While driving to one of my parishes to say Mass the other day, I passed a truck going the other direction and could not help but notice the driver. She was a woman of about 25 or 30 years old and had two children with her. At least those were the ones I saw, there may have been more in the back seat. I was able to see the two quite well because they were in the front seat with her. Let me be even more specific. They were physically, in the same front seat with the woman who was driving. The one child was about a year old and she was holding that one with her left arm. The other child was about two years old and she was apparently standing on the center console with her arms around the woman's neck.
I suppose it is possible that there is a valid explanation as to why this was necessary, but I have yet to be able to come up with one. I am going to give her the benefit of the doubt and presume that she believed that she was keeping her children safe and that her actions were protecting them. What a vivid picture that is of what leadership has become today (clergy, parents, politicians, etc.). For someone who believed the same as what I am presuming of that woman, seat belts might seem to "too restrictive" and an "overreaction".
As Catholics, we all understand the importance and the need for leaders -- good leaders, that is. The problem, of course, is that there are so few good leaders and a large percentage of those in leadership positions today are not just "bad leaders" they are "horrible leaders". I am not as familiar with other countries, but political leaders in America are...well...ummmm...embarrassing. Yes, I know, that is a bit too vague. Maybe the phrase, "astronomically incompetent and childish" would be more clear (both liberals and conservatives)? I know that a lot of attention gets thrown at bad leadership in the Catholic Church these days (and we certainly do have a large collection of bad leaders), but it is not just in one area that this has occurred.
Examples of good leaders in any field are few and far between. This is why leaders are generally not trusted today. In the Church (especially here in America) we seem to have deepened that lack of trust so far that it seems impossible to restore it. It is possible, but not if we continue to practice the same kind of leadership that got us into this problem. Leaders have to change, and that means that their hearts have to change.
The horrendous moral compromise that took place over the span of the 20th century was not created "ex nihilo". It was the result mostly of the (so-called) Enlightenment of the 18th century (which was itself the necessary result of the Protestant apostasy of the 16th century). The more that people rebelled against authority and sought to recreate it in their own image, the more authority became corrupted. We went from the medieval concept of authority (under God, and for the sake of the people, not the leader himself) to a modern concept of authority (under no one, for the sake of getting what I want). This is true of vast numbers of politicians, clergy, and parents today.
Going back to my original illustration at the beginning, leaders are racing down the highway with the presumption that they are doing what is good and right for their people, yet all the while they are putting those who are under their care at great risk. Leading people is much more than just knowing what is supposed to happen and then making it happen. The motivation behind leadership is crucial. It is certainly difficult to maintain a godly attitude in any leadership position (especially when those under one's care are malcontents). The Lord, however, calls us to holiness and service. For leaders that means that they are supposed to be doing their job for the glory of God and for the sake of the people. Selfishness and personal pride should never come into the picture.
I once heard someone say that if a leader likes being a leader, then he is doing it only for himself. That may be a bit exaggerated, but only a bit. As a leader in the Church and in my home, there are many days when I do not like being a leader -- helping those who are hurting, guiding the confused, juggling difficult schedules; it all can weigh down on you. If I were to imagine that I am called to lead for my own sake, and I come to find that I do not enjoy what I am doing, then I will manipulate things until the circumstances are pleasing to me. If, however, I know that I am called to lead for the sake of others, then my personal comfort is not going to be the primary factor in the decisions I make. In fact, I should be willing to surrender my personal comfort regularly for the sake of others.
Does it take longer to lead rightly? Yes, it often does. Do we have to have a greater knowledge and experience in order to lead rightly? Yes, we do. Is there a personal and spiritual dimension to godly leadership? Absolutely. Those who approach leadership humbly and with a servant's heart, will find that the Lord can easily assist them by guiding their daily actions. Those who approach leadership for their own good (especially those who try to claim it is for the good of others when it is not) are blocking out the Lord and preventing the Holy Spirit from granting them wisdom. Governmental leader, business leader, Church leader, or home leader; let us pray for them all, and ask the Lord to inspire penitence and restoration so that leaders can once again be trusted.
