Building on a foundation begun by Paul, reformed theologians have made much of the biblical distinction between leadership and headship. While there is significant overlap, a leader is what you would normally consider someone in charge, while a head necessarily involves a metaphorical representation of the rest of the body.
Biblically, this is used to describe humankind pre/post regeneration. Previously, we were united under the representative head of Adam, the first man and the originator of sin. Through the Christ’s death and resurrection, we have been purchased/transfered into a new humanity – one under the headship of Jesus. It’s like the captain of the team taking a coin toss, the union head representing the workers at the negotiating table, or, darker, the leader of an insurrection being executed instead of his underlings.
If you want to know about the nature of old humankind, you look to its representative figurehead – Adam. If you want to know about the nature of the new humankid, you look instead to Christ.
Did you see Barak Obama in Europe last week? He was a rock star. When was the last time you saw throngs of Germans that excited? Hasselhoff? Hitler? You’d think there were blond haired, blue eyed Beatles on the stage. This is in contrast with bumbling Bush.
As Americans, the president is our figurehead. In many ways what the president actually does means less than what he represents. Obama could be a hapless general and a moral albatross, but that wouldn’t necessarily mean that he’s the wrong man for the job. His eloquence and likability lend an instant, if vacuous, credibility to the American people. In a world where impressions outweigh investigation, perhaps that is enough? Is hope misplaced better than no hope at all?
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