The Authority of Compassion
FROM PASTOR & TRANSFORMATIONAL LISTENING 1 GRADUATE, ANDREW BERG
Who or what comes to mind when you think of the word “authority?”
How about the word “compassion?”
The way I perceive these words drastically changed when we read Henri Nouwen’s The Return of the Prodigal Son in my TL1 course.
Deeply moved by Rembrandt’s painting of the Prodigal Son, Nouwen presents a message of depth and beauty as he reflects on the parable through the lens of this inspiring art piece. One aspect he hones in on is how the Father’s hands communicate a powerful message in how they are placed on the wayward son’s back.
Through the Father’s hands, Nouwen observes a powerful love which he describes as “the authority of compassion.”
When I read that phrase, something deep inside of me was unlocked.
Never in my life had I seen those two words coexist with one another.
For me, “authority” hasn’t always been synonymous with positivity. I’ve too often witnessed and experienced authority being exercised through domination and harshness, even in the church.
This type of authority made me feel like the odd man out in leadership. Who I was and what I brought to the table was tenderness and compassion.
As I exercised my gifts in pastoral care for years, I had the privilege of sitting with people on their deathbeds, spending time with grieving families as we prepared for a loved one’s funeral, and simply listening to people who needed an empathetic and attentive ear. Through this, I began to discover that compassion isn’t weakness or simply feeling sorry for another. Compassion is something deeper and of greater substance.
When I read the phrase the authority of compassion, it was a powerful affirmation to me that compassion carries a substantial authority with it - an authority flowing from the love of God.
This love carries a powerful authority with it because this love lived the full depth of human experience, and bore the weight of the sin of humanity. This love selflessly gave up It’s life.
But this love also got up again.
This love is not dead; this love is alive!
Therefore, compassion isn’t powerless; it’s powerful.
Compassion isn’t weak; it’s strong.
Compassion isn’t passive; it’s active.
Last week I was putting my son to bed after he had had a difficult day. As I laid my hands on his back and prayed for him, I felt the powerful love of God flowing through my hands.
It was the authority of compassion.
It wasn’t passive. It was active, alive, and powerful. But it also wasn’t loud or domineering.
Through Transformational Listening 1 (TL1), God has done a deep work in me in affirming that the compassionate heart He’s given me is a gift from Him for the sake of others.
He’s reminded me that my compassionate wiring carries with it an authority flowing from the powerful love of God.
He wants me to lead in this authority - the authority of compassion. I don’t need to feel like the odd man out; I don’t need to exercise authority like I’ve seen others exercise it.
I believe God wants all of us to consider this idea of the authority of compassion.
What if authority was redefined by placing the word compassion right next to it?
What would happen if we viewed authority not in a sense of “ruling over”, but in light of the love and compassion of God?
And what if compassion was redefined by placing the word authority right next to it?
What would happen if we viewed compassion as not just a feeling of pity, but a living love fueled by the authority of Christ crucified and resurrected?
How could the world be changed if we led with this type of authority?
My prayer is that we would all be transformed by the authority of compassion, so that we may pick up and exercise this authority for the sake of a world in desperate need of it.
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