ABSTRACT
The chapter explores key themes, which are sovereign power, the epistemological significance of church leaders, the marginalization of the other, the prevalence of suspicion in theological circles about using Foucault, and practical matters. In Foucault, the power/knowledge nexus generates epistemological possibilities, which in turn reshape power-relations, for "there is no power relation without the correlative constitution of a field of knowledge, nor any knowledge that does not presuppose and constitute at the same time power relations". In summary, under conditions of sovereign power, leaders argue that by virtue of their office, with its transcendent warrant, they know what is right and they have the right to have the final say, regardless of the circumstances. The chapter also argues that a church leader's epistemological identity has a pivotal role in the leader/follower dynamic, and the marginalization of others. Historically, and in Foucauldian style, a strong argument can be made for the marginalization of the child as other.
