The Wiles Of The Devil
Stories
Lectionary Tales For The Pulpit
62 Stories For Cycle B
Sandy Wright felt betrayed. She sat at her desk staring at the papers in her hands, but she didn't see them. Her mind was still reeling from the reprimand she had just received from Ken Martin, her supervisor. But worse than that, she knew that the source of the mistaken information Ken had used to chastise her was Kelly Fox; and she knew that there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.
It had been just over a year since Sandy had joined the design team at InfoTec. She loved her work, and had proven herself good at it. Kelly had signed on just two weeks after Sandy, and while her work was good, it wasn't always on target. She tended to get sloppy when the workload was heavy and to overlook some of the mistakes she could have corrected. Eventually, Ken had teamed Kelly with Sandy, in hopes that Sandy's attention to detail would rub off on her. They had worked closely on several assignments and gotten along well.
It bothered Sandy that Kelly sometimes talked about Ken and other team members behind their backs. Kelly had a way of insinuating things about others which raised questions about their character and motives. While she never actually gossiped, in terms of spreading rumors, her hints at people's possible personal faults was just as damaging. It was a subtle undermining of respect and authority. Sandy's response to these covert attacks was usually to make no comment. However, she noted that if she countered Kelly's ideas, Kelly almost always backed down. In the back of her mind, Sandy knew that, if Kelly talked about others in this way, she probably talked about her to others as well. But, because they got along well, she didn't dwell on the idea. She resolved to keep their relationship on a friendly, professional basis, and ignore Kelly's less appealing characteristics.
Still, Sandy's attention was frequently drawn to Kelly's most annoying tendencies. While Kelly expected respect from others, she often placed herself in a position to receive sympathy. Her father was very ill with emphysema. When Kelly was having a bad day, she would often affect a sad-eyed, wounded appearance. This invariably drew attention from co-workers, who inquired about her father. And, even if he was not the source of her current malaise, Kelly revelled in their concern and attention. Other days Kelly was the life of the office, her laughter wafting over the cubicles. On those days, Sandy had learned not to expect much of a work contribution from Kelly, because she was too busy socializing. Everyone who passed by Kelly's desk was engaged in some kind of congenial conversation, which always ended in another wave of Kelly's lilting laughter. Kelly used these opportunities for name-dropping, hinting about her expertise in an area, and kissing up to management. The hardest part for Sandy to take, however, was when Kelly turned right around and cast aspersions on the characters of those she had just found so entertaining.
Because it was so easy for her to see what Kelly was really like, Sandy assumed that everyone else did as well. She herself had found a way of maintaining a comfortable work relationship with her by overlooking her idiosyncracies, and so, she assumed, had everyone else. In a few instances, their circles of friendship overlapped, but for the most part, Sandy separated herself from Kelly in all but their closest work situations. It was not until it was too late that she understood that Kelly's "idiosyncracies" were, in fact, a dangerous evil.
Sandy took pride in her work. Even when the loads were heavy, she liked to think ahead and be prepared. There were plenty of tasks she would leave until the last minute, but planning, scheduling and detail were priorities. Part of Kelly's job was to coordinate assignments for the various work teams so that there was true "team work" with a minimum of headbutting. Because Sandy paid close attention to detail, she always scheduled her assignments with Kelly well in advance. That was why, when she was called into Ken's office for a meeting with him and another team leader, Sandy was totally unprepared for the anger and criticism directed at her.
"It's been brought to my attention that you haven't been following policy on scheduling," Ken said sternly when Sandy and Mike, the other team leader, had been seated.
"I'm sorry?" Sandy replied, stunned by Ken's authoritarian tone and baffled by his statement.
"He's talking about the way you took over my slot in the May leadership conference and replaced my progress report with your training program," Mike said, unable to keep the anger out of his voice.
"There must be some mistake," Sandy said, keeping her voice even. "I scheduled my program with Kelly."
"When I spoke with Kelly a month ago about the time slot for my progress report, she said there was no problem. Then, when the memo came out Tuesday with the time schedule for the conference, your program was listed in my time slot. When I checked with Kelly, she told me that you often go over her head and change schedules. I came to Ken because I've heard that complaint from other team leaders, too. I thought it was about time that you hear how angry some of us are that you do this."
"It is always my practice to schedule programs well in advance," Sandy insisted. "Perhaps Kelly ..."
"Kelly has told me," Ken interrupted, "that you have often blamed her for scheduling errors. I know that I teamed you with Kelly to help her focus her work, but that shouldn't give you the right to blame her if you make mistakes."
Sandy could see that she had been placed in a no-win situation. There was nothing she could say or do. The only option was to back down.
"If I made a mistake, I apologize," she said, struggling to keep emotion out of her voice. "If Mike scheduled his presentation first, then he should have the time slot. I'll just have to make other arrangements for my program."
Both Mike and Ken looked a little surprised at that, and the meeting ended with awkward thanks. Now Sandy sat at her desk, staring at papers she wasn't really seeing, and trying to deal with the flood of thoughts and emotions in her head.
How could she have been so naive? Why, when she knew how Kelly treated everyone else, should she have expected to escape that treatment herself? Kelly had set her up to take the fall for her own scheduling mistakes, just as Sandy knew she set up and manipulated others. Why hadn't she anticipated it? And how could she prove anything? There was no proof. She only knew, from her observations and experience, what Kelly was like. What if she was the only one who saw it? Kelly herself was only an annoyance, but her actions were evil. Where could Sandy go with that? And, since Kelly had cast doubt on Sandy's character as well, what good would it do? It would only appear to be another attack on Kelly.
But how could Sandy go on working with her, never knowing when or where the next attack would come? She would have to be very careful from now on. She would have to document every move. And she would have to keep her ears open to hear who else had been stung. Perhaps, in time, she could make a case, but for now she would stifle her anger and suffer the humiliation. "Dear God," Sandy prayed silently, "help me handle this mess. Help me keep control of my temper and be there for others. Don't let me be vindictive. Most of all, let Kelly see how much hurt she causes. Help her break away from doing evil things."
____________
Author's Note:
In the introduction to his book, Evil: A Historical and Theological Perspective, Hans Schwarz asks two questions which are addressed by this text and story: "Why is life on earth characterized by the fact that humans make life miserable for each other?" and "Is there a force within and yet transcending humanity that functions, as it were, as a diabolos or as a 'distorter,' continually detracting from the experience of the good in our lives and turning it instead into something negative?" (p. 3).
In Antagonists in the Church: How to Identify and Deal with Destructive Conflict, Kenneth Haugk describes persons who act out destructively in the church, the way Kelly does in the story. Haugk says: "The spiritual forces that stand in rebellion against God and God's claim on people lie behind (indeed, precipitate) the behavior of antagonistic individuals...When confronting an antagonist, it must be kept in mind that antagonists play into the hands of forces that are intent upon destroying the healing and caring missions of the church. One dare not sit back and watch antagonists cripple and disfigure a congregational body" (p. 42).
M. Scott Peck observes in People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil that in his experience " ... evil human beings are quite common and usually appear quite ordinary to the superficial observer." He adds: "While evil people are to be feared, they are also to be pitied. Forever fleeing the light of self-exposure and the voice of their own conscience, they are the most frightened of human beings. They live their lives in sheer terror. They need not be consigned to any hell; they are already in it" (p. 67).
Peck believes that evil people cannot be "...rapidly influenced by any means other than raw power. They do not respond, at least in the short run, to either gentle kindness or any form of spiritual persuasion ..." (p. 68). "It is not their sins, per se, that characterize evil people, rather it is the subtlety and persistence and consistency of their sins. This is because the central defect of the evil is not the sin, but the refusal to acknowledge it" (p. 69).
____________
Kenneth C. Haugk, Antagonists in the Church: How to Identify and Deal with Destructive Conflict, (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1988), p. 42.
M. Scott Peck, People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil, (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1983), pp. 67-69.
Hans Schwarz, Evil: A Historical and Theological Perspective, (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1995), p. 3.
It had been just over a year since Sandy had joined the design team at InfoTec. She loved her work, and had proven herself good at it. Kelly had signed on just two weeks after Sandy, and while her work was good, it wasn't always on target. She tended to get sloppy when the workload was heavy and to overlook some of the mistakes she could have corrected. Eventually, Ken had teamed Kelly with Sandy, in hopes that Sandy's attention to detail would rub off on her. They had worked closely on several assignments and gotten along well.
It bothered Sandy that Kelly sometimes talked about Ken and other team members behind their backs. Kelly had a way of insinuating things about others which raised questions about their character and motives. While she never actually gossiped, in terms of spreading rumors, her hints at people's possible personal faults was just as damaging. It was a subtle undermining of respect and authority. Sandy's response to these covert attacks was usually to make no comment. However, she noted that if she countered Kelly's ideas, Kelly almost always backed down. In the back of her mind, Sandy knew that, if Kelly talked about others in this way, she probably talked about her to others as well. But, because they got along well, she didn't dwell on the idea. She resolved to keep their relationship on a friendly, professional basis, and ignore Kelly's less appealing characteristics.
Still, Sandy's attention was frequently drawn to Kelly's most annoying tendencies. While Kelly expected respect from others, she often placed herself in a position to receive sympathy. Her father was very ill with emphysema. When Kelly was having a bad day, she would often affect a sad-eyed, wounded appearance. This invariably drew attention from co-workers, who inquired about her father. And, even if he was not the source of her current malaise, Kelly revelled in their concern and attention. Other days Kelly was the life of the office, her laughter wafting over the cubicles. On those days, Sandy had learned not to expect much of a work contribution from Kelly, because she was too busy socializing. Everyone who passed by Kelly's desk was engaged in some kind of congenial conversation, which always ended in another wave of Kelly's lilting laughter. Kelly used these opportunities for name-dropping, hinting about her expertise in an area, and kissing up to management. The hardest part for Sandy to take, however, was when Kelly turned right around and cast aspersions on the characters of those she had just found so entertaining.
Because it was so easy for her to see what Kelly was really like, Sandy assumed that everyone else did as well. She herself had found a way of maintaining a comfortable work relationship with her by overlooking her idiosyncracies, and so, she assumed, had everyone else. In a few instances, their circles of friendship overlapped, but for the most part, Sandy separated herself from Kelly in all but their closest work situations. It was not until it was too late that she understood that Kelly's "idiosyncracies" were, in fact, a dangerous evil.
Sandy took pride in her work. Even when the loads were heavy, she liked to think ahead and be prepared. There were plenty of tasks she would leave until the last minute, but planning, scheduling and detail were priorities. Part of Kelly's job was to coordinate assignments for the various work teams so that there was true "team work" with a minimum of headbutting. Because Sandy paid close attention to detail, she always scheduled her assignments with Kelly well in advance. That was why, when she was called into Ken's office for a meeting with him and another team leader, Sandy was totally unprepared for the anger and criticism directed at her.
"It's been brought to my attention that you haven't been following policy on scheduling," Ken said sternly when Sandy and Mike, the other team leader, had been seated.
"I'm sorry?" Sandy replied, stunned by Ken's authoritarian tone and baffled by his statement.
"He's talking about the way you took over my slot in the May leadership conference and replaced my progress report with your training program," Mike said, unable to keep the anger out of his voice.
"There must be some mistake," Sandy said, keeping her voice even. "I scheduled my program with Kelly."
"When I spoke with Kelly a month ago about the time slot for my progress report, she said there was no problem. Then, when the memo came out Tuesday with the time schedule for the conference, your program was listed in my time slot. When I checked with Kelly, she told me that you often go over her head and change schedules. I came to Ken because I've heard that complaint from other team leaders, too. I thought it was about time that you hear how angry some of us are that you do this."
"It is always my practice to schedule programs well in advance," Sandy insisted. "Perhaps Kelly ..."
"Kelly has told me," Ken interrupted, "that you have often blamed her for scheduling errors. I know that I teamed you with Kelly to help her focus her work, but that shouldn't give you the right to blame her if you make mistakes."
Sandy could see that she had been placed in a no-win situation. There was nothing she could say or do. The only option was to back down.
"If I made a mistake, I apologize," she said, struggling to keep emotion out of her voice. "If Mike scheduled his presentation first, then he should have the time slot. I'll just have to make other arrangements for my program."
Both Mike and Ken looked a little surprised at that, and the meeting ended with awkward thanks. Now Sandy sat at her desk, staring at papers she wasn't really seeing, and trying to deal with the flood of thoughts and emotions in her head.
How could she have been so naive? Why, when she knew how Kelly treated everyone else, should she have expected to escape that treatment herself? Kelly had set her up to take the fall for her own scheduling mistakes, just as Sandy knew she set up and manipulated others. Why hadn't she anticipated it? And how could she prove anything? There was no proof. She only knew, from her observations and experience, what Kelly was like. What if she was the only one who saw it? Kelly herself was only an annoyance, but her actions were evil. Where could Sandy go with that? And, since Kelly had cast doubt on Sandy's character as well, what good would it do? It would only appear to be another attack on Kelly.
But how could Sandy go on working with her, never knowing when or where the next attack would come? She would have to be very careful from now on. She would have to document every move. And she would have to keep her ears open to hear who else had been stung. Perhaps, in time, she could make a case, but for now she would stifle her anger and suffer the humiliation. "Dear God," Sandy prayed silently, "help me handle this mess. Help me keep control of my temper and be there for others. Don't let me be vindictive. Most of all, let Kelly see how much hurt she causes. Help her break away from doing evil things."
____________
Author's Note:
In the introduction to his book, Evil: A Historical and Theological Perspective, Hans Schwarz asks two questions which are addressed by this text and story: "Why is life on earth characterized by the fact that humans make life miserable for each other?" and "Is there a force within and yet transcending humanity that functions, as it were, as a diabolos or as a 'distorter,' continually detracting from the experience of the good in our lives and turning it instead into something negative?" (p. 3).
In Antagonists in the Church: How to Identify and Deal with Destructive Conflict, Kenneth Haugk describes persons who act out destructively in the church, the way Kelly does in the story. Haugk says: "The spiritual forces that stand in rebellion against God and God's claim on people lie behind (indeed, precipitate) the behavior of antagonistic individuals...When confronting an antagonist, it must be kept in mind that antagonists play into the hands of forces that are intent upon destroying the healing and caring missions of the church. One dare not sit back and watch antagonists cripple and disfigure a congregational body" (p. 42).
M. Scott Peck observes in People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil that in his experience " ... evil human beings are quite common and usually appear quite ordinary to the superficial observer." He adds: "While evil people are to be feared, they are also to be pitied. Forever fleeing the light of self-exposure and the voice of their own conscience, they are the most frightened of human beings. They live their lives in sheer terror. They need not be consigned to any hell; they are already in it" (p. 67).
Peck believes that evil people cannot be "...rapidly influenced by any means other than raw power. They do not respond, at least in the short run, to either gentle kindness or any form of spiritual persuasion ..." (p. 68). "It is not their sins, per se, that characterize evil people, rather it is the subtlety and persistence and consistency of their sins. This is because the central defect of the evil is not the sin, but the refusal to acknowledge it" (p. 69).
____________
Kenneth C. Haugk, Antagonists in the Church: How to Identify and Deal with Destructive Conflict, (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1988), p. 42.
M. Scott Peck, People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil, (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1983), pp. 67-69.
Hans Schwarz, Evil: A Historical and Theological Perspective, (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1995), p. 3.
