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      Pitfalls in 'Biblical' leadership

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          Abstract

          This article is about the pitfalls involved in writing a Christian handbook on leadership. By analysing some elements of the Rule of Benedict it is argued that it is impossible to write such a handbook without using non-Biblical sources. Moreover, there are typical pitfalls when authors attempt to develop a pure Biblical leadership theory. The first pitfall is typical of Christians representing Niebuhr's type of 'Christ against Culture'. As early as 1951, Niebuhr claimed that in the field of leadership in particular the radical exclusive Christians reintroduced rules from non-Christian cultures. Examples from the last decade support Niebuhr's observation. The second pitfall, referred to as reconstruction, is typical of those authors who are open to secular sources but who seek to give Biblical evidence for their leadership theory. This pitfall is illustrated by analysing the process in which the secular concepts of transforming leadership and vision statements found their way into evangelical books on Christian leadership. Reconstruction typically consists of four steps: Perception (a secular model of leadership becomes popular), Acceptance (this model is examined and accepted for the context of the church) Assimilation (it is claimed that leaders in the Bible worked exactly as described in the model, books are written about Biblical leadership, exemplifying the model. The secular source becomes obsolete.) and Standardisation (this model of leadership is declared to be the Biblical norm for every Christian leader). I argue that step 3 is at least problematic and step 4 is a fatal error.

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          Most cited references27

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          Leadership

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            Christ and Culture

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              Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture

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                Author and article information

                Journal
                vee
                Verbum et Ecclesia
                Verbum Eccles. (Online)
                Centre for Ministerial Development of the Dutch Reformed Church (Exelsus) - University of Pretoria (Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa )
                1609-9982
                2074-7705
                2013
                : 34
                : 1
                : 23-29
                Affiliations
                [02] Gummersbach orgnameAkademie für christliche Führungskräfte Germany
                [01] orgnameUniversity of South Africa orgdiv1Department of Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology South Africa
                Article
                S2074-77052013000100003 S2074-7705(13)03400103
                0c9d1282-640b-4fcc-85c7-44739865de20

                This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

                History
                : 16 July 2012
                : 17 February 2012
                Page count
                Figures: 0, Tables: 0, Equations: 0, References: 26, Pages: 7
                Product

                SciELO South Africa

                Categories
                Original Research

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