Reclaming Compassion: How Compassion Moved from Virtue to Benefit, and How to Move It Back Jon Talbert George Fox University
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Digital Commons @ George Fox University Doctor of Ministry Theses and Dissertations 12-1-2016 Reclaming Compassion: How Compassion Moved from Virtue to Benefit, and How to Move it Back Jon Talbert George Fox University This research is a product of the Doctor of Ministry (DMin) program at George Fox University. Find out more about the program. Recommended Citation Talbert, Jon, "Reclaming Compassion: How Compassion Moved from Virtue to Benefit, and How to Move it Back" (2016). Doctor of Ministry. 209. http://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/dmin/209 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Digital Commons @ George Fox University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctor of Ministry by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ George Fox University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. GEORGE FOX UNIVERSITY RECLAIMING COMPASSION HOW COMPASSION MOVED FROM VIRTUE TO BENEFIT, AND HOW TO MOVE IT BACK A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GEORGE FOX EVANGELICAL SEMINARY IN CANDIDACY FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF MINISTRY BY JON TALBERT SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA DECEMBER 2016 George Fox Evangelical Seminary George Fox University Portland, Oregon CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL ________________________________ DMin Dissertation ________________________________ This is to certify that the DMin Dissertation of Jon Talbert has been approved by the Dissertation Committee on October 28, 2016 for the degree of Doctor of Ministry in Semiotics and Future Studies. Dissertation Committee: Primary Advisor: Ron Clark, DMin Secondary Advisor: AJ Swoboda, PhD Lead Mentor: Leonard I. Sweet, PhD Expert Advisor: Kimberly Shumate Copyright © 2016 by Jon Talbert All rights reserved worldwide. ii To my forever sweetness, Cheri iii CONTENTS SECTION 1: THE PROBLEM ............................................................................................1 Introduction ......................................................................................................................1 Compassion: A Good Thing Gone Bad ...........................................................................3 Benefit vs. Virtue .............................................................................................................4 Expectation of Reward .....................................................................................................5 Good Karma .....................................................................................................................7 Good Feelings ..................................................................................................................9 Good Rewards ................................................................................................................12 Good Advancement .......................................................................................................13 Poisoned .........................................................................................................................16 Toxins ............................................................................................................................17 Individualism .................................................................................................................24 Pollutants .......................................................................................................................31 The Pollutant of Socioeconomic Status ......................................................................32 The Pollutant of Sexual Orientation ..........................................................................33 The Pollutant of Racial Assumptions .........................................................................38 SECTION 2: OTHER PROPOSED SOLUTIONS ...........................................................43 The New Reality of Compassion ...................................................................................43 Introduction: Misplaced Ideology ..............................................................................43 Business ......................................................................................................................45 Faith ...........................................................................................................................48 Education ...................................................................................................................52 Social Sector ..............................................................................................................55 Government ................................................................................................................58 Arts & Entertainment .................................................................................................60 Media .........................................................................................................................64 Summary ....................................................................................................................66 SECTION 3: THESIS ........................................................................................................67 Introduction ....................................................................................................................67 Compassion Is Trending ................................................................................................67 Compassion Is Sexy .......................................................................................................69 Compassion Delivers .....................................................................................................70 The Pieces ......................................................................................................................71 The Fusion .....................................................................................................................75 SECTION 4: TRACK 02 ARTIFACT DESCRIPTION ...................................................78 Book Summary ..............................................................................................................79 SECTION 5: TRACK 02 ARTIFACT SPECIFICATION ................................................80 SECTION 6: POSTSCRIPT ..............................................................................................85 SECTION 7: ARTIFACT/WRITING SAMPLE ...............................................................91 BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................173 iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I’d like to thank my beautiful wife, Cheri. She has been my support while I earned my undergrad and graduate degrees at Biola University and Talbot Theological Seminary. I’d like to commit to her that this degree should be my last. It’s now your turn now go to culinary school, and let me support you! To my kids, Jaclyn, Lauren, Cathryn, and Samuel, who have given me encouraging words along the way; you may not know it, but a dad needs to know his kids to believe in him. To my sweet grandkids, Malaika, Aria, KaraLeigh, Brennan, and Azariah … Papa’s done now, so we can all go outside and play. A special shout out to my mom and dad who pressed me to make it through school in the early days when teachers seemed like they gave up on me. Thank you to Steve Clifford, and the elders at WestGate Church, who allowed me to pursue this and gave me room to finish, all the while doing ministry. To my writing coach Tamar Hela, who met with me every Tuesday to review and whiteboard out what was in my brain … I could not have done this without you guiding me. To my sister Lori, who stepped in as my final editor to fine-tune everything. To Dan Perkins, who trained me for my first triathlon where I learned about breaking through thresholds in physical training that translated into me finishing this dissertation. To my cohort … I wish I could have graduated with all of you, but I was on a journey that changed things for me for the better. To Len Sweet … you inspired my thinking back when I was in university. You are the reason I chose George Fox. To Loren Kerns, who one day decided to call me back into the program. And finally, to my Pandora Classical Baroque station that provided my thinking music. v ABSTRACT This dissertation examines the growing movement of compassion that has developed and emerged in the 21st century and its impact on the current landscape of society. Section 1 takes a closer look at how compassion moved from a virtue to a benefit, and the expectation of reward that subtly crept into the developmental psyche of the culture. Section 2 traces that benefit-mentality into the seven domains of culture, including: Business, Faith, Government, Social Sector, Education, Arts & Entertainment, and the Media. Section 3 introduces a new line of thinking that reestablishes compassion to its purest form by identifying the makeup of individuals, his or her unique gifting and motivation, and then empowering him or her into a world that desperately needs a hero. vi SECTION 1: THE PROBLEM Introduction There is something about genuine demonstrations of compassion that draws people into the story. Compassion is, at its core, that raw, empathetic emotion one feels when becoming aware of someone who is suffering or in need, followed by an intuitive desire to respond in kind. Just hearing the words, “Move that Bus!” elicits