RADICAL LEADERSHIP:
In the New Testament and today
By Michael Green
SPCK. 101 pages. £9.99
ISBN 978 0 281 078 660
That veteran minister of the gospel, Michael Green, now in his late 80s, turns his attention to what he sees as a major deficit of most contemporary systems of training; they don’t develop leadership as the New Testament did.
The ‘mentoring-in-actual-ministry’ component, he feels, is seriously under-provided. He contrasts this with what he has seen of leadership in the two-thirds world where Christianity is thriving.
Wise insights from Scripture
He then describes Jesus’ training of the Twelve, Peter’s teaching on leadership, Paul’s teaching especially to the Corinthians, Luke in Acts, and Paul again in the Pastoral Epistles. He rounds off with a chapter on New Testament teaching on women in ministry, and lessons for today.
There really is so much I liked about this little book, and wise insights from the Scriptures abound. It will be worth reading for them. We all need to face the challenges of the New Testament, and also have an honest look at how any training we provide has weaknesses as well as strengths.
Concerns
Yet… you know what is coming… ‘But’. But there are some concerns. Overall, Michael’s ‘mild’ charismaticism shapes so much, from his warm and, to me, uncritical endorsement of Holy Trinity Brompton-backed St Mellitus’ training, to his dismissal of those who don’t agree with his view of ‘gifts’.
Simplistic
Though Green is a very bright chap, having ministered in Oxford for many years, his criticisms of the rest of ‘College training’ does feel ‘anti-intellectual’ and simplistic. His chapter on women in ministry is a frustrating read as it doesn’t seem to show much awareness of, or any sympathy towards, a complementarian position held by others of his evangelical brothers and sisters. The exegesis he puts forward has long been countered by strong arguments and it didn’t seem as if this was acknowledged. It felt like a muddled and unhelpful chapter.
So, sadly, mixed thoughts which led to my mixed feelings.
