The Madras High Court recently sought the views of the union government and the State government on whether a statutory board to govern Christian Institutions and their assets needs to be constituted on the lines of the Wakf Board and Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments. This direction came in the context of a court case involving two factions of a minority educational institution. The Court observed that the “institutions these elected persons are supposed to protect and safeguard are drained to fuel power struggle”.
One of the core aspects of Christian management is stewardship which is a major issue facing many institutions today. In the very first message from God to man, as recorded in Gen 1:28, God told human beings to ‘rule over’ all the creation God made. The original Hebrew word used for ‘rule over’ is Radah which means to nurture/take care. It is a stewardship responsibility. This would mean that one of the purposes for which God created human beings is to steward God’s creation. The message and examples of stewardship continue throughout the Bible including Joseph, functioning as a steward in Potiphar’s house and later taking care of the entire Egyptian kingdom and the parable of the talents. We are expected to steward the responsibilities and resources entrusted to us.
I encourage you to read the book Christian Management in a VUCA World published by CIM to unpack the meaning of Christian Management and how stewardship is central to it. CIM advocates stewardship in all its services and it is much relevant even today, as we see in the Court observation cited in the beginning.
Let’s faithfully steward our families, the multiple roles that we handle, and all the resources bestowed on us and entrusted into our care, and make a difference in our spheres.
Dr. Aby Alexandar