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09.24.07

Lessons from the Prophet Jonah

Two days ago, on Yom Kippur — a day about braking wickedness — at synagouges around the world, a book about breaking wickedness — the book of Jonah — is read. In the Jerusalem Post, the dean of the Schechter Rabbinical Seminary, Einat Ramon draws a perspective on leadership and responsibility from the book of Jonah that I had not read before. He writes:

We are currently in a crisis of leadership, having lost faith in our leaders. In the Minha service on Yom Kippur, we read the Book of Jonah. Jewish tradition seeks to conclude Yom Kippur with the universal story of the prophet whose response to the call to prophecy, to leadership, is: "And Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from before God" (1:3). Why did Jonah flee? And from what?

The midrash in Pirkei d'Rabbi Eliezer (ninth century) stresses that Jonah was an extraordinarily successful prophet (10). Every time he brought the word of God to his audience - Jews and non-Jews alike - they were persuaded by his words of reproof and repented. Why then did he seek to hide? Did he, as is commonly interpreted, truly desire that the people of Nineveh be punished rather than repent?

According to the midrash, Jonah's flight derived from his sensitivity to public opinion. Jonah understood that which modern statistics have shown us, that the chances of a leader being popular once he acts like a leader are about 8 percent. In other words, leadership almost always is met by disdain and ingratitude, and alienation from the people.

The Book of Jonah, like the Book of Deuteronomy, which deals with the leadership struggles of Moses, reflects the leader's pain. In general, the Jewish sources set a high threshold for responsible leadership for the nation of Israel and for humanity to encourage us to assume positions of leadership despite the inevitable price exacted by these jobs.

Many people desire leaders who will stir their souls and flatter them and enwrap them within their inflated egos. They transform the popular leader into a divine shadow that is plainly or mysteriously distant. Though pleasurable for the leaders, this is false prophecy. It does not lead society anywhere safe, good, useful or moral.

Trivia: Jonah was told to go to Nineveh. Nineveh today lies across the Tigris River from the modern Iraqi town of Mosul.

Posted by Michael McKinney at 08:42 AM
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I have to continually remind myself that the only way to bring out the best in others is to bring out the best in yourself. Real leadership is hard work.

Posted by: MRL | September 26, 2007 07:03 AM

Friday, September 21, 2007
Lending Christian Leadership

I recently had a Preacher ask me: "Why does Business Leadership in this Country use a blanket policy of punishment for everyone when something happens with one person or a small group of people"? My answer was: "We in business leadership as a whole have lost a very important human relationship principle and that is we do not put people above profit" Business Leadership today is more interested with Profit, Stock Value, Sales, Greed, EGO, Bonuses and Incentives rather than helping our fellow man. Yes, Any Business must make a profit, but not at any cost, especially human cost, but Business today leans toward the ideal that it will waste 10% of it's employees instead of working with them. We can thank our infatuation with the above so called business principles, because of the most visible pure business leaders:

--- The Jack Welsh Principal: Replace the bottom 10% annually
--- The Donald Trump Principal: Take bankruptcy, deny you did it and forget you inherited your money from Daddy.
--- Even the John Maxwell principal of releasing people that do not fit a company, so you can sell more books and more appearances in front of high profit business folks.

My thoughts are is that God created all people for a couple of reasons only: To be in his likeness and to help each other improve our lives with comfort, compassion and love. Oh, and the big one: "We as Christians" are to spread the word that the "Only way to achieve eternity in heaven is through Christ". Today I visited with a once confidant of Billy Graham and his principle with his employees was and is today, "if a person does not fit one job within a company find another position for him" and "If he doesn't fit that one find another". Now that is taking responsibility for leadership and that is Christ's leadership for true believers and followers of his word, in my opinion.

If you want something further here read: John 3:16 by Max Lucado.

Posted by: john | September 26, 2007 06:34 PM

Sounds like Thucydides' Melian Dialogue?

Posted by: Jon O'Donnell | September 30, 2007 07:21 AM