JC Disciples
Antagonists in the Church by Dr. Kenneth C. Haugk
Antagonists in the Church is the title of a book that I picked up in San Diego when I was at the Stephen Series Leader's Training Course. It was written by Dr. Kenneth C. Haugk, the founder of the Stephen Series.
Here's the book's definition of an antagonist:
"Antagonists are individuals who, on the basis of non- substantive evidence, go out of their way to make in- satiable demands, usually attacking the person or per- formance of others. These attacks are selfish in nature, tearing down rather than building up, and are frequently directed against those in a leadership capacity."
The book identifies three types of antagonists: hard-core, major, and minor. It also identifies five levels of organizational conflict and shows at which levels the various types of antagonists operate.
Apparently, until quite recently, the underlying assumption in all of the work done in the field of conflict resolution was that the opposing parties were all mentally healthy, morally responsible, and truly interested in resolving their differences. Common sense would tell us that's a pretty big assumption.
To aid in identifying antagonists before they strike, the book gives some general personality traits and lists 20 "red flags." (Antagonists typically wave three or more of these "flags". The presence of one lonely flag does not prove someone is an antagonist.) There are also warning signs to help identify the early stages of antagonist activity.
From a scriptural perspective, antagonism means working against the reign of God. (And we know where that comes from.) While antagonists may not be possessed by the devil, they are unknowingly -- maybe some- times knowingly -- being used by forces bent on undermining the Church of God and God's reign. The activities of antagonists are contrary to Biblical principles of Christian living.
In reality, antagonists can be found in any group environment. How- ever, the church environment seems to allow them more opportunity to flourish and succeed than many other places they frequent. Part of that may be due to the desire of most people in churches (especially the leaders) to be liked by everyone.
Those of you who are parents probably know that if you want a certain behavior your child engages in to stop, the best way is to ignore it completely. The same technique works with antagonists. If you want them to stop, you must totally ignore them. That's why early identi- fication of the true problem (the antagonist, not the problem he's harping on) is so important. The old saying "if you give them an inch, they'll take a mile" is very true with antagonists. A little toe hold is enough for them to start an avalanche of problems.
The book also gives suggestions for maintaining an anti-antagonist environment. To summarize them breifly:
- Establish policies and consistently stick to them
- Provide functional channels of communication between the leaders and the members
- Create clear job descriptions for all leadership positions (lay leaders and organizations as well as staff members)
- Set up a broad base of responsiblity; don't concentrate administrative authority in a single individual
- Follow established disciplinary procedures for your denomination or congregation
- Let the members know what the leadership is planning to do before it happens; prepare them for changes in advance
- Staff and lay leaders maintain a united front
- Form a support group for church staff to help them be more competent and effective leaders
The book also gives guidance on dealing with antagonistic attacks when they happen. (And they can happen, despite best efforts to prevent them.) There are guidelines for what to do when something seems amiss, but you don't know what.
If you must meet with the antagonist, the book gives a good procedure to follow in order to avoid some pretty big pitfalls that I would have never suspected were there. It's amazing how trying to practice what are genrally common courtesies could work against you.
There is a discussion of what information to reveal and when to do so as well as how to maintain documentation to protect yourself. Public communication (sermons, newsletters, petitions in prayers) will not stop atagonists in times of conflict and can often make the situation worse. (It is also a gross misuse of public prayer and sermons when leaders try to use these vehicles to take antagagonists to task.) The following chapter shows leaders better ways of managing the conflict.
Family and personal considerations are addressed as well as making the difficult decision to stay or to leave.
The book is published by Augsburg Publishing House, 426 S. Fifth Street, Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440. The ISBN for Antagonists in the Church is 0-8066-2310-1.