Faithful Leadership for the Common Good

“I propose that we refer to these principles as the Gordon Commission. They represent the mandates we have been commissioned by God to meet, both individually and collectively.”

D. Michael Lindsay

I have spent the last eight years interviewing senior leaders in government, business and nonprofit life, exploring how senior leaders use the resources at their disposal to advance human flourishing and to serve the common good. My very first interview was in 2003 with Dr. Richard Mouw, president of Fuller Theological Seminary, and I conducted the final interview two months ago with Harvard’s president, Dr. Drew Faust. In between, I logged 400,000 miles traveling from Bar Harbor, Maine, to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. I interviewed presidents, titans of industry, celebrity icons and chief executives of the nation’s largest firms.

Yet as I began to analyze the data, I realized that over half of all these interviews took place on the short stretch of land along I-95 from Washington, D.C., to Boston. This is what we sociologists refer to as the “power elite” corridor. It’s home to the political, financial and intellectual capitals of the Western world.

Now that’s significant to what we do here at Gordon because, as it turns out, we are the only nationally ranked Christian college on the I-95 power elite corridor. To the extent that Christian colleges can make a difference in the halls of power, Gordon College is uniquely placed to do precisely that. Did you know that when Gordon’s chapel services are held, it is the largest evangelical gathering in New England? Gordon is the largest evangelical employer in the area; and for nearly 125 years, working with our colleagues and friends at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, Gordon College has produced tens of thousands of leaders for the Church in New England and around the world. In sum, we are the flagship evangelical institution in the global capital of higher education.

THE GORDON COMMISSION

For many months I have been studying Gordon and listening to people talk about its strengths and its areas for growth. Gordon has been guided for decades by principles that direct the College’s core activities. They represent our collective vocation, our raison d’être—our reason for being.

Going forward, I propose that we refer to these principles as the Gordon Commission. They represent the mandates we have been commissioned by God to meet, both individually and collectively. The Gordon Commission entails three imperatives.

STRETCHING THE MIND

First, we exist to stretch the minds of talented young people and, in so doing, to expand the intellectual horizons of global Christianity.

Cultural engagement is not a buzzword at Gordon College; it’s what we do day in and day out. It takes place in our classrooms, in the laboratories, in chapel, and in the artist’s studio. It requires scholars who are knowledgeable about the latest scientific breakthroughs and the historical precedents that brought us to the current moment. Cultural engagement demands a depth of understanding and a breadth of knowledge, and that is what places like Gordon can provide. Indeed, in the important work of the Christian community’s engagement with the world of ideas, we are the tip of the spear.

Gordon’s commitment to intellectual inquiry and academic excellence is a distinguishing characteristic of the College. I want to leverage this strength for us to be even more effective in the years ahead. I want us to multiply the number of student-faculty research collaborations occurring on campus. And I hope we can stretch minds through study abroad programs. I especially hope we can more significantly engage the Pacific Rim and Asia. College is a time to explore big questions and pursue worthy dreams, and time abroad can be transformative in the lives of college students, both spiritually and intellectually.

DEEPEN THE FAITH

The second imperative of the Gordon Commission is to deepen the faith. In a day and age when Christian colleges are lessening their commitment to biblical and theological literacy among their students, Gordon has just added to its Core Curriculum a class in theology. In an era when schools are diminishing their support for campus chapel programs, I am pleased to say that Gordon has devoted considerable resources to connecting the big question of “What makes for a good life?” to the person of Jesus Christ.

Gordon is also unusual in that following Christ here has never been relegated to only intellectual assent or pietistic devotion. A. J. Gordon himself once wrote of the importance of connecting service to Christian devotion by saying, “If we fully serve the Lord, the majority of the good we do happens in such a way that we are unaware of it happening. Service overflows from us.”

Social justice, evangelism and worship have always been closely connected at the institution that bears Gordon’s name, and we are committed to all three at Gordon College today. This is part of the wonderful heritage I inherit from former Gordon presidents Harold Ockenga and two men who have become dear friends and wonderful colleagues, Richard Gross and Judson Carlberg.

When Gordon mails out its alumni magazine, it is read in 75 countries representing 25 different time zones. Quite literally, over 20,000 Gordon alumni are serving the Lord around the globe.

For example, members of the Gordon community have developed malaria diagnostic tests that are being used in Africa and throughout the developing world. Our graduates are doing good things in places like Burkina Faso and Sri Lanka, compelled by their Christian commitments and our world’s greatest needs.

ELEVATE THE CONTRIBUTION

The third imperative of the Gordon Commission is for us to elevate the contribution. By this I mean three things. Gordon has historically elevated the contribution made by its students. We recruit bright and resourceful high school students and help them become better contributors to the common good after their four years on campus. This is the “value-added” of a Gordon education—taking students who are great and helping them become even better. But we can do more in this regard, and we will.

Second, we need to elevate the contribution the Gordon community is making in different parts of our public life. We need to elevate the ways Gordon is making a difference on the North Shore, in Greater Boston and in American higher education. Elevate the contribution our students make to the cohort of 300,000 other college students in the Greater Boston area. Elevate the contribution Gordon faculty make to their scholarly guilds. So, going forward, each of us in our own way should elevate the contribution we are making to the common good.

And, third, this elevation of the contribution we make also applies to Gordon as an institution. We need to elevate the role Gordon plays in shaping the intellectual agenda of global Christianity and to bringing a biblical sense of shalom to the North Shore.

We believe the gospel invigorates and advances truth and beauty so that everyone benefits. After all, it was Christians who invented the liberal arts model of higher education. So we have much to offer, and we remember that from those to whom much has been given, much is expected. We are uniquely positioned to have a leavening influence on the country’s leading cultural institutions, and so we need to elevate our contribution to them.

A COMMUNAL ENDEAVOR

We are already making a huge difference through community engagement in the nearby city of Lynn and through managing Old Town Hall in historic Salem. We are the institutional home for Christians in the Visual Arts, and in May we will host the next gathering of Christians in Political Science. But we can do so much more.

If we want to inspire the next generation, we have to articulate a vision for serving not just our own interests but also the interests of others. So to elevate our contribution, we have to ask: How can Gordon College support and encourage the good efforts of those around us to be better aligned with the purposes of God and the flourishing of our world?

Thomas Merton once wrote, “You are made in the image of what you desire.” Stretching the mind, deepening the faith, and elevating the contribution. That is our calling; that is our desire. I pledge to do everything in my power to guide and equip the next generation of Christian leaders with a framework of faithfulness as they influence cultures throughout the world. And I trust you will join me in
this effort.

The Gordon Commission is a communal endeavor. It’s the process of weaving together our individual contributions to meet the needs of those around us. It’s how our individual stories relate to our collective mission. May we be an institution that does this and much more in the lives of our students and our community.

God bless you all.

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