Leadership

(From Voice magazine, Jan/Feb 2016.)

By Kenneth O. Gangel

What Is a Toxic Leader?

A vast percentage of leadership books in both the secular and religious domains deal with how to move from average to good or good to great in your own leadership, or how to help other people on your team do just that. The same analysis holds true in peri­odical literature, both journals and magazines. That’s why Jean Lipman-Blumen’s book hit the market with a crash in 2004. The title alone suggests, one could say, an “alluring” analysis of something we have swept into the corner and refused to look at: The Allure of Toxic Leaders: Why We Follow Destructive Bosses and Corrupt Politicians—and How We Can Survive Them.

Defective Christian leaders rarely get their pictures in Time or Newsweek for defrauding employees or driving their ministries into bank­ruptcy, but make no mistake about it, we have toxic leaders in our midst. Lipman-Blumen won­ders why people follow such leaders and decides they do so because of a desire for dependence, a need to play a more crucial role in the organiza­tion, and just plain fear.

Republished, with permission, from Voice magazine, Mar/Apr 2013.

Reprinted with permission from As I See It, which is available free by writing to the editor at [email protected]. Read the series so far.

Chapter Six: Officers in the Synagogue and the Church

Officers in the Synagogue

The classes of officers in the synagogue as reported in the NT are three in number, namely, “rulers of the synagogue,” “elders,” and “attendants.” The offices as related in the Mishnah include these three, but also others.

Ruler of the Synagogue

The Gospels mention two men who are identified as “ruler of the synagogue” (archisunagogos): Jairus (Mark 5:22, 35, 36, 38; Luke 8:49) and an unnamed individual who rebuked Jesus for healing on the Sabbath. Mark calls Jairus archisunagogos four times, while Luke does so once; Matthew in his parallel account does not do so at all. When first introducing Jairus, Luke does use the virtually identical term “ruler of the synagogue” (archon tes sunagoges, 8:41) which is simply the same Greek elements not combined into a compound word. Matthew refers to him simply as “ruler” (archon, Matthew 9:19, 23), making no specific mention of any connection to the synagogue. It is of note that Mark identifies Jairus as “one of the rulers of the synagogue” (Mark 5:22), which suggests or at least allows for a plurality of such rulers within a single congregation.

From Paraklesis, a resource of Baptist Bible Seminary (Spring, 2013). Used by permission.

All of us have witnessed those who seem to be “born leaders.” They appear to be naturally gifted to go in front and forge the way for others. Taking a group of people to a necessary and better destination seems easy for them.

They always seem to do well in leading. Some of us who aspire to lead and for whom things have not come so easily have looked at such people with a little bit of jealousy.

Three approaches to training leaders

Is there any hope for the rest of us? Is it possible for those who are not naturally gifted in leadership to be taught how to be leaders?

The first suggested answer is that not everyone can be a leader. Under this belief, no training would be necessary. All that is needed is for the circumstances to supply a need for the inherent leadership qualities of an individual to blossom. One example might be President Abraham Lincoln, whose great leadership presented itself to history because of the occasion of the American Civil War.