Blind spots – they are with us all the time
Blind spots were something that Jesus was very concerned about. In a very well known passage from Luke he is recorded as saying:
“How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” (Luke 6:42)
The inability to see inside ourselves is a major problem for our relationships, our effectiveness at work and our ability to build consensus with others. Our blind spots mean that we do not realise the problems that we make for other people! When we do not see the things that put us outside a healthy relationship with others then the wheels come off our ability to collaborate with them.
Where are your blind spots?
My thinking about blind spots and its impact on consensus building was stimulated by an article written by Romal Tune. The article appeared in
Sojourners Magazine. In that article, he interviews
Richard Rohr who is a Franciscan priest from the USA on his experience of white privilege.
As I read the interview, I was reflecting on how deeply hidden our biases are! Our core operating assumptions are often unknown to us. Everything that he was saying about white privilege can be applied to other social advantages. Many of us do not think of ourselves as racist. We men probably don’t see ourselves as sexist. Social status in Australia is not venerated as much as it is in other cultures. Many members of the clergy don’t like to see themselves as superior or privileged over lay people. Yet within us, there are assumptions that drive our behaviour that surely rest on the privileges of race, gender, class and social position.
White privilege: a study in subjective blindness
Rohr says: “White privilege is largely hidden from our eyes if we are white. Why? Because it is structural instead of psychological, and we tend to interpret most things in personal, individual, and psychological ways. Since we do not consciously have racist attitudes or overt racist behaviour, we kindly judge ourselves to be open-minded, egalitarian, “liberal,” and therefore surely not racist.
Because we have never been on the other side, we largely do not recognize the structural access, the trust we think we deserve, the assumption that we always belong and do not have to earn our belonging, the “we set the tone” mood that we white folks live inside of — and take totally for granted and even naturally deserved.”
We may not be racist but we can presume and enjoy all the benefits of white privilege. We may not be patriarchal but men operate as though they have a right of presence and agency that not many women automatically feel belongs to them. Some clergy may like to think that they can treat all members of the church with respect, but they still enjoy the privileged place of being sought after as a contributor and counsel in all situations.
What’s wrong with using these privileges?
Rohr notes: “I profited from white privilege on so many fronts that I had to misread the situation many, many times before I began to feel what others feel and see what others could clearly see. Many must have just rolled their eyes and hopefully forgiven me!”
When we don’t recognize our privilege then we:
-
- mess up and don’t make the best response to situations
- don’t understand the feelings of others
- fail to provide genuine spaces for all to contribute
- damage relationships
- miss out on accessing the best wisdom to address our problems
Rohr again: “Frankly, it is dangerous to put the Bible into the hands of people who still worship their own group, their own country, their own denomination, or any other idolatry. They will always abuse it.”
Perhaps even more concerning is that because of our blind spots we probably end up abusing the Bible and misrepresenting God! When we take our subjective reality and make it the social norm then we put our perspective/group on top. When people are on top they often use the Bible to keep themselves there!!
Where are your blind spots?
Before you can answer this question you need to get help. We cannot know how our subjective worldview skews things. The only way to glimpse its impact is to have friends, colleagues and opponents point them out to you.
In the next post, I will look further at this question. For now, I invite you to prayerfully reflect on your situation. Where might your privilege be and what negative effects is it having?
Blind spots and consensus discernment
Our ability to grasp how our biases and privileges are at work is incredibly difficult. Failure to understand and allow for the inherent privileges that we possess makes genuine engagement with others impossible. When others are not engaged in the process of discernment then genuine consensus is not possible. Consensus building approaches to discernment need to address the subconscious and subjective privilege of all participants in the process. To fail to do so entrenches the dominant privilege(s) and creates significant disruption to the quality of the community’s life and decision-making ability.
Author: Terence
I am a Minister of the Uniting Church in Australia. My current ministries focus on consultancy and teaching about consensus based decision-making, mediation, governance training and professional supervision for Ministers. I am co-author of the book "The Church Guide For Making Decisions Together". I live on the beautiful Far South Coast of NSW from where I undertake ministry across the globe. Contact me at terence@makingchurchdecisions.com
View all posts by Terence
