{"id":18624,"date":"2018-09-05T21:39:09","date_gmt":"2018-09-06T04:39:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dminlgp\/?p=18624"},"modified":"2018-09-05T21:39:09","modified_gmt":"2018-09-06T04:39:09","slug":"the-first-egalitarian-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/the-first-egalitarian-leader\/","title":{"rendered":"The First Egalitarian Leader"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>As I read the Theology of Leadership journal I was immediately drawn to the section called Saint and Leader? The Example of St. Francis of Assisi<\/em> by Nathan Harter. I\u2019m sure I\u2019m not the only one who was drawn to this part of the journal due to the fact that St. Francis has become one of the most often quoted people in Christendom. I enjoyed learning more about this mysterious character and loved the nature and authenticity the author brought out about him. Learning that he was brought up to fear and be repulsed by lepers only to read how he allowed God to spontaneously transform him was inspiring. As he traveled along the road\u2026\u201cWith characteristic impulsivity, he leapt from his horse and ran to the leper, embracing him. In that moment, he adopted a fresh perspective toward the marginalized the sick, the hideous, and the dangerous. His heart was opened once he faced his fear. Forever after, he embraced the ideal of the universal fraternity of all creation. Care for lepers would become a central part of his life\u2019s work.\u201d[1]<\/a> Maybe my social work background is what draws me to St. Francis with how he embraced the marginalized of society. I also think this is the reason why so many are drawn to him and his story, because he followed the model of Jesus in his attitude towards the outcasts of society.<\/p>\n

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It was also obvious that he was an extremely \u201creal\u201d person and one who was not afraid to make a statement while doing what he felt was the right thing to do. He was a normal person who didn\u2019t always follow the rules and was not afraid to face the consequences of his actions. I had to chuckle when I read the following statement of what he did in the courtroom after being accused of theft by his father. \u201cAt the hearing where he was to be tried, he confessed to the theft, reimbursed his father fully, and then in a dramatic gesture of the sort that made him interesting to know, he undressed right there in the courtroom, piling up his fine clothes for his father to reclaim. Nearly naked on a cold day, he turned and walked out of town, into the woods, and lived as a hermit at the site of that ruined church, which he started rebuilding now with his own bare hands.\u201d[2]<\/a> What an \u201cinteresting man to know\u201d indeed. It seems like many of the significant figures in history had some type of eccentric quality to them that caused others to take notice and pay attention to what they were passionate about. Obviously, St. Francis was a very passionate man who did not care about what others thought of him as he devoted his life to loving the marginalized of society. Like Mother Teresa, he became famous for his undying devotion to his calling. It appears that both St. Francis and Mother Teresa believed the following quote by her: \u201cThe most terrible poverty is loneliness, and the feeling of being unloved.\u201d[3]<\/a> I would say they both loved well.<\/p>\n

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The millennials would have loved St. Francis, since he seemed to buck many aspects of traditional society and lived an authentic life. \u201cHis quest for authenticity resonates with young people of every generation increasingly alienated by the fruits of the Industrial Revolution. Here was someone who struggled to find his place in the world and found it by turning his back on conventional alternatives.\u201d[4]<\/a> I wish I had more guts to explore unconventional ways to live the calling God has placed on my life. Society tends to notice and pay more attention to those who are not afraid to rock the boat a little and step out of their comfort zone. At the end of the day, no matter what crazy methods we use, \u201cpeople don’t care how much we know until they know how much we care\u201d[5]<\/a><\/p>\n

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Another aspect of St. Francis that particularly sparked my attention was his attitude towards women. \u201cHis respect for the vocation of women – largely because of the leadership of the lady Clare, a woman of rank and courage – continues to inspire those who struggle to champion the status of women, especially within the church.\u201d[6]<\/a> He was ahead of his time when it came to his views on women in leadership, and he set a beautiful example of what it means to be a champion for the equal treatment of women. This is inspiring to me since my area of research is all about ways to advocate for gender-balanced leadership and inspiring powerful men to champion women leaders. Lady Clare was eighteen years old when she met St. Francis after one of his sermons, and she claims this changed the course of her life forever.[7]<\/a> Not only did St. Francis have a huge influence on Clare, but it appears that Lady Clare also had a significant influence on St. Francis and his convictions about the proper place of women.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPerhaps the most powerful lesson from the life of Francis of Assisi is that he chose to lead more by example than by his words. Followers are quick to detect a hypocrite. And a Christian whose actions undermine his or her attempts at leadership threatens not only that leadership but also the cause for which they claim to lead. People will be quicker to forgive an error than a lie. Francis exemplified this lesson.\u201d[8]<\/a> One of the most famous quotes attributed to St. Francis of Assisi has been adapted from its original form to read\u2026\u201cPreach the Gospel at all times, when necessary use words.\u201d The closest quote actually recorded by him to communicate this idea is\u2026\u201cIt is no use walking anywhere to preach unless our walking is our preaching.\u201d[9]<\/a> Either way, the leadership principle of leading by example should need very few words and be exemplified by every great leader.
\n_______________________________<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [1] Nathan Harter, \u201cSaint and Leader? The Example of St. Francis of Assisi\u201d, Theology of Leadership Journal<\/em> 1, no. 1 (2018): 25.<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [2] Ibid., 25.<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [3] https:\/\/www.goalcast.com\/2017\/04\/10\/top-20-most-inspiring-mother-teresa-quotes\/<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [4] Nathan Harter, \u201cSaint and Leader? The Example of St. Francis of Assisi\u201d, Theology of Leadership Journal<\/em> 1, no. 1 (2018): 29.<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [5] https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/quotes\/34690-people-don-t-care-how-much-you-know-until-they-know<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [6] Nathan Harter, \u201cSaint and Leader? The Example of St. Francis of Assisi\u201d, Theology of Leadership Journal<\/em> 1, no. 1 (2018): 30.<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [7] http:\/\/www.ewtn.com\/library\/mary\/clara.htm<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [8] Nathan Harter, \u201cSaint and Leader? The Example of St. Francis of Assisi\u201d, Theology of Leadership Journal<\/em> 1, no. 1 (2018): 33.<\/p>\n

<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [9] https:\/\/beardedgospelmen.wordpress.com\/2013\/10\/04\/bearded-gospel-history-francis-of-assisi\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As I read the Theology of Leadership journal I was immediately drawn to the section called Saint and Leader? The Example of St. Francis of Assisi by Nathan Harter. I\u2019m sure I\u2019m not the only one who was drawn to this part of the journal due to the fact that St. Francis has become one […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":95,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2,1326],"class_list":["post-18624","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-dminlgp","tag-theologyofleadership","cohort-lgp8"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18624","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/95"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18624"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18624\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18626,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18624\/revisions\/18626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18624"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18624"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18624"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}