Journal: Priscilla Papers
Volume: PP 21:4 (Autumn 2007)
Article: Jesus and Trust
Author: Jennie Dugan

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PP 21:4 (Autumn 2007) p. 19

Jesus and Trust

Jennie Dugan

JENNIE DUGAN’S articles have appeared in several magazines, and her work published in Advance for Respiratory Care Practitioners has won national awards. She serves as a speaker on defensive communication and building trust climates. Jennie works in physician relations for Mercy Health Partners. She and her husband, Ron, live in Maumee, Ohio, and have five children and four (almost five) grandchildren.

When Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid, just trust me...” (Mark 5:36),1 he summed up our overall image of him. Jesus symbolizes trust. He did that by more than simple words.

As a teacher, Jesus set an example. Yet, examining a set of specific behaviors linked to trust building reveals how we often inadvertently emulate the Pharisees rather than Jesus. These intertwined behaviors spring from trust and create a climate where we are trusted and we trust, when we model Jesus. Or, on the opposite side, the negative behaviors create an atmosphere where mistrust grows, as with the Pharisees.

A climate, in this context, means an environment created by communication styles, including unspoken communication. It can be created by one person or a group. Is it open, or is it full of barriers? Does it encourage trust, or does it induce fear and mistrust at any level?

Jesus spoke of trust and also lived the behaviors found in a supportive climate, a trust-breeding environment where open communication is the norm.2 Mistrust is a hallmark of the opposite, a defensive climate, which is virtually synonymous with the Pharisees’ behavior.

Each side has six behaviors, opposite traits that either feed supportiveness and the trust Jesus lived or feed defensiveness and its resulting mistrust (See Figure 1). Jesus lived equality, while the Pharisees thrived on displays of superiority. Jesus was filled with empathy (compassion), as when a leper begged for healing, while the Pharisees were neutral (cold and dispassionate), as when they plotted Jesus’ death and then ritualistically declined to enter the Roman’s building so they would not be defiled before the Passover (John 18:28). The Pharisees were role models for control, which Jesus’ behavior shows is countered by problem orientation, a distinct inclination to cut through the chaos by simply focusing on the problem at hand. The Pharisees were quick to judge, labeled evaluation in this system. Although he does not speak of it himself, Jesus models the opposite behavior of description, demonstrated by means such ...

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