Pale kaua no ko lākou mau ʻuhane – Armor for their Souls
Pale kaua no ko lākou mau ʻuhane – Armor for their Souls, in Hawaiian
Introduction
Part 1 – What others are saying
Part 2 – What I learned from the U.S. Army and Woodward
Epilogue – Armor for the Soul
Introduction
By unmasking the Powers of domination (Satan and his principalities), J. R. Woodward, David Fitch, and Amos Yong, The Scandal of Leadership: Unmasking the Powers of Domination in the Church[1] seek to provide pastors armor for their souls, to prevent their fall from their effective roles as shepherds of congregational flocks.
Part 1 – What others are saying
Synoptically, we are asked to connect Woodward with other readings. As exhibit “A” I would suggest Eve Poole. Leadersmithing: Revealing the Trade Secrets of Leadership.[2] Poole highlights ‘apprenticeship’ where young leaders are in relationship with a mentor who guides them in the ways of leadership power.
The term ‘Powers’ is taken by Woodward and he creates a darker meaning. Powers/Satan represent the BAD apprenticeship mentor that pastors need to be worried about. Choosing to be in the world and of the World lures Christian leaders to the dark side (think Trump’s reality show – the Apprentice 2004 – 2017).
Woodward’s goal is to remind the reader that Jesus Christ is the example, the mentor who teaches us the attributes of leadership that we want to imitate. Woodward quotes, Rohadi Nagassar, author of When we Belong, “Imitate me, just as I imitate Christ” (1Corinthians 11:1). Leaders are imitators, but there is a subtle competition for their souls.[3]
Perhaps Seminary’s need to highlight this ‘subtle’ competition as a quagmire that will trap pastors souls into domineering leadership.
My cohort peers raise questions that augment Woodward’s impact, DLGP02 Jennifer Vernam asks the question, “What about everyone else? I wonder if Woodward is unnecessarily fixated on leaders. I think that the premise (not withstanding my concerns mentioned above) would be true for any believer. Is there danger in emphasizing this level of spiritual health for leaders and NOT the followers?
I wholeheartedly concur. What is good for the goose has got to be good for the gander.
DLGP 01- David Beavis provides a warning/advice to young pastors who seek to get into the inner circle, “When we as followers of Jesus find our identities in being a part of the family of God (instead of pre-modernism’s finding identity in one’s biological family or modernism’s finding identity in one’s status climbing), and imitate Jesus who gave the example of self-emptying, we are able to be the kind of leaders we are meant to be. Not selfishly ambitious and anxious leaders who imitate the wrong examples and thus imitate the Powers. Rather, we live out the example of Christ non-anxiously in this world with Kingdom ambition as opposed to selfish ambition.
AMEN David! David provides something we know in our hearts but are wooed by the ambitious culture that pervades our society.
Part 2 – What I learned from the U.S. Army and Woodward
My identity as an Asian Male (which means I have slanted eyes and external genitalia?) was transformed by 23 years, 6 months and 11 days in the U.S. Army. In short, my identity became ‘Army green’. So my muscle memory of leadership is slanted toward that leadership tradition.
Woodward’s, “Domineering leadership” is a phrase (and a sin?) that caught my attention. When I think about type “A” U.S. Army behavior, domineering leadership would not be far off target in describing the mentor behaviors that young 2LT’s seek to emulate. “Lead, Follow or Get out of the way” is a phrase the percolates to the surface of my mind as part of Eve Poole’s ‘muscle memory.’ In training our reactive Fast 1 thinking to respond to the ‘Fog and Friction of war’ (thanks Kahneman), decisive and domineering behavior is the method of choice. On the battlefield, in the chaos of war, our men need leaders who are technically and tactically proficient. Domineering leadership is more of an accolade rather than a negative.
But I am seemingly incorrect.
According to the Army’s leadership doctrinal manual, Field Manual (FM) 6-22, Army leadership is “the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization.”[4]
Lieutenant Colonel Gerald F. Sewell, U.S. Army, writes in his article, Emotional Intelligence and the Army Leadership Requirements Model[5] highlighting the need for U.S. Army officers to develop ‘emotional intelligence’.
In his Relationship Management, Sewell lists attributes =
Inspirational Leadership – Leads by Example
Influence – Extends influence – Leads Others – Communicates
Developing Others – Develops Leaders
Catalyst for Change – Creates a Positive Environment
Conflict Management – Interpersonal Tact – Sound Judgment
Teamwork-collaboration – Gets Results.
No domineer leadership is listed here. Alas, perhaps I have ‘imitated’ the wrong leaders.
Epilogue –
Pale kaua no ko lākou mau ʻuhane – Armor for their souls, was a term coined by DLGP02 Jenny Dooley in her blogpost concerning Dr. Marc LiVecche’s book, The Good Kill: Just War and Moral Injury.[6] The armor is meant for our young sons and daughters who enter military service.
Interesting enough my Hungarian son’s middle name is Kekoa, “The Warrior.” He is an E5, Sergeant in Grafenwoehr, Germany. Arriving just last December his unit will join with Finnish forces to assist them on defending the Finnish/Russian Border. A young man and a young Christian, I pray that he has both physical armor to protect him from the projectiles of war, and spiritual armor to protect him the flaming arrows of the evil one. As Jennifer Vernam highlights, the members of the Body of Christ (especially those of the warrior class) have a need for “Armor for the Soul” as much as the Shepherds who lead them.
[1] J. R. Woodward, David Fitch, and Amos Yong, The Scandal of Leadership: Unmasking the Powers of Domination in the Church (100 Movements Publishing, 2023).
[2] Poole, Eve. Leadersmithing: Revealing the Trade Secrets of Leadership. Bloomsbury Business, 2017.
[3] J. R. Woodward, David Fitch, and Amos Yong, The Scandal of Leadership: Unmasking the Powers of Domination in the Church (100 Movements Publishing, 2023), 3.
[4] U.S. Army Field Manual (FM) 6-22, Army Leadership (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office [GPO], October 2006.), 1-2
[5] Sewell, Gerald F. “Emotional Intelligence in Leadership.” U.S. Army Combined Arms Center, November-December 2009. https://usacac.army.mil/sites/default/files/documents/cace/DCL/DCL_SewellEngNovDec09.pdf.
[6] LiVecche, Marc. The Good Kill: Just War and Moral Injury. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2021.
, NY: Oxford University Press, 2021.
About the Author
Russell Chun
interlinkt.org is now ready for your Refugee Resettlement needs. 15 tasks, languages ESL plans coming4 responses to “Pale kaua no ko lākou mau ʻuhane – Armor for their Souls”
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Since you brought up the fact that we are asked to connect our reading syntopically with other reading, your post made me think of two other authors. Martin Luther and Simon Walker.
You referenced Woodward, stating, “Leaders are imitators, but there is a subtle competition for their souls.” Knowing that there are competitors for the heart’s affections, Luther urges his readers to put their hope in God in his commentary on the first commandment, from the Book of Concord: “If your faith and trust be right, then is your god also true; and, on the other hand, if your trust be false and wrong, then you have not the true God; for these two belong together, faith and God. That now, I say, upon which you set your heart and put your trust is properly your god.” He goes on to write: “let not your heart cleave to or rest in any other (than the true God)…”
Second, I thought of Simon Walker’s Leading with Nothing to Lose: Training in the Exercise of Power when you cited David Beavis’s warning for young pastors who are tempted to find their identity outside of God’s family. Walker writes, “The undefended leader is the one whose needs are met through an unconditional attachment to an Other, in which she finds identity, belonging and affection.” (Simon P. Walker, Leading with Nothing to Lose: Training in the Exercise of Power, Carlisle, CA: Piquant Editions Ltd, 2007), Kindle Version, location 2392 of 2753).
Great post, Russell.
Thanks for you kind words.
Also thanks for reminding me of Walker’s comments. I have to admit some of the leadership books we have read are becoming a soup in my brain. The different/thoughts and ideas are swirling around!
At some point I am going to have to review all the great references we have covered.
Selah…
Hi Russell,
Your friend Marc LiVecche coined the term “Armor for their souls” on page 190 of his book. It was a powerful image for me. I appreciate how you have unpacked the military version of domineering leadership and even the necessity of it in times of battle and war. I keep thinking of Simon Walker’s leadership strategies, particularly the commanding and pace-setting strategies that serve a purpose for specific times and situations. You quoted the Field Manual, “Army leadership is “the process of influencing people by providing purpose, direction, and motivation while operating to accomplish the mission and improve the organization.” This feels like another nuanced leadership strategy, similar to transpersonal leadership described by Annabel Beerel. How does this strategy open up space for imitating Christ within the armed services?
Hi Jenney,
Thanks for pointing our LiVecche’s p.90 comment.
The growing distancing of Americans from religion will of course impact the presence of Christ in the U.S. Army.
Young soldiers are a product of their pre Army environment so I don’t expect that faith will have an initial impact in their attitudes. During a war time period, there may be a turning to faith, but that remains to be seen.
Spiritual Armor needs to start BEFORE they enter the military. However, most churches, to include mine have no plan for it.
Thanks for asking.
Selah…