A Better Portrait of the Embodied Human Being: Helping the Church Grow Up

Abstract

How accurate and therefore, how helpful, is the church’s portrait of the embodied human being? More specifically, does the church in the United States functionally give appropriate weight to relationality—emotional-spiritual maturity and healing, and the related arena of emotional intelligence skills—in her practice of discipleship and leadership? Out of concern that the answer to this question is generally “No,” this paper presents material from several angles to begin to establish standards for a better portrait. The foundation is established from the Bible and from several other related disciplines demonstrating that Christianity as framed by Jesus is fundamentally relational. To honor Jesus’ priorities includes centering the skills needed to do relationships well. The paper presents four different resources for deliberately working on the development of emotional-social well-being and skills, while describing advantages and disadvantages of each. The paper also takes seriously some critiques of centering relationality in Christian discipleship practice, to understand why some people have opted to shun practices relating to psychology and emotional maturity. Then, in light of these pros and cons, the paper argues for including several specific elements in a portrait of the embodied human being, which will help the church to carry out her mission in a more life-giving, joyful, effective way. A case study to illustrate how utilizing a better portrait of the embodied human being could look in Christian leadership and discipleship is provided and is followed by a summary and statement of where further study in this area could fruitfully go.