During the building of the Brooklyn Bridge in the 1870s and 1880s a great
controversy arose over which kind of wire was best for weaving the great
suspension cables. Some contended that only crucible steel would
do...since in was made basically one "pot" at a time it was perceived to
be of better quality. Another camp insisted that Bessemer steel wire would
quite suffice since the Bessemer process had been greatly improved,
virtually nullifying any quality difference...and it was cheaper.
The chief engineer, however, insisted the key issue was the integrity
of the maker of the wire. He sternly warned the trustees against awarding
the huge contract to a particular Brooklyn man who was known for his
marital infidelities and shady busine ss dealings. The trustees, however,
went with the low bidder. After the wire spinning began, it was
discovered that the manufacturer was shipping wire that did not meet
standards, although the samples he sent to win the contract had been quite
satisfactory. The bridge trustees posted inspectors at the wire plant to
ensure quality. The manufacturer however devised a way to circumvent the
inspection process and was actually shipping rejected wire to the bridge
site.
The chief engineer's "I told you so" notwithstanding, he became the
scapegoat loaded with the blame for the delays in the bridge project,
which were actually caused by delayed wire shipments. The important
question was never the technique for making wire, but the integrity of the
maker.
I'm sure our LO friends will deduce many lessons from the incident (or
none at all), but I present it as a parable for those specifically who
feel that the key to a learning organization is drawing out the natural
goodness that is "latent" in all of us. The question really centers on
what is the nature of humanity. Specifically, I offer the bridge story for
Don Kerr (though I'm sure his views are widely subscribed) who expresses
disdain for the idea that humans are essentially sinful creatures.
I'm afraid whatever church he attends has only preached half of the
message, or he has engaged in selective listening. To want to create other
humans in our own image, and God (or gods) in our own image is part of the
nature of humanity. But you have to take a pretty 'a la carte' approach to
the Bible if you want to come out with a story about man's 'latent'
goodness, or even compassion.
True enough, humanity was created in the image of God. However, that
'original sin' of which Don spoke was human desire to be God-like. Satan
says to one of the humans: "You will surely not die (if you eat the fruit
of the tree about which God warned you) For God knows that when you eat of
it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and
evil." (Genesis 3:4,5). Well, the humans decided to rupture the
relationship with God and choose self-aggrandizement.
If anyone wishes to adhere to a Christianity in which humans are
essentially good and Christ came to encourage us to bring forth our
'latent compassion', then he or she is inventing a new religion. But in
actuality, it is an old religion...the essence of all religion is
humanity's attempt to justify itself in the eyes of God. If I do more good
than bad, I will be found worthy. In fact, the Bible...which is the story
of humanity's sinfulness and God's mercy ... teaches that "all our
righteous acts are like filthy rags." (Isaiah 64:6) It also says, "all
have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23)
Now the open-minded and spiritual among us may say 'That's taking a
pretty dim view of humanity.' And they would be right. But the good news
of Christianity has never been that humanity is glorious if we could just
call out our latent qualities. The good news of Jesus Christ is that
despite our sinfulness (our open rebellion against our creator), God is
merciful and wants a relationship with us. God is willing to save all who
will turn away from sin and accept the perfect sin offering that has been
made by God in atonement. Of course that offering is God's-own in the
sacrifice of the sinless Jesus of Nazareth on the cross. The subsequent
bodily resurrection of Christ gives us hope, but only if we place our
faith in Christ who is God, and who is the only way. (John 14:6)
A biblical understanding of humanity, creation and God provides a
significantly different platform from which to develop our learning
organizations. And while the decision to accept Christ's sacrifice as
payment for our sin is one with eternal signifi cance, its importance in
understanding organizational development represents a paradigm shift for
those who cling to the historically and ontologically inaccurate view that
"people are basically good".
Well-meaning organizational developers are going to burn themselves
out trying to call forth the basic goodness that just isn't there
naturally in humanity. Perhaps that is why Jesus said, "You must be born
again' (a double-entendre which also means 'You must be born from above').
An accurate understanding of human nature would seem crucial to
developing a learning organization or any other kind of human enterprise.
If we are mistaken about the essence of humanity, then we will find
ourselves building a bridge whose cables will not support the weight and
vibration of many crossings.
Grace & Peace,
Scott Ott, Public Relations Specialist
sott@nkcsd.k12.mo.us
The North Kansas City School District
http://www.nkcsd.k12.mo.us
"Do not be conformed to this world
but be transformed by
the renewing of your mind."
--Scott Ott <SOTT@nkcsd.k12.mo.us>
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations For info: <rkarash@karash.com> -or- <http://world.std.com/~lo/>