The Powers that Be

The Powers That Be: Theology For A New Millennium - Walter Wink

   One of our Ruah books from last month, another good one. I'm not smitten with the sociological analysis - like, the five basic worldviews, the 5000 year history of the Domination System and the Myth of Redemptive Violence. But his interaction with Scripture is lively. I especially appreciated his insights on the creativity of Jesus' non-violent actions and words, and on the necessary creativity in non-violent resistance generally.
    How bout the idea that all human groups or institutions have an individual spiritual power at their core? Good leaders and teachers in my life seem to have a knack for sensing or feeling out the particular spirit of the group. Whether or not they actually believe that this power or spirit is somehow separate, independent of human life, I'm not sure. 
   In any case, I think most folks would agree, based on their own experiences in groups and teams, that group dynamics is a "thing," objectifiable and approachable, as much as any social or psychological phenomenon can be. We are social and understand ourselves as parts. Identifying a group's behavior and feeling patterns as an operative "power" seems like it would be fruitful even for non-religious folks. Could we just call it the group's collective unconscious? On the other hand, "the powers that be" is an important bridge to the Scriptural concepts, so maybe that's unfair.
   Is group-sense stuff at the heart of the development of religion?