Ethical Leadership Thinking

Lumen Gentium, 27 (Light of Nations)

The Church's understanding of servant leadership

perfect model in Christ Himself, who came "not to be served but to serve".

Servant leaders

Abraham - became a blessing through faithful service

Moses - led through humble obedience often interceding for his people

David - pioneered leadership as a shepherd, a model he never forgot

The ultimate expression of servant leadership

The Cross stands as the ultimate expression of servant leadership in salvation history. Divine power operates not through domination but through voluntary self-giving. Jesus' death reveals

that leadership means sacrifice for the good of others

Ethical Leadership Definition

•  the practice or values of guiding and influencing others through moral principles and values.

• involves decision making based on what is right rather than what is self-serving.

Key Elements of Ethical Leadersip

Moral Person - Character and Integrity. The foundation of ethical leadership

Moral Manager - care, core (of ethical leadership), beyond personal ethics

Stake Holder Orientation -  contemporary literature that emphasizes how ethical leaders consider interest of stakeholder

Stakeholder

the people affected by the actions of moral manager

Echo of Grace

• demonstrates how Divine Revelation and empathy connect through time, connecting ancient biblical wisdom with contemporary human experiences

Divine Revelation

• presents God’s self-disclosure to humanity through two primary channels: sacred scriptures & sacred traditions

• Revelation is not merely informational but transformational; it’s God initiation to imitate communion

• Through Revelation we understand that God wishes to make men capable of responding to Him, of knowing Him and of loving Him beyond their natural capacity

Magisterium

The Church’s teaching authority; serves as the authentic interpreter of both scripture and tradition… ensures that divine Revelation is preserved and explained, lived out faithfully across generations… through pupal encyclicals, concilar documents and episcopal teachings

Empathy

ability to understand and share the feelings of others, involves both cognitive process (understanding others' mental states) and emotional resonance (feeling others)

Philosopher Martin Buber

“Genuine empathy requires view others as complete subjects rather than objects of experience”

Social cohesion

- Empathy serves as the foundation for prosocial behavior,  and cooperation, enabling complex social structures and mutual support and assistance.

Prosocial behavior

voluntary actions that are intended to benefit others, often with little to no expectation of personal gain.

Moral Development

moral reasoning stems from emotional response to others' suffering, placing empathy at the heart of ethics

Personal growth

Empathetic encounters helps us understand others’ feelings and experiences, which broadens our perspective. This leads to a deeper and more open-minded view of the world.

Active listening

engaging fully with others' experiences through attentive

and appropriate verbal and nonverbal response

Perspective-Taking exercises

: imagining others' situation and emotional state

Cross-cultural engagement

practicing empathy across different  cultural contexts to expand emotional understanding

Mindful communication

using language and body language that demonstrates understanding and validation.

Empathy is…

Empathy is not just a social skill, it's a spiritual

practice that helps us recognize divine revelation

St. Thomas

 emphasizes the dignity of the human person through his

writings of ethics and theology