confront the reality that there was a possible path out of their dysfunction. Fearing they had lost their lever of control to bring the system down to their level, the self-differentiated leader becomes a threat. Significant backlash begins, with the self-differentiated leader experiencing undermining, gossip, backstabbing, and emotional reactions. It is easy to see such undermining as a contemporary phenomenon. One only needs to glance at the pages of church history to see this is not the case.