Confusion of leadership and administration, as if they were synonyms, exacerbates a sense of crisis in the Catholic Church today. I believe that leadership has to do with excellence and with passionate and exemplary performance of a given role or task. Thus, leadership may be found in any profession or vocation within the Church, including those of teachers, scholars, writers, pastoral ministers, chaplains, whether they are celibate or married, men or women.
When we think about leadership, I suggest that it will be helpful to lower our expectations of administrators, not so much because of failures of bishops regarding sexual abuse cases or other matters, but because it is always unrealistic and inappropriate to expect administrators to carry, alone, the burden of leadership. This is as true for superiors in religious orders as it is for diocesan hierarchies, and for other levels and instances of administration, such as in Catholic schools, colleges, universities. It is extraordinarily wasteful of the talents of a broad range of people, when we proceed as if leadership could only exist ex officio, as if conferral of office created a leader, as if leadership were non-existent apart from administrative titles. Conferral of office may create an administrator; it does not create a leader. Archbishop Rembert Weakland, O.S.B., in his autobiography, "A Pilgrim in a Pilgrim Church," points out that "he learned firsthand that exercising leadership was not the same as having power, and that leadership cannot be given to one; it must be earned."
If I may add a personal note: Though I have some administrative experience, I have not held a full-time administrative post. I have never sought such a position because I believe that I am called to exercise leadership in other ways, ways at least as valuable for the service of the people of God. I believe that in my attitude toward administrative positions I am inspired by the founder of the Jesuits, Ignatius of Loyola. Perhaps one of the reasons why Ignatius is Saint Ignatius is his resolute insistence that Jesuits not seek appointment to offices such as bishop or pastor. Ignatius wanted Jesuits to avoid even the appearance of seeking after power; they were to exercise their ministry gratis, and to put helping others ahead of helping themselves to grow in riches and power and privileges.
Yet there have been and are some exemplary bishops. And St. Ignatius is not the only saint, and Rembert Weakland is not the only bishop, able to help us to see more clearly that leadership and administration are not synonyms. One bishop who "earned" the role of a leader, as Weakland would say, was Francis de Sales (1567-1622). The Council of Trent (1545-63) had identified preaching as the first duty of bishops -- that is, a pastoral rather than administrative task as the most important episcopal obligation. De Sales understood this very well and gained a wide reputation as an exemplary preacher. But his world-wide renown is due above all to his published writings, especially his book "Introduction to the Devout Life." The first edition appeared, in French, in 1609. Soon there were many editions and translations, and it has been in print ever since. It was written for lay people, and it has as its thesis the practical possibilities for persons of every walk of life to live an exemplary Christian life. I would argue that nowhere was Francis a more effective leader than through the writing of this book. When Vatican II (1962-65) honored and promoted the vocation of the laity, it helped to recover a tradition of valuing lay vocations and leadership, a tradition in which St. Francis de Sales played a major role, some four centuries ago.
De Sales is also remembered for his support for St. Jane de Chantal and her creation of a new religious order for women, the Visitation, an order intended to be more open to the world than cloistered orders had been. It was also be less penitential, in an era when many convents equated holiness with extremes of bodily mortification. Francis appreciated the talents of women and he demonstrated more than a little willingness to go the extra mile to help them put those talents to use, even though there were other bishops that criticized him and what they saw as his dangerous and unsuitable innovations.
Savoy, a small state in the Alps and in the shadow of Geneva, at the crossroads of France and Italy, was home for Francis de Sales. Religious and political tensions were many in his time. Francis was a voice for gentleness in an age when most voices were shrill and warfare, verbal and much worse, was never far off. One of his disciples was Jean-Pierre Camus (1584-1652), bishop in the neighboring diocese of Belley. Camus published more than 250 (250!) books in his lifetime, including volumes of his sermons, works of devotion and even novels. He could be called the Andrew Greeley of the 17th century. After 20 years as bishop, Camus resigned from his diocese in order to devote even more time to writing and publishing. He did not cling to administration, but had the clarity of vision and the freedom to see that he could do more good -- could be more of a leader -- as a writer than as an administrator.
To look for credible, viable, meaningful leadership among administrators only is to put on severely restrictive blinders and to miss the good news of competent, abundant leaders all around us. We need but to open our eyes and recognize them.
Fr. Thomas Worcester, S.J., Professor of History at the College of the Holy Cross, is the author of 'Seventeenth-Century Cultural Discourse: France and the Preaching of Bishop Camus' (1997 print edition; 2011 electronic version), and co-editor (with James Corkery, S.J.) of 'The Papacy since 1500: From Italian Prince to Universal Pastor' (2010).
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Bishops are appointed not for leadership or administration, but for politics.
All these well known writers, are of course read by most intellectuals but the whole idea of leadership in a Christian Hierarchial sense, should be done by what Jesus Christ said and did. Which of course they do not do.
He misses the Spiritual point. The point he gives is good, in the sense of Natural leadership but it is not necessarily guided by the Holy Spirit as is most Christian Spirituality guided.
Are we talking about the same religion that hides molestation cases? The same religion that has mixed politics and religion. Aren't they supposed to be supporting a theocracy?
Cathars, Gnostics, witches, gays, muslims, protestants-- all have felt the deep love and leadership of the Catholic church.
But for a REALLY good view of the moral leadership of the Catholic church, we need only look here: http://www.bostoncatholic.org/Offices-And-Services/Office-Detail.aspx?id=21314&pid=21606 .
This is a list of the priests in the BOSTON DIOSCESE ALONE who were involved in the child molestation problems of the BOSTON DIOSCESE ALONE. I gave up counting after 100. Assuming that there isn't something in the Boston water that turns holy, celibate men into child molesters, and extrapolate that tochurches just in the US, and Houston (and every other city) we have a problem
The vast majority of Catholics are like the helpless passengers on board the Titanic. Some may think they are high class, because they are not confined to the lower decks. But the only lucky ones are the ones who GET OFF THAT SHIP while you still can. See why at http://JesusWouldBeFurious.Org/,
Great article! A.M.D.G.!
If you actually have to ask, the answer is obviously, "No."
"......he was referring to people who exercise real leadership, not merely people who hold an office."
No he wasn't.
Within the Catholic church, the real issue is "leadership" versus "authority." Authority, not administration.
There is abundant leadership within the Catholic church. Most of the time, it is not found among those who wield authority - the diocesan priests, monsignors, bishops, and diocesan administrators. Most of the time it is found among the laity and members of religious communities (nuns, brothers, religious priests).
The CRISIS in the Catholic church is not that leadership is in short supply. The crisis is that authentic leadership is almost entirely divorced from authority. Almost every "ill" that plagues the church can be traced to the fact that its leaders have no support from those in authority, and those in authority demonstrate no leadership of any kind.
They are content to instead merely exercise their authority and impose their will.
And the mortal who says he or she will lead others to that truth, and teach that truth, is even less trustworthy.
Sorry but you're talking to the wrong person here.
Had I been a part of the Catholic Church and witnessed such abuses, I would have taken it as far as I could by bypassing the upper echelons of the church and took it to the police because you see Mr Worcester, I live by the laws of our land and the church, no matter how powerful, is not exempt from that law. My allegiance is to the law and the poor wretches who suffered over many years at the hands of nothing more than sadists and perverts.
So to answer your question, NO, anyone within the church who has witnessed a wrong and covered it up is NOT worthy of the term leader and should be brought to book, ALL OF THEM, for being an accessory after the fact and perverting the course of justice.
Everyone in the Catholic Church is guilty, guilty of ignoring the reports and pleas of their children, guilty of ignoring the outrageous gay conduct in seminaries, guilty of ignoring the complaints of victims...as Exiled points out: ALL OF THEM
The church hierarchy and its clergy continually demonstrate a lack of moral and ethical leadership as they fail to take fundamental steps to protect children. The church needs to: open the books, make full disclosure of those creditably accused; renounce the history of coverup and complicity, beginning with full disclosure; reach out to those crippled by clergy sexual abuse of children and make amends through support, counseling, job training.
The church hierarchy, from the top to the bottom, continues to circle the wagons and protect its own. The failure of the church hierarchy to rid its corruption condemns it to a festering cesspool of moral decay and cannot provide a foundation for leadership, respect or moral authority.
Fr. Worcester concludes by suggesting many "competent leaders all around us" and we need to merely "open our eyes and recognize them." My challenge is take leadership yourself, challenge the moral corruption, throw out those in the hierarchy who are complicit in harming children or complicit in covering up clergy child abusers. The church structure and hierarchy will not rid itself of corruption.
Leaders? Not so much.