Trust in government and media has been in decline for nearly two decades, and has now reached its lowest trust rating ever among survey participants, according to The Rand Corporation. Institutional mistrust was already a thing pre-Covid, but we are learning that global pandemics are accelerators to problems that previously existed. The vaccination debate is a great example of this. A University of Michigan Study in 2021 found that vaccine hesitancy was largely due to longstanding technical, health, and government institutional mistrust. While many have assumed that vaccine hesitancy was the result of ignorance or an anti-science stance, an anti-institutional posture seems to be at the very top of the list.
The Edelman Trust Barometer found two equally destructive forces at work in their 2020 research: the pandemic and what they called the “infodemic.” Fear of automation, job loss, and systemic racism has led to a breakdown of trust across institutions. Surprisingly, they found that “business” (one’s employer) is now seen as the most ethical institution (statistically speaking), as opposed to larger governmental organizations that were previously viewed as being most trustworthy, and that people with poor “information hygiene” (info from social media alone) have a much higher rate of vaccine hesitancy and distrust. Our institutions seem to be unable to hold us together. So what does that mean for those of us who are passionate about creating change, but feel powerless to do so?
What about the Church?
Is there a breakdown of trust within the institutional church? Most of us probably already know the answer to this question. Millennials, for example, distrust the Church even more than other institutions, citing sexual abuse scandals and cover ups, finances mishandled, religious leaders grabbing for power, and the Church remaining silent on issues of systemic racism. Trust is fragile and is the foundation of every healthy relationship, but, as we have seen, it can be lost in an instant.
Distrust is a tool of protection, but it can also cause us to withdraw and isolate. We found ourselves isolated during a pandemic and began to view other people (our neighbors) as potential enemies to be avoided. The very people that Jesus called us to love and serve became the people that we feared and avoided like the plague (pun intended).
People worried that contact with anyone was a possible Covid infection and, as a result. many stayed away. When trust breaks down, the only people we have left to place trust in is ourselves (or at least people like us). This is the situation that we find ourselves in today. As life slowly returns to whatever the new normal will be, can this loss of trust be rebuilt? If so, how?
3 Levels of Trust Breaking
Andy Crouch is a partner for theology and culture at Praxis, an organization that works as a creative engine for redemptive entrepreneurship. Andy is the author of five books and his writing explores faith, culture, and the image of God in the domains of technology, power, leadership, and the arts. In these various works, he talks about how trust is broken and repaired, citing three main themes: Absence and Presence, Failure and Recovery, and Sin and Forgiveness.
- Absence and Presence
Andy uses the writings and teachings of Dr. Curt Thompson in referencing the importance of absence and presence as the foundation of rebuilding trust. We first experience this in the relationship between a parent and a child. The caregiver steps away and the child is given to a nurse or an aunt or a grandparent just for a moment. For adults, this is a normal rhythm, but for the child, it is a major event. The child has to learn to deal with the absence of the caregiver and learn to trust that the caregiver will return. When the caregiver returns, trust begins to be restored: rupture and repair, absence and presence.
We have largely been away from one another for roughly 2 years because of a pandemic, so how might we consider rebuilding trust with our presence?
- Failure and Recovery
Next in the breakdown and building up of trust is what Dr. Thompson calls failure and recovery. Failure can and does happen, and sometimes it happens without sin or fault being assigned. Failure and recovery are said to build resilience and trust. Resilience is built when we face failures: accepting the things we cannot change or overcoming those which we can change. Every time we prevail when we face a challenging situation, we build our resilience just a little bit more. Through failure and recovery, we learn that the next time we experience something unexpected and difficult, we can make it through.
Since so many of the systems that were designed to protect us have failed, how can we continue protecting the vulnerable segments of our population?
- Sin and Forgiveness
The most grievous breakdown and rebuilding of trust is what Dr. Thompson (and scripture) call sin and forgiveness. Sometimes it’s not just failure, but fault or sin that breaks trust. Promises are broken, betrayals occur, and individual and community relationships get ruptured. Sin is both personal and structural and so elements of confession, truth telling, repentance, and forgiveness are critical for rebuilding trust.
We have seen and experienced exploitation without repentance or repair, creating a crisis of mistrust. How can we break that cycle of crisis and move forward in the church?
Reflection
As people who lead in an institution where trust is on the decline, we will need to examine our own church situations. Where are the places in our church where trust has broken down in any of these three categories? What is our responsibility as leaders? What is within our control to shape and change? Consider the following questions that are designed to help you and your team take a closer look at the breakdown of trust:
- How would you describe your level of institutional mistrust?
- What connection do you see between isolation and increasing mistrust?
- In what particular ways has your trust in the Church / your church increased or decreased in recent years? What are the factors involved in your answer?
- Can you identify ways in which the Church / your church has participated in each of the three areas of mistrust (absence, failure, sin)?
