Without an accurate analysis, it is very hard (if not impossible)
to make an accurate decision. This principle is also stated in the Bible. “What a
shame—yes, how stupid!—to decide before knowing the facts!”25
The second part of the statement suggests the need of alternative solutions.
The first solution that the manager has found doesn’t need to be the best one. Looking
for new ideas and comparing them to each other will give the best answer; as
suggested by The Bible: “The intelligent man is always open to new ideas. In fact, he
looks for them.”26
1.2.3. Other Managerial Subjects
1.2.3.1. Ethics
From the viewpoint of the employees, The Bible clearly states that every
employee must act ethically and be grateful towards their employers. “Teach slaves to
be subject to their masters in everything, to try to please them, not to talk back to
them, and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in
every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive.”27
23 Matthew 18:15-17 24 Robbins, Stephen P. (2005), Organizational Behavior, Pearson Education, Inc, 11th Edition, P.8 25 Proverbs 18:13 26 Proverbs 18:15 27 Titus 2:9-10
On the other hand, Christian doctrine also warns employers to be fair and
careful about the wages: “For listen! Hear the cries of the field workers whom you
have cheated of their pay. Their cries have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.”28
What about the ethics between the company and the government? Jesus
suggests every Christian to pay their taxes. “Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it
right to pay taxes to Caesar or not? But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, 'You
hypocrites, why are you trying to trap Me? Show Me the coin used for paying the tax.'
They brought Him a denarius, and He asked them, 'Whose portrait is this? And whose
inscription?' ‘Caesar’s,’ they replied. Then He said to them, 'Give to Caesar what is
Caesar's, and to God what is God’s.'"29
1.2.3.2. Training
When an employee enters the company for the first time, he can’t be
expected to fulfill his duties right away. He can suffer the lack of knowledge of
technical or non-technical skills. Examples to technical skills are fast-typing
capabilities of a secretary and first-aid knowledge of a driver. Examples to non-
technical skills are customer-orientation of a sales representative and team-orientation
of a software developer. Such incompetencies can be completed with the help of
trainings.
Today, much non-technical training is being given in form of games instead
of formal educations. During these games, the employees gain a deeper insight about
the subject; which is far better than memorizing concepts without really
understanding anything.
If we take Jesus as the ultimate teacher and his doctrine as a large training of
non-technical concepts, it wouldn’t be awkward to say that he provides a good model
of indirect teaching in forms of “games”. Jesus was transmitting his doctrine in forms
of parables30 and expected his followers to gain a deeper insight with the help of
28 James 5:4 29 Matthew 22:17-21 30 Eliade, Mircea (2003), Dinsel İnançlar ve Düşünceler Tarihi, Kabalcı, P.382
them. “He taught them many things by parables”31. Naturally, Jesus also provides a
model where training has a very high importance.
31 Mark 1:22
2. Christian Community and Management
2.1 The History of Christianity
2.1.1. Bible – Choice of 4 main books
The Christian Bible used by most Christians, also called Holy Bible, Scripture
or Word of God contains life and teachings of Jesus, and also letters of Apostle Paul.
Christians use New Testament which covers 27 books. In these books, Jesus is
at the center and they are written primarily in old Greek at the early Christian period.
4 books which are canonized gospels are mostly known by Christians. These are
Gospel of Matthew, Gospel of Mark, Gospel of Luke and Gospel of John. 32
In the 5th century, these 4 books are accepted by the Catholic Church, under
the rule of Pope Innocent I. This decision is made by the Church, first it was easier to
manage the Church by 4 books instead of many more and second, there are some
rumors that they put out the parts which would be a trouble for the Church. For
example, was Mary Magdalene the wife of Jesus and was the leadership of the Church
given to her by Jesus after him?
These 4 Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are recognized respectively
by the Council of Rome (382), the Synod of Hippo (393), and two Synods of
Carthage. (397 and 419) 33
32 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bible#Differing_Christian_usages_of_the_Old_Testament 33 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gospel
The historical development of major church branches from their roots: 34
2.1.2 Beginnings of the Church
Christianity started within the Jewish religion among the followers of Jesus.
Christianity welcomed Gentiles under the leadership of the Apostles Peter and Paul,
and gradually separated from Pharisaic Judaism. 35 Some Jewish Christians didn’t
accept this approach and developed into various parts, while others were joined with
Gentile Christians in the development of the church; within both groups there existed
great diversity of belief. As we can see in the works of Professor Bentley Leyton,
"The lack of uniformity in ancient Christian scripture in the early period is very
striking, and it points to the substantial diversity within the Christian religion." 36 As
in every organization, there has to be a structure, a church hierarchy seems to have
developed by the time of the Pastoral Epistles (Tim 3, Titus 1). It exists from the first
generation of Christians and was formalized by 4th century.
34 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity 35 Romans 1:16 36 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity
2.1.3 Acceptance by the Roman Empire – Church
division
In the 4th century, Christianity became legal at the Roman Empire. After the
permission, there was a chaos between pagans and Christians. In 312, Emperor
Constantine took a courageous decision and it can be seen as a good management
example. He saw the future and success of his empire at Christianity and to show that
he is a good leader, he became also Christian. By giving to the Christian Church some
privileges, Christian institutions became stronger than pagan ones. In 391 Theodosius
I determined Christianity as the official and, except for Judaism, only legal religion in
the Roman Empire. As Church becomes more important at social life, managers
which are emperors at this time wanted to be in the decision process of Church and
more clearly wanted the power. They wanted to ascend the throne by powerful
religious people. Pagan culture began to be suppressed and pagan religion began to be
accepted heretical by Roman emperors. Pagans were found guilty as they committed a
crime against State. Therefore, we can see clearly that accepting Christianity by
Roman Emperors is a mostly management decision. They become more powerful by
taking the religion power near them. 37
As frontiers of Roman Empire became very large, the Church organization
increased, too. Five big powerful constitutions were formed: the Pope of Rome, the
Patriarch of Alexandria and of Antioch, to which later were added the Patriarch of
Constantinople (in 381) and the Patriarch of Jerusalem (in 451). This system of five
sees was later dubbed the Pentarchy. We can accept that as the division of duties in an
organization.
There were two languages spoken in the Roman Empire. Latin was spoken at
the West, Rome being capital and Greek was spoken at the East, Istanbul
(Constantinople) being capital. This division formed a two divided Empire: West
Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire which is East Roman Empire. This division
will prepare at the future the demolition of West one in 476 A.C. and as we know the
end of Byzantine Empire in 1453. This can be seen as one of biggest mistake in the
Empire for the management view. 37 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity
2.1.4. Christianity at middle Ages and Early
modern period
Migration Period changed the whole situation of Europe, both politically and
socially, but at the other hand; they failed to keep their proper religions. Germanic
peoples adopted Roman (Catholic) Christianity and Slavic peoples preferred
Orthodox Christianity. This event prepared the Great Schism, dated to 1054, which
separated officially two churches, Catholic and Orthodox.
When 7th century arrived, we can see that Islam challenged Christianity and
Christians lost Middle East, North Africa and Spain. This process continued with
Crusades and finally the conquest of Byzantine Empire by Ottomans and Turkish
people.
For the European history, the Middle Age is called “dark age”, because there
is a conflict between Church and free thinking. Especially, at this time, not to lose
power, Church excommunicated people who disobeys them, therefore religious rules
are applied according to the wishes of Church managers. Also, because of Crusades,
powerful land owners were sent away and Church owned these lands. We can clearly
see the examples of a dictator style of administration. The corruption and immorality
among the clergy resulted with the Reform at the Church. After Martin Luther
published his 95 theses in 1517, and a few times later, Church found itself divided in
two parts. The competition between Catholic and Protestant Christians resulted
political struggles for centuries. 38Stayed far from the center of Europe, Orthodox
Christians lived under Muslim rulers. This event shows the disadvantage of
decentralization when both management have not the same capability of management
or the knowledge of organization.
.
38 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity
2.1.5. Worldwide expansion
With the missionary and colonial efforts of Europeans, Christianity spread to
Americas, Oceania, East Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. After the Middle Age, with the
Enlightment, discoveries of science, Christianity was confronted. Also, biblical
criticism and modern political ideologies such as liberalism, nationalism and
socialism weakened the power of Church as compared to the Middle Age. 39
Church responded this situation by a counter action. It wanted a strong
religious uniformity of European countries against Islamic countries. With this
approach, it protected its power at a limit.
2.1.6. Controversy and criticism
Many skeptics don’t accept Christianity because of internal conflicts involving
its holy scripture. There are many controversies surrounding Christianity in the
history: These controversies can be seen as lack of Church management which
couldn’t clarify the issue:
• There are some propositions which cover the idea that Jesus of Nazareth may
never have existed, there is a lack of information outside the New Testament. Also, it
is argued that there are some similarities with pre-Christian cultures. The idea of
Jesus’ nonexistence has not found a general acceptance by Christian community or
historians.
• For some writers and researchers, Paul is the founder of Christianity instead of
Jesus. His missionary work and his efforts to spread the Church organization seem
more important for this people than a spiritual leader.
• Many Muslims don’t find Christian doctrine compatible with Monotheism
because of the “Father-Son and Holly Spirit” belief. 40
39 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity 40 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christianity
Matthew 5:17-19 can be taken to imply that the Old Testament laws remain in
place in the New Testament, while Matthew 5:38-39 can be viewed as contradicting
those earlier passages. Simple investigation yields many apparent contradictions in
the Bible, which some use to argue against belief in the Bible as the absolute.
While consideration of the context is necessary when studying the Bible, some
find the four different accounts of the Resurrection of Jesus within the four Gospels of
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, difficult to reconcile.
Criticisms are also sometimes raised because of contradictions arising between
different English translations of the Hebrew or Greek text. 41
2.2. Christian Organization and Management
As we will see at next three parts, Christianity has some rituals for entrance,
exit and forgiveness. We can link these rituals with Weber’s bureaucracy. Therefore,
a classical management theory is used. As we will see rules of Catholic and Orthodox
Church are harsher, as classical theory but Protestant Church prefers to apply rules
more relax as non classical theory.
2.2.1. Entrance at Christianity (Church) –
Baptism
Baptism is a definitive ritual in Christian explanation. By baptism, the person
is accepted (fully qualified) to the participation of Church. The baptism was the duty
of John the Baptist, who was thought to be the cousin of Jesus. “Those who believe
41 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_of_Christianity
that John was a prophet identify baptism with his message concerning repentance in
preparation for the coming of the Messiah.”42
In Christian belief, John also taught that his baptism was not finally sufficient,
and that repentance would not attain to its goal of separation from sin, apart from a
greater baptism which it was not in his power to give. According to the Gospel of
Luke, John taught, "I baptize you with water; but one comes who is stronger than I, of
whom I am not worthy to untie the strap of his sandals; he will baptize you with the
Holy Spirit and fire; his winnowing fork is in his hand to clean out his threshing floor
and to gather the wheat into his storehouse, but the chaff he will burn with
inextinguishable fire." 43 From this point on, water baptism became identified with
the followers of Jesus.
At the end of his recorded ministry, Jesus charged the Apostles to baptize "in
the name of Father, Son and Holy Spirit" in the Great Commission44, which has
become the common method for baptizing.
2.2.2 Exit from Christianity (Church) –
Excommunication (Anathema)
The biblical basis of excommunication is “anathema”. Anathema was used in the
early church as a form of extreme religious sanction, beyond excommunication. The
earliest recorded example was in 306. The Roman Catholic Church still makes use of
the sanction, though it is rarely used against an individual. Some modern churches
refer to any form of exclusion as anathema.
Roman Catholic Church
Excommunication is the most serious ecclesiastical penalty for Roman
Catholics. It is a punishment which is rarely used to discipline unrelenting defiance or
other serious violations of church rules especially by those who are accused of
spreading division and confusion among the faithful.
42 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baptism 43 Luke 3: 16–17 44 Matthew 28:19
This gives at the end a prohibition of the person from participating in liturgy in
a ministerial capacity. There are some other rights and privileges which are cancelled
such as holding ecclesiastical office. Excommunication is intended to be a medicinal
penalty: it is intended to seriously motivate the offender to repent, and therefore is a
penalty with a goal of returning the person to full communion after the offensive
action has stopped. So, it is accepted as a medicament instead of a punishment. “In the
Roman Catholic Church excommunication is usually terminated by a statement of
repentance, profession of the Creed (if the offense involved heresy) or a renewal of
obedience (if that was a relevant part of the offending act). This whole process takes
place within the privacy of the confessional and during the same act of confession.”45
Offenses which result excommunication must be absolved by a priest or bishop
empowered to remove the penalty.
“The Roman Catholic Church has an extensive history of the uses of
excommunication, especially during the middle Ages. Popes and archbishops used
excommunication as a weapon against high ranking officials and kings who fell out of
favor with the Catholic Church. Perceived abuse of this power, along with some other
factors, led to the rise of the Protestant Reformation. With the rise of the idea of
separation of church and state, excommunication no longer has any civil effect.
Today, excommunicated Catholics are still under obligation to attend Mass,
even though they are barred from taking active part in the liturgy (reading, bringing
the offerings, etc.). Indeed, the excommunicant is encouraged to retain some
relationship with the Church, as the goal is to encourage them to repent and return to
active participation in its life.”46
Eastern Orthodox Communion
In the Orthodox Church, excommunication is not an expulsion from the
Church. This can happen because of minor reasons like not having confessed within
that year or be imposed as part of a penitential period. It is generally done with the
goal of eventually restoring the member to full communion. The Orthodox Church
has a right for expulsion, by pronouncing anathema, but this is reserved only for acts
45 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excommunication 46 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excommunication
of serious and unrepentant heresy. Even in that case, the individual is not damned by
the Church but is instead left to his own devices. “But, according to some theological
sects, the person who receives anathema by the Church, is condemned to Hell and will
be unable to rot in their grave.” 47
Lutheranism
Although there are several variants of Lutheranism across the world,
Lutheranism technically has an excommunication process, although some of them do
not use it. This process which is rarely used has created some unusual situations
because of its democratic excommunication process.
According to Luther, excommunication requires:
“1. The confrontation between the subject and the individual who he has
"sinned" against.
2. If this fails, the confrontation between the subject, the harmed individual,
and two or three witnesses to such acts of sin.
3. The informing of the pastor of the subject's congregation.
4. A confrontation between the pastor and the subject.” 48
2.2.3. Confession
“Confession of sins is an integral part of the Christian faith and practice. The
meaning is essentially the same as the criminal one – to admit one's own guilt.
Confession of one's sins, or at least of one's sinfulness, is seen by most churches as a
pre-requisite for becoming a Christian.” 49
Roman Catholicism
In Catholic teaching, the Confession is the method given by Christ to the
Catholic Church by which individual men and women may confess sins committed
47 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excommunication 48 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Excommunication 49 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confession
after baptism and have them absolved by a priest. (It is not necessary to confess sins
committed before baptism, as baptism itself is considered to remove the guilt of sins.)
Confession is named also as penance and reconciliation Many Catholics continue to
use the term "confession" in reference to the sacrament. “Catholics believe that the
power of forgiveness belongs to God alone; however, God can and does exercise it
through the Catholic priesthood. The basic form of confession has not changed for
centuries, although at one time confessions were made publicly. The role of the priest
is of a judge and jury; in theological terms, he receives from the Church the power of
jurisdiction over the penitent. The penitent must confess mortal sins in order to restore
his/her connection to God's grace and not to merit Hell.” 50
Eastern Orthodoxy
“For the Eastern Orthodox Church, confession has more to do with the
spiritual development of the individual and much less to do with purification. Sin is
not seen as a stain on the soul, but rather a mistake that needs correction. In general,
the Orthodox Christian chooses an individual to trust as his or her spiritual guide. In
most cases this is the parish priest but may, in fact, be any individual, male or female,
who has received permission from a bishop to hear confessions.”51
Protestantism
For Protestant churches, an intermediary between the Christian and God is not
necessary in order to be absolved from sins. “Protestants however, confess their sins
in private prayer before God, believing this suffices to gain God's pardon. However
confession to another is often encouraged when a wrong has been done to a person as
well as to God. Confession is then made to the person wronged, and is part of the
reconciliation process. In cases where sin has resulted in the exclusion of a person
from church membership due to unrepentance, public confession is often a pre-
requisite to readmission. The sinner confesses to the church his or her repentance and
is received back into fellowship.” 52
50 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confession 51 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confession 52 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confession
2.2.4. Organization of Church
Christian Church always lived a problem of organization from the beginning
of its foundation. Early congregations had their own doctrine and conditions for
membership. This independency created disorganization. There were a lot of bishops
who were heads of various local churches at the 3rd century. “At the Council of Nicea,
(A.C.25) the bishop of Rome was named to the office of Pope.” 53 This movement
was realized to keep unanimity but throughout the history, Christian Church failed to
do it.
2.2.4.1. Leadership positions and functions
The Bible determines five special leadership positions set in the Church by
God:
“And He gave some apostles; and some, prophets; and some,
evangelists; and some, pastors, and teachers.”54 (Ephesians 4:11)
“Apostle: An apostle is the person who has a special ability to develop new churches
in different places and also to oversee a number of churches as a supervisor. Apostle
means a delegate who is sent with full power and authority to act for another. The
apostle has a special authority or ability to extend the Gospel through the world by
developing organized bodies of believers. In modern terms, an apostle is used as a
missionary and church planter. The Apostle Paul is one of the best examples of an
apostle from the Bible.
Prophet: A prophet is the person who speaks under the direct inspiration of God and
holds an office of authority in the Church. A prophet has the ability to receive and
communicate an immediate message of God to His people. Agabus is a good example
of a New Testament prophet. 53 Wren, Daniel A. (2005), The History Of Management Thought, John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 5th Edition, P.20
54 Epjesians 4:11
Evangelist: An evangelist has a special ability to share the Gospel with unbelievers in
a way that men and women respond and become responsible members of the Body of
Christ. The word evangelist means the person who brings good news. Philip is a good
example of an evangelist.
Pastor: The word pastor actually means shepherd. Pastors are leaders who assume
long-term personal responsibility for the spiritual welfare of a group of believers.
Teacher: Teachers are believers who have a special ability to communicate the Word
of God (Bible) effectively in such a way that others (students) learn and apply what is
taught.” 55
The five special leadership positions work together in the ministry of the Church.
“The Apostle extends the Gospel to new regions to rise up new churches.
The Evangelist communicates the Gospel in such a way that unbelievers respond and
are added to the Church.
The Prophet gives special messages from God to the Church by the inspiration of the
Holy Spirit.
Teachers provide instruction which goes beyond the presentation of the Gospel done
by the evangelist. They take new converts on to spiritual maturity and train faithful
people who are capable of teaching others.
Pastors assume long-term leadership and care for the Church.” 56
There are other positions of leadership mentioned in the Bible that are not spiritual
gifts. They are "offices" established because of practical needs of the Church.
Other positions
55 Biblical Management Principles, Harvestime International Institute, P.5
56Biblical Management Principles, Harvestime International Institute, P.7
The offices of deacon, elder, and bishop are mentioned in the New Testament. (Some
people consider a bishop to be similar to a pastor. Others see it a separate office.)
The purpose of these offices is to assist those with spiritual gifts of leadership like the
apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.
2.2.4.2. Basics for Leadership
There are four basic requirements for all leaders. A Christian leader must be:
“1. Born Again: He must be a true believer in Jesus Christ according to the
instructions given in John 3.
2. Baptized In The Holy Spirit: He should have the evidence of a powerful witness
as described in Acts 1:8.
3. Called And Anointed To Be A Leader: People must be called and anointed of
God to fill leadership positions in the Church.
4. Spiritually Mature: He should have experienced the foundations of faith described
in Hebrews 6:1-3 and moved on to spiritual maturity as this passage directs.” 57
Spiritual maturity involves a good personal relationship with the Lord including good
prayer and Bible study habits.
57 Biblical Management Principles, Harvestime International Institute, P.19
2.2.4.3. Contrast between worldly and
spiritual leaders
Ref: BiblicalManagementPrinciples,HarvestimeInternationalInstitute,P.27
2.3.4.4. Decision Making & Biblical Approach
Making decisions is a hard task facing leaders every day. Each decision is
important, because decisions on small matters over a period of time affect the whole
picture and management. A decision is a choice. An answer has to be found for a real
life situation and the action which will be taken has to be decided. Decisions
determine destiny. Decisions made by a leader affect not only his destiny, but the
destiny of his followers. Life is an endless succession of choices and decisions.
Making choices is a responsibility. Refusing to make a decision is in itself another
decision.
“The Biblical approach to decision making is not voting by the people. It is
not the democratic approach or majority rule.
Democratic process in the Church produces compromise, legalism, and
competition. Rules of order, motions, and votes limit revelation by the Holy Spirit.
Voting often results in hurt feelings, anger, and church splits. These are not Biblical
ways of decision-making for the Church. They are methods the Church has adopted
from democratic government styles of the world.” 58
3. Conclusion
From the philosophical point of view, we see that many concepts of modern
management theory, such as management functions and skills, also exist in The Bible.
Most of the modern theories were developed by Christians. The question is; were they
developed with the inspiration of The Bible? Or is it the case that an absolute truth
may be discovered by different people living in different spans of time? The answer is
up to you.
As in every organization, Christianity also has a management history and its
managers. The first important management decision in Christianity is the choice of
four canonical Gospels as the main books. Church wanted to manage the religion
easier and wanted to put out some parts which could be trouble for them. Christianity
became important with the Roman Empire. At the 4th century, to become more
powerful, Roman emperors chose Christianity as the legal religion of the empire.
They finished the chaos happening between Pagans and Christians. Therefore, it was a
very successful management decision. As Christianity became important at social life,
emperors wanted to use this power; they ascended the throne by religious people.
Throughout the history, there are also some unsuccessful managerial decisions
taken by Church. In the name of religion, Church sent a lot of land owners to
Crusades and at the end of Crusades, Church lost his credibility. After the Migration
Period, Christianity was separated into Catholicism and Orthodoxy The corruption at
clergy ended with another separation which is Protestantism. These separations that
can be accepted as decentralization resulted some political struggles. Biblical
criticism and discoveries of science weakened the power of Church. With a counter
management decision, Church protected its power by using Christianity as the
uniformity of European countries against Islamic countries.
There are some differences at rituals between Catholicism, Orthodoxy and
Protestantism. So many rituals can be compared to Weber’s bureaucracy. Also
another link with management theory can be formed: Catholicism is more like
58 Biblical Management Principles, Harvestime International Institute, P.47
classicism giving more importance to strict rules and Protestantism is near
neoclassicism that gives more flexibility and put the people at the front.
List Of References
The Bible
Candan, Ergun (2002), Son Üç Peygamber, Sınır Ötesi Yayınları, 8th Edition
Eliade, Mircea (2003), Dinsel İnançlar ve Düşünceler Tarihi, Kabalcı
Flower, Cyril (2001), An Approach To The Psychology Of Religion, Routledge
Özemre, Ahmed Yüksel (2002), Toma’ya Göre İncil, İyi Adam
Robbins, Stephen P. (2005), Organizational Behavior, Pearson Education, Inc, 11th
Edition
Woodhead, Linda (2004), Christianity: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford
Wren, Daniel A. (2005), The History Of Management Thought, John Wiley & Sons,
Inc, 5th Edition
Biblical Management Principles, Harvestime International Institute
http://www.bibleinfo.com
http://www.wikipedia.org