Margaret Marcuson addresses leadership in congregations in her book, Leaders who Last, starting with the claim that to sustain leadership we must stop controlling others, and start the difficult task of managing ourselves (3). She continues in a similar fashion, reminding us that pastoral ministry does only bring to us the peace of mind we enter the ministry with in the first place (6).
She warns us that superheroes leave a vacuum (11), organizations look for balance (12), overfunctioning is considered good ministry (14) and if we don’t overfunction and take on the responsibility of caring for all, we might be considered cold, unfeeling, unchristian, and even unethical (18).
She quotes someone talking about communities being led, not driven (17). To lead we should be aware (38) of the situation we are in, both stories from our setting (30) and our own (ch. 4). The awareness also applies to the triangles we are part of and tend to create (48). Marcuson states: “Learning to see triangles is the best stress-management tool around” (48). Marcuson goes back to responsibility and the fact that we can only be responsible for our part of the triangle (54). When addressing anxiety, Marcuson talks about the danger of secrets (62).
When addressing being a leader, a quote from Parker Palmer sums it up:
Vocation does not come from a voice ‘out there’ calling me to become something I am not. It comes from a voice ‘in here’ calling me to be the person I was born to be, to fulfill the original selfhood given me at birth by God. (71).
Leadership is to know where you want to go, and be able to state it, but at the same time holding the essential outcome lightly. The question becomes whether that is possible, are we hardwired to be outcome driven? (74-75) Another issue here is the ability to shift the vision, if the outcome is not the one we expected (104).
The image that comes to my mind when reading page 76, is the difference between and Icelandic “smali” (e. gatherer) and a shepard (at least in John). Marcuson talks about the difference between inviting and pursuing (80).
She uses “convergent” and “divergent” to separate between technical issues and the essential human problem that can not be solved, only lived out (82-83).
In Marcuson’s book it all comes down to staying in relationships, with one another and with God. Part of being in a relationship is being intentional in getting to know the other.
Thanks so much for writing about my book. I’d really like to know more about the Icelandic “smali” and the “shepherd” in John, and how you see the difference.
The image of the shepherd in John is of the one who goes ahead and the sheep follow him, because they know his voice. (John 10.3)
The Icelandic “smali” uses dogs to gather the sheep, forcing the sheep to move in the direction they are supposed to go. The “smali” stays behind the herd, shouting, using the dogs as threats to keep the group on track.
The story of the Good Shepherd, played out by seven farm boys in Iceland, does not portray a very favorable image of Jesus Christ.
I’m not sure you are being entirely fair to Icelandic shepherds Halldor. Some of them even surpass the shepherd in John in their service and humility. Benedikt the protagonist of Gunnar Gunnarsson’s The Good Sheperd is of course the shepherd in question:
The difference between Benedikt and the shepherd in John is of course that Benedikt risks his life to save sheep which are not his own. He does not need to own the herd to care for it:
Quotations from Gunnar Gunnarsson: The Good Shepherd. Transl. Kenneth C. Kaufman. The Bobbs Merrill Company 1940.
Thank you Jon. You are absolutely right that in Icelandic literature it is possible to find all kinds of variations of the shepherd in John 10. Bjartur’s search for his lamb in Independent People, is another one. Though of course, Halldor Laxness’ sarcastic realism sounds quite different from Gunnar’s writing.
Being a descendant of sheep farmers my self, I was not trying to address the mindset of the “smali,” only his/hers leadership practices in moving the herd from one place to the other.