Preside in order to promote the good of those whom you govern...Provide rather than dominate. ~Bernard of Clairvaux, In Consideration
In the summer of 2023, a team of Episcopal Church staff, volunteers and consultants hosted a four~day~long festival in Baltimore called “It’s All About Love.” Each night, after the evening revival service, our team would gather in a meeting room to review the notes and plans for the next day, tackling all the things done and left undone, often working late into the night. The second night of the event, perhaps because we were our most exhausted selves, no one remembered to order dinner. Instead, we emptied our hotel mini~fridges and snack stashes in a loaves~and~fishes moment.
The Rev. Marna Franson, serving as a chaplain to the team, spent most of that evening figuring out how to feed us with our limited supplies. For several hours, as we prayed, reviewed schedules and triaged issues that had cropped up, she served us. Paper plates with scoopfuls of cheese spread onto kettle chips, apples sliced with a pocketknife and covered in peanut butter, heated~up Chinese leftovers and bowls of chocolate~covered peanuts continued to appear on the table, nourishing and sustaining us. That night, Marna knew what Jesus knew at the Last Supper: meaningful leadership and systematic change are taxing work. To do it well, we must be nourished and fortified.
The work we are called to as Christ~followers is the same work Jesus asked of the twelve disciples, and it requires collaborative, just and reconciling leadership. It calls for leaders willing to do what it takes to nourish people spiritually and physically, providing, not dominating. We need leaders who prioritize being vulnerable and clear with their people instead of controlling and micromanaging. In the Way of Jesus, we look for leaders who are willing to serve all, who make praying and breaking bread together a priority, and who, in every decision they make, seek the flourishing of all.
For Reflection
Most of us lead in some capacity. We lead in our households, at church, in the workplace and in the public square. How does this picture of leadership challenge or encourage your practice?
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