Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Careers, Workplace and Religion
What’s the path to human flourishing? An intriguing suggestion from Andy Crouch

What’s the path to human flourishing? An intriguing suggestion from Andy Crouch

Last updated on: January 12, 2015 at 11:28 am by Chris Armstrong

What’s the path to human flourishing? An intriguing suggestion from Andy Crouch 2015-01-12T11:28:25-05:00 Chris Armstrong

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Birth, Child, Baby, Newborn, Hand, Keep, Brains, Head

At Leadership Journal‘s Redeeming Work Twin Cities event yesterday, Andy Crouch winds up his thought-provoking opening talk with a magic (well, how about “providential”) formula for human flourishing through human work. Ready?

Authority + Vulnerability = Flourishing

More than any other creature, he argues, image bearers (humans) have Authority, and Vulnerability.

Authority = capacity for meaningful action (more than any other creature)

Vulnerability = exposure to meaningful risk (more than any other creature)

We humans are exposed to risk, and we know deeply the possibility of loss, the way no other creatures do. From the beginning of our lives, we are exposed to vulnerability as no other creature. For the first few years of our lives, we are almost totally dependent on our parents, unlike other creatures, who begin doing things independently minutes after they come into this world.

As a simple example: Among all creatures, only humans are “naked” as we are (except for weird, disturbing hairless cats. Don’t google that: you can never “unsee” it!). This nakedness exposes us to many dangers . . .

Andy argues that these two qualities – authority and vulnerability – make us image bearers.

He constructs a two by two grid that plots human conditions in which our work bears God’s image, and some others where it does not.

He puts authority on the vertical axis, vulnerability on the horizontal.

To be high in both areas is to be an image bearer. That’s where image bearing lives – in great capacity to act, and great exposure to risk.

Think about the things that have led to the most flourishing in the work you’ve been part of. Someone acted with real authority, meaningfully, and they took a risk.

As an example, Andy points out the space in which we are meeting – Art House North. This place exists because Sara and Troy Graves took an authoritative action, risking their resources by buying the building in this urban area, pulling up stakes and moving in from the white bread suburbs, and throwing it open for God to use as he sees fit. They had no idea how it would all work out, in the least (and by their testimony during the conference, they still don’t! But they sure blessed us while we were there).

All flourishing requires this sort of authority and risk.

Andy admits that not everyone gets to live in that sweet spot where those two qualities intersect at maximum potency. For example, where might a person be if they are in a situation of high vulnerability and little authority? Poverty, for one. When you are poor you are exposed to all the vulnerability of humans, but little capacity for meaningful action.

(I think of the recent research on health inequities that shows that those with little autonomy and authority in their work lives suffer from elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol, which degrades the ability of the heart to function well, causes many health problems, and negatively affects quality and length of life.)

What about low authority, low vulnerability? One young person says: video games – they contain a simulation of authority, but no real vulnerability, and no real-world flourishing: Wii tennis gives you no authority to play real tennis. Or how about a cruise (not one of the ones that goes horribly wrong with illness, hitting rocks, etc.!) There you have VERY low vulnerability – all is taken care of. But you also have low authority.

Or you can use the word “safety” for that quadrant: A lot of humans think “That’s where I want to be.” But being on a cruise is awesome for 3 days – would be hell, however, for three years. In our society many can live in gated community, off their savings, affluence. But that just creates another set of problems. It’s not real flourishing . . .

How about high authority and low vulnerability? Sounds awesome, doesn’t it? I can act in the world, but I’m not at risk. (And here’s an “aha” moment for you:)

That is the promise of idolatry.

Every idol makes two promises: First, “You shall be like God,” and second, “You shall not surely die.” Sound familiar? That’s the two promises of the snake in the garden. Turn from God, eat the apple, and you’ll get all authority in the world (like God) and no dependence at all. High authority, low vulnerability.

The world that was made to be full of image bearers is now full of idols. The most powerful brand in the world is the symbol of the forbidden fruit (you can guess what’s on the screen at that point)! This technology can help us feel omniscient through the glowing rectangle, but at no risk . . . .

In this quadrant is birthed injustice, too, which happens when one group gets to move up to this quadrant, by relegating another group to the low authority high vulnerability quadrant. This is the world today. What is missing in so many places in today’s world is the image-bearing quadrant: high authority with high vulnerability.

One last thought as Andy winds up: How will the image be restored?

It won’t be restored if God’s people just say “Take me out of here, Jesus,” donning the rubber gloves of the culture-averse and hiding out in our churches.

To foster human flourishing, we must step out of the place of idolatry and injustice, the idolatrous chasing after the promise of high authority and low vulnerability, which promises to make us like God, and which so often relegates whole groups of people to the low/low quadrant . . . We must go into the world, restore the possibility of true flourishing.

As the applause dies down, I reflect on the event posters I’ve seen around this remarkable repurposed church, Art House North. They bear these words from the book of Proverbs: “When the righteous prosper, the city rejoices.” And I wonder, What if we really operated in that fruitful place of high authority and high vulnerability – stepping out, taking authority, putting ourselves at real risk, and seeking to make the world a better place?

Maybe prospering.

Maybe rejoicing.

There are no guarantees. We may fail.

That seems to be what real vulnerability means, in this fallen world, in the work to which we put our hands. But there seems to be no other path to flourishing.

Image: Pixabay.

Redeeming Work conference

Previous Post

June 13, 2014

Andy Crouch on why we can't see the faith-work connection: “We’re missing chapters of our Bible.”

Next Post

June 15, 2014 Exciting news!

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Art Audio posts Bible and Work Book Review Books Budgeting Calling Common Good Community Development Conferences Discipleship Economics Entrepreneurship Ethics Faith and Family Faith and the Marketplace Faith and the Workplace faith and work History of Work and Vocation Leadership Local Church Meaning New Blogger News Prayer Relationships Seminaries Theology of Work Uncategorized Video posts Vocation Worship Resources

Select a Month April 2026 October 2025 September 2025 July 2025 April 2025 January 2025 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 May 2024 March 2024 February 2024 December 2023 November 2023 August 2023 July 2023 April 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 May 2022 April 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 June 2021 May 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 January 2020 December 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 April 2018 March 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which Psalm opens with "Blessed is the man"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Psalm 23 Psalm 51 Psalm 119 Psalm 1