Council for Health and Human Service Ministries

Word and Deed: Thoughts on Faith-Based Leadership

Five Ways to Spiritualize Your Mind – Kindling the Human Presence

Shirley Nelson"Behind the facade of one's daily life—one's role, function, and image—there is something eternal going on....To be authentic, a leader must recognize its sacredness. Leadership is not about function or bureaucracy. It is about awakening and empowering human presence."

This quote is from an article in Health Progress, the official journal of the Catholic Health Association of the United States. The article is entitled "Spirituality and Leadership," and was adapted from a talk at the 1998 Catholic Health Assembly in New Orleans given by Dr. John O'Donohue, an Irish poet and philosopher. He is also the author of Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom, as well as other books on ancient Celtic mysticism.

I provided an overview of this article two years ago in Word and Deed, but here is another reminder about this piece, which is a teaching tool in the first session of the CHHSM Diakonal Minister program. We use the article to help us recognize the empowering aspect of leadership from a faith-based perspective.

O'Donohue believes that true leadership is artistry of the heart and an awakening of the hidden sources of creativity sparked by the imagination—one of the most important faculties of thinking. In order to be a place where infinite possibilities meet and where great change occurs, he says we cannot "stay stuck in old patterns of recognition, doing the same thing day in and day out, until we build up a huge inner desperation. There is something in us that requires change if we are to be truly present."

Following are excerpts of five different ways to kindle the human presence that is necessary for leadership—may they serve as reminders of the greatness that dwells within the leader in all of us.

  • Integrity. Integrity can be seen in the person who insists on being true to his or her own nature, refusing to be obsessed with "image"...People, being clever, will quickly see through the mask of a false leader, one who lacks integrity. There is no greater witness than the integrity of individual presence.
  • Gift for Awakening Others. A real leader is also someone who can awaken life and creativity in other people...A leader has the responsibility of awakening individuals to possibilities in themselves that they cannot see.
  • Compassion. A real leader is compassionate...Jesus lived his life on what we have called "the frontier of human presence." On this frontier he met many different kinds of people—including some whom we might consider "bad company"—and to all he brought a wonderful compassion. Anyone who was in trouble could approach Jesus and be totally accepted and free of shame. The quality and poise of Jesus' dignity were such that he could return to wounded people a sense of their own worth and open the doors of possibility to them.
  • Spontaneity. Another necessary quality of leadership is spontaneity. It is lovely to find in human presence a sense of wildness. You know a group or organization is truly alive when you find a little wildness around its edges—or even at its center...The great secret of imagination is inspiration, and inspiration is the sister of spontaneity.
  • Ability to Use Failure. The corporate world is driven by its search for productivity and results. But one of the best things about the Christian tradition is that it allows the unexpected light that failure can produce to shine through. Sometimes the biggest apparent failures turn out to be precious moments of real growth and transfiguration.... A person who, in his or her work, is compassionate and respectful toward even apparent failures will find that this can be a transforming experience for everyone involved.

Shirley Nelson

Earlier Columns