Do No Harm

We have all heard the saying: do no harm. It is one of the mottos of the medical field, but also I teach it in Psychological First Aid trainings and hear it whispered through the halls of relief organizations and nonprofits.

Have we ever stopped to consider the implication of 'do no harm'? Have we stopped to consider what it may mean for us? For the Church?

In a previous blog, I discussed how sometimes... Church hurts. The church has caused hurt to many people in many different ways, both overtly, by causing the hurt themselves, and indirectly, by allowing hurt to be done and not intervening.

This is clearly harm. Harm done in the name of Jesus.

And, tragically, this is not new.

Think about the Crusades or the Doctrine of Discovery or the slave trade or the genocide of indigenous people. Think about women burned at the stake or Black men lynched in the South or kids being beat as "discipline" in conservative schools.

The Church has frequently done harm in the name of Jesus.

What would it mean to turn that on its head? What would it mean to adopt within the church a "do no harm" model?

Doing no harm takes intention and motivation. It takes actively considering the potential harm we could cause before engaging people and before new ministries or outreaches are created.

Even the most well intentioned of people can cause harm without meaning to* (of course, sometimes, we do mean to).

We cause harm when we push things on people they don’t want or are not ready for.

We cause harm when we assume we know what people need, without having asked them.

We cause harm when we put people who are not trained into a role they are not prepared for.

We cause harm when we get out of our lane of practice, such as by offering medical advice when we’re not doctors or legal advice when we’re not lawyers.

We cause harm when we create systems of dependency, rather than equipping and empowering people to move forward in their own journey.

We cause harm when we don’t consider cultural differences, or assume our culture is superior.

These are harms the Church has caused as well. Domestically and internationally. Repeatedly. Over two thousand years.

To be fair, we're not alone. It's not like Christianity is the only religion to have caused harm in the name of the deity we serve. It's not like we are the only ones who have committed atrocities. But... we are the ones who tend to point fingers at the others who have done wrong, while ignoring our own wrongs.

So, how do we avoid causing harm?

First, we need to seek God. Seek His will and direction. This can only be discerned through spiritual disciplines of prayer (while listening, not just talking), reading the Word, and spending time with Him. 

Secondly, we need accountability and wise counsel. If we are engaging with people in any way, we should have wise counsel around us that will hold us accountable for our actions. If we fall out of line, there should be a discipline process. If we are lost, we should be able to seek direction. Church leaders in particular must have this in place. 

Thirdly, if we are planning a new program or outreach, we should always, always, have representatives of the population we’re trying to reach involved in decision-making. For example, if a Church wants to start a ministry to single parents, they should at the very least take a survey among single parents about what their needs are, or, even better, invite single parents to be a part of the planning committee. (Churches love committees!) If a church wants to reach out to the local refugee population, they should connect with resettlement organizations already working with the refugee population who know the people and see what it is they might need or appreciate. 

Finally, all of our ideas should be run through the ultimate standard that Jesus gave us in the greatest commandments. Does this program love and honor God, and love and honor others? Even others who we may disagree with or who live differently than we do? If not, we’ve likely missed the mark. 

And when we get it wrong, or miss the mark, or do harm, we must repent and ask forgiveness - from God and most importantly from the people we harmed. We must admit we messed up, make it better if we can, and do better. 

The Church has caused enough harm. It’s time for us to do some good. 

*A couple of good books on this topic:

- "When Helping Hurts" by Corbett

- "Toxic Charity" by Lupton