Reflection
“…on the outside you appear righteous,
but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing.”
Matthew 23;28
Sometimes when we listen to the TV news or read the newspapers it is extremely disheartening. Many of our leaders fall far short of expectations. Our country seems to have lost its capacity for choosing statesmen and women for leadership. With a nation in such need nationally and internationally, we long for leaders who see beyond their own self-interest and use their power to work for the people. The most dismaying thing is to see the use of religious posturing to spread mistrust and hate. Situations which provide teachable moments and opportunities for honest cooperation for workable solutions become battlegrounds for ideology and power. The words of Jesus ring in our ears. He had the courage to speak out. He took the risk and paid the price. How many of us care enough to do the same?
Prayer
Open my eyes and give me courage, O Lord.
Action
I will try to rise above my own concerns and have a broader view.
Have power by being informed, assessing situations and opting for change.
Will I care enough to take action?
Suggested Reading
Jesus said,
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.
You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside,
but inside are full of dead men’s bones.
Even so, on the outside you appear righteous,
but inside you are filled with hypocrisy and evildoing.
Matthew 23:27-32
“A leader is a good leader if he or she is able to generate other leaders among the young. If he only wants to be the sole leader, he is a tyrant… If they do not sow leadership in others, they are of no use, they are dictators.
Pope Francis
You cannot follow both Christ and the cruelty of kings. A leader who mocks the weak, exalts himself, and preyson the innocent is not sent by God. He is sent to test you. And many are failing.
Pope Leo XIV
Be not intimidated… nor suffer yourselves to be wheedled out of your liberties by any pretense of politeness, delicacy, or decency. These, as they are often used, are but three different names for hypocrisy, chicanery and cowardice.
John Adams
Real leadership is about the quality of life the leader shapes for the entire society. Leadership is about the compassion the leader shows to those who seek good at the gates of the nation that promises good to all. Real leaders carry the beacon of justice and truth within themselves and so shine the way for others to carry it on after them. The leader exists to maintain the highest values and virtues of the land, so that those values may live forever in the hearts of the people s/he leaves behind.
Joan Chittister
A tyrant must put on the appearance of uncommon devotion to religion. Subjects are less apprehensive of illegal treatment from a ruler whom they consider god-fearing and pious.
Aristotle
Integrity has no need of rules.
Albert Camus
The supreme quality of leadership is unquestionably integrity.
Dwight D. Eisenhower
The road to tyranny, we must never forget, begins with the destruction of the truth.
Bill Clinton
If you tell a big enough lie and tell it frequently enough, it will be believed.
Adolf Hitler
What you do speaks so loud I cannot hear what you say.
Abraham Lincoln
Outstanding leaders go out of their way to boost the self-esteem of their personnel. If people believe in themselves, it’s amazing what they can accomplish.”
Sam Walton