This reflection was written by Norman Robert-Boie for this week’s Wingèd Ox, a weekly news digest distributed to the college community. You will find reflections from previous weeks here.

Thinking outside the box.

One day, while I was working at Musique Plus (M+), our CEO opened an executive committee meeting with the words: “We need to think outside the box if we want to survive what’s coming.” As the Internet grew, TV audiences moved online, splitting revenues between both worlds and putting the TV industry under financial strain. There was a time before Netflix!

At that meeting, everyone in the room understood this was a call for creativity—an invitation to explore unconventional solutions to ensure our specialty channel division met its expected 12% annual revenue growth. But no one really knew how to do that or where to begin. Personally, I wasn’t entirely convinced by the 12% growth benchmark, but I was definitely excited by the challenge of reimagining, adapting, and thinking creatively.

In recent decades, a new generation of ‘disruptors,’‘creative thinkers,’ and ‘executive innovators’ seems to have reached a consensus: much like the spoon in The Matrix, there is no ‘box’! Have a look: Matrix/the Spoon Meanwhile, I’ve spent just as much time reflecting on this proverbial and metaphorical ‘box.’ My conclusion? It’s a real thing —just not in the way these‘ creative thinkers’ might imagine it.

I really appreciate 17-year-old Mohib Elahi’s TEDx talk, where he describes the ‘box’ as a metaphor for the mind. In his view, the box consists of four walls and a floor. The floor represents the unchangeable laws of nature—things like gravity that we simply cannot alter. The four walls, however, are shaped by knowledge, beliefs, emotions, and society. In his speech, Elahi does not mention the ceiling. As a faith persons, I find it interesting that the walls provide a framework, the floor bears weight, but that an open ceiling leaves room for a relationship with the divine.

Elahi explains that we are born into a transparent box, seeing the world with openness and clarity. But as we grow, these walls gradually become more opaque, shaped by our experiences, our environment, and the frameworks imposed upon us. Yet, Elahi argues that if we remain aware, adaptable, and open-minded, we have the ability to control just how opaque these walls become, allowing us to see beyond them rather than be confined within them.

I resonate with Elahi’s perspective. I would also add that, as we move through life, we bring our individual ‘boxes’ into collective ones—like nesting dolls. We enter families, businesses, groups, collectives, and even Church.

In his talk, Elahi emphasizes the importance of understanding our own ‘box’—or as I would put it, our ‘boxes.’ The better we understand our essence, the more clearly we see where we are headed and what drives us forward, both individually and collectively. This awareness also fuels our desire for knowledge, equipping us to handle whatever comes our way. It helps us recognize and manage our emotions while caring less about others’ judgments. Ultimately, this expanded awareness allows us to see beyond our ‘box,’respond creatively, and adapt to an ever-changing world.

With its Towards 2035 project, the United Church of Canada has taken significant steps to better understand its own ‘box’ and anticipate its trajectory for the next decade. When all the data and newly developed assessment tools are released in April 2025, it will be up to us to stretch our minds, push beyond our perceived limits, and open doors to an unknown future filled with new possibilities.

Our calling to further God’s kingdom remains unchanged—but the ways in which we fulfill it must evolve. This is both an invitation and a challenge: to be creative, to be adaptable, and to reimagine what it means to be Church. And to me, that is truly exciting.

All that we know (true or untrue); all that we believe(espoused or lived); all our emotions and biases; and all the weight we put in what we think people think about us (herd mentality) – are real things we need to cope with. Those can become limitations and feel like real walls. Alternatively, they can become translucent and serve as gateways through which we can access fertile grounds that have yet to be inhabited. Albeit, let us not reinforce structures that are an abstraction. Because, at the end of the day, the ‘box’ is just that—a metaphor.

I did not know I needed to hear Tilda Swinton’s Berlinale acceptance speech. It reminded me how important it is to listen and connect with kindred spirits, especially in a time when voices of hatred and division dominate the stage. I encourage you to give it a listen.