蜜芽传媒

Recent days have demonstrated that there鈥檚 nothing quite like a good old-fashioned feud to get people engaged in current affairs. Much of modern politics can feel technical and complex. The finer details of the Chancellor鈥檚 spending plans or the President鈥檚 trade policy can be bewildering. But when there鈥檚 a feud and political debate is replaced by the relational dynamics of the school playground, everybody understands. That鈥檚 especially so in the modern era when the whole row is played out in real time on social media.

But whilst it鈥檚 engaging to watch, political feuding can do massive damage. Following a highly publicised fallout in the United States, concerns have been raised about the future of NASA's space programme and nations across the globe are worried about economic stability. Rowing is so emotionally intense that it takes energy away from everything else. Political vision and the purpose of government is lost. It may be attention grabbing, but feuding is bad news.

The Bible offers a different way of approaching things. When I read the Gospels I am always struck by how Jesus spends relatively little time laying out ideas or speaking about theology. He spends more time building relationships and growing community.

The long passage of teaching he offers at the Last Supper is an example. These are among the last words Jesus will speak to his band of followers. But he doesn鈥檛 tell them what to believe. He assumes they know all that by now. Instead he teaches them how to belong to each other, how to be responsible for each other and how to love each other. He uses rich images of the vine and the flock to do so. Productivity and fruitfulness rely on co-dependence, Jesus is telling us.

If you want to change things, good ideas aren鈥檛 enough. It also needs good relationships. That鈥檚 why the most effective governments have at their heart a group of people whose dedication is not just to a project but also to each other.

And exactly the same applies to other walks of life. Good schools, good businesses, healthy churches invariably feature a strong team of people who don鈥檛 just share common goals but who are also purposeful in building good relationships. Even in the busiest team, time spent attending to each other and simply listening is never time wasted. Because whilst ideas matter, it is relationships that change the world.

Of course there will always be feuds. In fact some conflict is necessary and even productive. But when small groups of people share not just a vision but a sustained commitment to each other, anything can happen.

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