Dare Great Things

Even though written fifteen hundred years ago, Pope St. Gregory The Great’s landmark treatise on the rule of shepherds continues to provide valuable insight to us today on what it means to lead.  Notably he says that leaders have to be virtuous.  Why is this?  What’s the role of virtue in leadership?  This last class in this series closes out our treatment of this great document by comparing the virtuous rule with the rule of the wicked.

Leaders know that they’re talented.  You know that you have gifts that you are called to share.  But how do you stay humble?  Is it ever okay to refuse the honor of leadership out of a sense of deference or humility?  And on the other hand is it ever okay to accept to lead because you know that you are the best one for the job?  These are the questions that St. Gregory The Great treats in chapters 5, 6, and 7 of his book, “Regula Pastoralis”, that is, “A Rule For Shepherds.”

Leadership is a challenge for all of us for many reasons but almost every leader complains of being distracted.  Not being able to focus on what they have to do and sometimes being overwhelmed by the sheer complexity of the problems before them.  You might be interested to know that the same complaint was shared by a pope, Pope St. Gregory The Great.  In his book, “On The Rule Of Shepherds” he writes about this and about how to overcome it by the grace of God.

St. Gregory The Great lived a very long time ago but his words remain important for us today.  Even though he was a Pope and a Bishop he was first and foremost a leader.  His book, “On The Rule Of Shepherds” is a hallmark on leadership from the middle ages to today.  Looking at this book can give us insights into what Christ asks for those that follow Him by leading others.

One of the biggest challenges a leader has is the fact that everyone of us is responsible for the decisions that the people under us will make.  How can I help the people that I lead make good decisions?  St. Thomas Aquinas in his Summa Theologica writes a great deal about making choices.  By following his teaching we can have an insight that will help us to make good decisions.

Of all the kings of the Old Testament King Solomon stands apart.  His reign was stupendous.  His wisdom very deep.  His success by worldly standards was unparalleled.  And yet he fell and he fell mightily.  What can we learn from his example?  An example of a talented man, extremely wise and extremely successful, but whose lack of virtue gets the better of him.

Among the saints in the New Testament Saint Paul stands apart.  He was successful in ways that we can’t even measure.  He was the apostle to the Gentiles, the founder of churches, and the model for evangelizers.  But Saint Paul also knew hard times: riots, anxieties, afflictions, imprisonment.  What can we learn from the things the Bible shows us where Saint Paul knew not only victory but defeat.

Sometimes leaders feel like they have to be perfect.  It can be good, however, to study the times that leaders aren’t perfect.  Seeing that God shows mercy to us even when we are imperfect can encourage us to continue to lead even during difficult times.  In Part 3 of our series “Where Leaders Fail” we read about Moses.  Just like we can learn from his wonderful deeds, we can also learn from his weaknesses.

Most of us are aware of the story of King David, of the way that God blessed him and of God’s eternal covenant with David.  And most of us are aware of the story of Bathsheba and David’s famous lack of chastity.  The lessons of the life of David for our spiritual lives are many and deep.  But studying his failures from Bathsheba to Absalom his son to his census of Israel teaches us a powerful lesson about God’s merciful love for his leaders.

We all know that leaders need to be strong and bold and brave.  We all know that a group’s success will depend in large proportion on the success of it’s leadership.  But what happens when leaders aren’t successful?  Have there ever been saints that showed us the other side of failure?  What can we learn from the stories of leaders, even Saints, who may have come up short from time to time.  Join me in my first part of the series, “Where Leaders Fail.”

In this final episode of my class on Saul Alinsky’s book, “Rules For Radicals,” I give an overview of this thought and describe why I think his thought is so dangerous and at the same time so appealing.  His vision for organizers represents a vision that many people share about leadership.  But I think it’s also an opportunity for us who follow Christ to understand better what the world is really longing for from our leadership. 

In Chapter 7 of his book, “Rules For Radicals” Saul Alinsky unveils what he is most famous for.  The rules for victory that radicals can follow for organizing a community for change.  These rules have sparked much interest and debate for many years because they are both practical and successful.  But are they aligned with the Gospel?  Where can we both learn from them and do better?

All leadership implies power but does power explain what leadership is?  From a Catholic perspective leadership requires principle.  Saul Alinsky would disagree.  In Chapter 6 of his book, “Rules For Radicals”, Alinsky lays out a very powerful description of leadership without principle.  What does the Christian have to say in response?

Regardless of what we have to say, our ability to say it is equally important.  If we cannot express what we have inside no one will listen to us anyway.  This is the great intuition of Saul Alinsky in “Rules For Radicals” where he outlines the words used by organizers, the education necessary for an organizer, and highlights the importance of their ability to communicate.  How does this relate to the Gospel?

Does a good end justify the means taken to get there?  Our leaders authorized to do the good “no matter what” by any means necessary – even means that are wrong?  Can we judge something as being wrong when it actually produces something that is good?  These questions are central to the question of leadership and the decisions we have to make as leaders.  Our Lord in the Gospel gives and answer to these questions.  So does Saul Alinsky in Chapter 2 of his book “Rules For Radicals.”  Let’s compare the two.

Christ calls us to be leaders, but what exactly is the point of the leadership to which He calls us?  In Saul Alinsky’s, “Rules For Radicals,” he presents a vision of leadership devoid of an ultimate end goal.  Instead he insists on the ultimate relationship between leadership and the power to wield it.  Couldn’t this be a Catholic moment?  Isn’t this an opportunity for us to build a bridge with his thought?

Sometimes the voice of the Gospel can best be heard by listening to the voices of those who do not profess it.  Such is the case for Saul Alinsky.  In his “Rules For Radicals” this social agitator outlined a series of beliefs that have produced stunning success.  But have they produced effective leadership?  What’s the difference between his philosophy on leadership and the truth of the Gospel? 

The persuasive power of any falsehood lies in its proximity with the truth.  Machiavelli’s, “The Prince”, contains many truths and many statements which ring true to our practical ears.  Chapter 22 concerning the secretaries of princes is a great example of this.  In this chapter we read many things that help us understand our role as servants against the backdrop of Machiavellian reasoning.

Chapter 18 of Machiavelli’s “The Prince” is the most controversial of them all.  You could even say that it represents the heart of his thesis.  Concerning the way in which princes should keep faith it flies directly in contradiction to what most of us as Christian leaders understand as the power of leadership coming from Christ.  And so it is a fascinating study to help us understand where Christ wants us to lead and how.  

In his book “The Prince”, Machiavelli makes the claim that it is better for a leader to be feared rather than loved.  He makes the claim that the efficiency of maintaining power is better for those who instill fear in their followers rather than those who live the good life.  What is a Christian to do in front of such a claim?  How did Christ live this out?  This is what we want to talk about today.