Dean Powery Writes About Teaching Not Only with Words but Also Deeds
Writing in the (Duke) Chronicle, Chapel Dean Luke Powery says teaching that has a lasting impact often goes beyond words into music, demonstration, and action.
"There is a kind of teaching through which something happens, confirming what speech-act theorists teach — words do things," he writes. "This kind of teaching emphasizes action, not just words. Rather than a telling, it is a doing, a showing."
There are many teachers “who inspire us to be free and fully alive,” Dean Powery says. “That includes people who don’t hold the official title of ‘teacher’ or ‘professor.’”
He concludes: “Anyone can be a teacher by teaching with their life. So, let’s live so as to teach lessons that set people free and point them toward becoming whole and healed.”