Of Sausages, Elephants and Wolves

The art of governance has frequently been compared to the art of sausage making -- in that knowing too much about what goes into either can cause one to lose one's appetite for both. This has arguably never been more true than the run-up to this 77th General Convention of the Episcopal Church.

To say that it "hasn't been pretty" would redefine understatement.

I wrote about it last week in my blog about the B033 Elephant in the Living Room ... how I believe a significant part of the challenge we face is the UNfaced rupture of trust in the experience of B033 and its collateral damage not only on the lives and vocations of LGBT Episcopalians but on the real-or-perceived consoldation of power in the hands of the House of Bishops.

Today, however, it's not an elephant I'm thinking about but a wolf:  -- ( from the post I just put up on the HoB/D (House of Bishops & Deputies) list serve:)

If you're one of the five preachers on the planet who hasn't used this story as an illustration at some point -- or one of the ten laity who hasn't heard it - here's the Cherokee Legend that has been echoing in my head as we wrestle with the budget/structure/trust debacle du jour:

An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. "A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy. "It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego." He continued, "The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too." The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."