20200515 MODELS IN LEADERSHIP
15 May, 2020, Friday, 5th Week in Easter
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour: White.
First reading
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Acts 15:22-31 ©
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It has been decided by the Holy Spirit and by us not to burden you beyond these essentials
The apostles and elders decided to choose delegates to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; the whole church concurred with this. They chose Judas known as Barsabbas and Silas, both leading men in the brotherhood, and gave them this letter to take with them:
‘The apostles and elders, your brothers, send greetings to the brothers of pagan birth in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia. We hear that some of our members have disturbed you with their demands and have unsettled your minds. They acted without any authority from us; and so we have decided unanimously to elect delegates and to send them to you with Barnabas and Paul, men we highly respect who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Accordingly we are sending you Judas and Silas, who will confirm by word of mouth what we have written in this letter. It has been decided by the Holy Spirit and by ourselves not to saddle you with any burden beyond these essentials: you are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols; from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from fornication. Avoid these, and you will do what is right. Farewell.’
The party left and went down to Antioch, where they summoned the whole community and delivered the letter. The community read it and were delighted with the encouragement it gave them.
Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 56(57):8-12 ©
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I will thank you, Lord, among the peoples.
or
Alleluia!
My heart is ready, O God,
my heart is ready.
I will sing, I will sing your praise.
Awake, my soul,
awake, lyre and harp,
I will awake the dawn.
I will thank you, Lord, among the peoples.
or
Alleluia!
I will thank you, Lord, among the peoples,
among the nations I will praise you
for your love reaches to the heavens
and your truth to the skies.
O God, arise above the heavens;
may your glory shine on earth!
I will thank you, Lord, among the peoples.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation
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Jn10:27
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Alleluia, alleluia!
The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice,
says the Lord,
I know them and they follow me.
Alleluia!
Or:
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Jn15:15
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I call you friends, says the Lord,
because I have made known to you
everything I have learnt from my Father.
Alleluia!
Gospel
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John 15:12-17 ©
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What I command you is to love one another
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘This is my commandment:
love one another,
as I have loved you.
A man can have no greater love
than to lay down his life for his friends.
You are my friends,
if you do what I command you.
I shall not call you servants any more,
because a servant does not know
his master’s business;
I call you friends,
because I have made known to you
everything I have learnt from my Father.
You did not choose me:
no, I chose you;
and I commissioned you
to go out and to bear fruit,
fruit that will last;
and then the Father will give you
anything you ask him in my name.
What I command you is to love one another.’
MODELS IN LEADERSHIP
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ ACTS 15:22-31; PS 57:8-12; JOHN 15:12-17 ]
For those who are not familiar with working or volunteering their services in the Church, they might think that working or helping out in Church is easy. There are no disagreements, no politics, no in-fighting, no misunderstandings and no pain. The truth is that the Church is not just a community of saints but also sinners. Those who are helping in the Church also come from various depths of spirituality, even among Church leaders. Some are more prayerful. Some are more calm and levelheaded. Some have a wounded history in their lives and unconsciously bring their fears, insecurities and hurts into the community. So we have all sorts of members in a community, with diverse backgrounds, cultures, experiences and different theological, spiritual and secular education.
Conflicts and disagreements will surely surface so long as there is a community of people with different cultures, upbringing, education and experiences. We do not see things the same way all the time. However, disagreements are not necessarily bad for the growth of the Church or any organization. It is how the leader manages such disagreements. If he sees opposing views as a nuisance and a threat to his position, power and plans, he will retaliate and destroy his opponent. However, if he sees such differing opinions as the means by which he is challenged to see from different perspectives and hence a larger picture to help him make better decisions, then it becomes constructive. Healthy tensions and disagreements in an organization is a sign of growth. In fact, if the organization has no tension, it means that it is stagnant, complacent and has degenerated into routine and a maintenance mode. So we should not fight shy of conflicts and disagreements. The key to resolving conflicts is using the right approach to managing our communities.
One way to avoid disagreements is to adopt a leader-servant model. Here, a leader behaves in a dictatorial manner. He treats his subordinates like his servants. This is what the Lord said in today’s gospel. “I shall not call you servants anymore, because a servant does not know his master’s business.” A servant only takes instructions. He does not share in the mind of the master. His task is only to obey. This method of leadership relies too much on the leader. Unless one is Jesus Christ, we will not be able to have all the knowledge and wisdom of the world to do the right thing always. With things so specialized and knowledge so compartmentalized, it is impossible for any single person to know everything to make the best decision. The servant approach in management does not work these days, unless you have a very charismatic leader. However, these are very few and hard to come by. Even then it can lead to abuse, manipulation and corruption.
What about the family model of leadership? This is certainly a better approach than that of a leader-servant relationship. As family, there is a greater sense of ownership. There is a stronger bond between the members of the family. Of course, in every family there is also a hierarchy with the Father as the head of the family. As the members belong to the same family, they share common interests and they look out for each other’s interests. In this family model, every member of the family is integral to the growth of the organization. Different members of the family have different skills and responsibilities. All are important because all must work as a team to ensure the success of the organization. Such a family spirit is ideal for growth and for the work of communion. Church organizations are more attuned to this family spirit model because we see ourselves as brothers and sisters in Christ. This was how the early Church saw each other and as we read in the first reading, the emphasis was on their common brotherhood in the Lord. They regarded each other as brothers, whether they were Jews or Gentiles. Indeed, this is how the Church sees herself, as a family of God.
Even though this model of leadership seems to be good, yet it is not the best to grow an organization. This is because it is often not by choice that we are members of a family. We are born into a family. We cannot choose our parents, our brothers and sisters. Within our own family, we have to live with and tolerate the weaknesses of each other. Just because they do not behave themselves, we cannot kick them out of the family. We feel obliged to care for them and to look after them. In the family, we tend to take each other for granted, even our rights as well. Then, because of human weakness and selfishness, there is greed and ambition. This leads to distrust, misunderstanding and suspicion of unfair treatment in the family. In fact, this situation happened in the early Church in Acts 6, when the Greek-speaking widows complained of neglect and unfair distribution of goods.
Perhaps, a better model of leadership is that of friendship. In the gospel, Jesus seems to propose this model of leadership as being more suited to Church ministry. Jesus said, “This is my commandment: love one another, as I have loved you. A man can have no greater love than to lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends, if you do what I command you. I shall not call you servants anymore, because a servant does not know his master’s business; I call you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have learnt from my Father.” Jesus regarded His apostles as His friends. We are not His servants but He has raised us to the level of friends. What does this mean?
It means that we are chosen! Unlike family members, we are not born into it. We cannot choose our family members but we can choose our friends. This is what the Lord said to the apostles, “You did not choose me: no, I chose you; and I commissioned you to go out and to bear fruit, fruit that will last; and then the Father will give you anything you ask him in my name. What I command you is to love one another.” So Jesus chose us to be His friends, not His servants. As friends, we share in the mind and the heart of Christ. As friends, we share the joy of being with each other and the joy of intimacy. Indeed, one of the hallmarks of intimacy is to be called His friend. Abraham was called the friend of God. “But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend.” (Isa 41:8; cf Jms 2:23) God also talked to Moses as a man speaks with his friend. “Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. (Ex 33:11)
Indeed, “A friend loves at all times and kinsfolk are born to share adversity.” (Prov 17:17) The Lord said earlier. “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.” (Jn 15:9-11) A friend is one who loves all the time. A friend understands his friend. They share their thoughts, feelings, aspirations, struggles and inadequacy freely because they know that their friends will not take advantage of them but will support and care of them. There is total trust, confidence and mutual caring to the extent of even giving up one’s life for the other. “A man can have no greater love than to lay down his life for his friends.” The point is that Jesus loves us to that extent.
Hence, His command is, “love one another, as I have loved you.” If we regard our brothers and sisters in Christ who are laboring in the same mission and vineyard of our Lord as friends, then there will be less competition, more giving and encouragement, more sensitivity to the feelings of those whom we disagree with in views, more gentle in offering counter suggestions. Then our intent will not be to destroy or hurt, or even to win an argument, but to offer constructive criticisms so that it would be a win-win for all. In fact, the interest of the other party is greater than our own. This is why I always insist that in Church organizations, we must first play together, then pray together before we can work together. It is friendship that binds us together and helps us to support each other in our common mission. The early Church resolved their conflicts and misunderstandings by coming together as brothers and friends, with great sensitivity, openness and dialogue in faith and love.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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