Ritröð Guðfræðistofnunar - 01.09.2011, Page 16

and survivors and for education and training for prevention. It will not look
for a scapegoat but look inside itself with a critical eye focusing on power as
the issue at stake here. It will seek out those who have been harmed, thank
them for their courage in disclosing their abuse, and support them in their
healing. It will have the courage to ask, what reforms do we need in order
to be faithful to our own values?
Needed: a moral imperative and a clear ethical analysis
Whether it is the Hospitality Code in Hebrew scripture (Deuteronomy
24:17-22) or the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5) in the Gospels, the
consistent message is the moral imperative to stand with the vulnerable over
against exploitation by the powerful. The Hospitality Code mandates that
the community of the covenant corporately care for the most vulnerable
members of the community, named in the text as widows, orphans, and
strangers. But the basis of this mandate is not altruism; rather the text
reminds the reader that „you were once slaves in Egypt.“ Remember your
own vulnerabilities and your expectations to be protected and not exploited.
When we have resources (power), we have a responsibility to not exploit
those who are vulnerable because at any moment, we could be in the same
position. The Hospitality Code mandates protection and support and to
do no harm.
Similarly the concept of power and its implications underlies the Rules
of the Sea4 which are international guidelines for navigation. There is a
hierarchy among boats and ships based on the capacity to maneuver a vessel.
The vessel with greater maneuverability (i.e. more power) such as a boat
under power must give way to a vessel with lesser maneuverability such as
a sailboat or kayak. The basic value here is that with power and resources
comes responsibility. But even more interesting is the language which
delineates these relationships. The vessel with more power is described
as the „burdened“ party; the vessel with less power is described as the
„privileged“ party. The speedboat has the burden of avoiding the sailboat
and thus protecting it; the sailboat has the privilege of being assured that
the speedboat will avoid interfering or causing it damage. These adjectives,
„burdened" and „privileged,“ establish a moral imperative in this rela-
tionship. The power of the clerical office or the power of the institutional
church is the burden to not exploit the vulnerability of a congregant who
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