Exploring Possibilities for

Leadership in the Lasallian

Ministerial Community

PART 1

As he became aware, by God’s grace, of the human and spiritual distress of the

children of the artisans and the poor, John Baptist de La Salle devoted himself

to forming schoolmasters totally dedicated to teaching and to Christian education. He brought these teachers

together in a community and subsequently founded with them the

Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. . . . The purpose of this Institute

is to give a human and Christian education to the young, especially the

poor, according to the ministry which the Church entrusted to it. - The Rule 1,3

To give a human and Christian education,

especially in schools,

with the service of the poor as a priority,

in order to evangelize and catechize,

to promote peace and justice,

accomplished together as

a “shared mission.”

From their beginnings, the Brothers of the Christian Schools have regarded their work as a collaborative ministry. Their vow of association binds them to God and to one another for the educational service of youth and the poor. In the Lasallian experience, mission generates bonds of mutuality and interdependence. Mission leads to communion and communion is for mission.

What has changed is the ever-increasing role played

by lay partners in the mission of the Institute.

In the face of the many challenges in today’s world, it is no longer conceivable that

the Brothers can guarantee by themselves the continuation and vitality of the Lasallian

mission. Thus, the worldwide Institute today often speaks of

Lasallian mission as a “shared mission.”

The Brothers, original “owners” of the mission . . .

. . . share their mission with the lay faculty and staff.

This is a paternalistic understanding of shared mission.

HOW DO WE

UNDERSTAND

“SHARED MISSION”

TODAY ?

In the light of “shared mission”, Brothers accept that there is no task exclusive to them and that they have a duty to believe in and support their lay partners in living out the vocation and

mission of the Lasallian educator; for lay partners, sharing the mission means owning the mission as theirs and contributing

as far as they are able to its unfolding.

CO - RESPONSIBLECO - RESPONSIBLE

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Characteristics of a Ministerial Community

• Witness to Shared Vision and Values

• Mutual Concern and Solidarity

• Orientation to Service

MINISTERIAL COMMUNITY

• Ministers of Faith

• Builders of Communion

• Responsive Educators

That’s what we’re hear to talk about,

right?

Let’s pause here for some reflection. Please

get your pens ready.

• Recall your most satisfying experience of working together with others in a group. What made this experience satisfying for you and for other members?

• Who was the group’s official or unofficial leader? How would you describe the group leader’s relationship to the members?

• What can be learned about leadership from this experience?

PART 2

• Leadership is a Personality TRAIT Insight: Effective leaders have personal qualities that contribute to their success in the role.

• Leadership is a Relationship btw. LEADER & FOLLOWER Insight: Effective leaders respond to the level of maturity of their followers. Leadership is situational.

James & Evelyn Whitehead

• Leadership is a Relationship btw. LEADER & GROUP Insight: Effective leaders insure that groups deal with both internal (belonging/group maintenance) and external (performance) tasks.

• Leadership is a PROCESS OF GROUP INTERACTION Insight: Leadership is a system of relationships through which a group acts effectively. Effective leaders nurture the larger network of relationships through which groups act effectively.

Insight: Effective leaders have personal qualities that contribute to their success in the role.

Limitation: While personality traits are important, research does not support the idea that there are distinct “leadership traits” that guarantee effectiveness. This view neglects the importance of the setting on the leader’s effectiveness.

Insight: Effective leaders respond to the maturity of their followers. Leadership is situational.

Limitation: The relationships assumed to be important are the ones that go out from the designated leader like spokes from the hub at the center of a wheel. Leadership is seen exclusively as the set of relationships established by the person in charge.

Insight: Effective leaders insure that groups deal with

both internal (group maintenance) and external

(performance) tasks. This is often spoken of as striking a

balance between being “people oriented” and being

“task oriented.”

Limitations: The leader is seen as someone

“outside” or “above” others in the group,

helping it to deal with its tasks. “Leader” and

“group” seem like two separate, autonomous

entities.

Insight: Leadership is a system of relationships through which a group acts effectively. Leading takes place when group members deal with one another in ways that meet the group’s needs and contribute to its goals. Effective leaders nurture the larger network of relationships through which the group cares for itself and pursues its goals.

Leading is an ongoing group process, unfolding in the give-and-take of relationships in the group. It may be initiated by designated leaders or undertaken by other members as well.

To understand this model, we need to see the group as a living, self-organizing system constituted by mutual, interdependent relationships. When there is a change in one relationship, all other relationships are affected. A group is like a body whose parts must interact harmoniously for its inner coordination and external effectiveness.

Wheatley’s 4 Basic Principles of Self-Organization and Change

• A living system forms itself as it recognizes shared interests.

•For significant change to occur, there must be a change in

meaning and vision.

• Change cannot be imposed. Every living system is free to choose whether it will

change or not.

•Living systems contain their own solutions. To create a healthier

system, connect it to more of itself.

Designated leaders are not “above” the group, but partners who see their work as a service to the group and its mission.

You cannot direct a group into perfection; you can only

relate to members and engage them in such a way that they want to do perfect

work. For this to happen, they need to believe in the vision strongly enough to

actively commit themselves to realizing it and trust each other enough to collaborate

and share their gifts.

Leading activities include all interactions that clarify vision

and identity, energize the group’s life, reinforce

commitment, mobilize its resources to deal with change. Leading can be initiated by a

formal leader or by any member of the group.

As the designated leader, the administrator seeks to nurture the relationships and create the conditions which allow persons to discover and utilize their gifts and charisms freely and creatively for the sake of the common mission.

The administrator seeks to empower, guide and support the members of the group as they seek to address the group’s internal and external goals effectively.

When we fail to see leadership as a process of group interaction, we assume that it is the leader’s

job to supply what is needed to make the organization work.

This places an inordinate burden on the administrator to make things

happen and get results. It also fosters a sense of dependence and passivity on the part of the

group members.The job of the leader is to foster the relationships, atmosphere and conditions that encourage group ownership, self-direction, initiative, cooperation and creativity.

In De La Salle’s own life, we see him moving from a model of leadership that is

“leader-centered”and paternalistic, to a model of leadership which empowers the

community to act effectively to address its internal and external goals.

He began his ministerial journey as an “outsider”, as the teachers’ rich benefactor

and father-figure, and ended up as their partner and brother.

Much of his struggle as a leader was spent trying to empower the group to take charge of its own destiny. This meant helping them

to grow professionally and spiritually, to understand the full significance of their

work, to recognize the Spirit as the source of true power, and to collaborate together for

the mission entrusted to them by God.

• Which model of leadership prevails in your organization?

• Which model do you usually assume in your work?

• What advantages/disadvantages do you see arising from the model of leadership as

group interaction?

• What challenges for your group do you see arising from the model of leading as

group interaction?