It is probably unrealistic to expect any government leader to view power in the way in
which Jesus or Lao-Tzu spoke of it. I do not mean that the teachings of Jesus or many Eastern
philosophers would not be helpful, just that ancient teaching needs translation for today’s secular
rulers. I suspect that Muslim and Jewish histories might be able to speak more directly to today’s
leaders, though I do not presume to spell that out. In any case, dialogue among religions would
be helpful for thinking about what Gandhi called “soul force,” a use of power that has
forcefulness and authority but is free of the violent oppression of classes of people or nations. In
some situations today, examples of religious leadership might have some carry over into the way
that politicians and CEOs act. In other places, examples of religious leadership can only offer a
stark challenge and resistance to the way political leaders act or business operates.
People in religious education are at a key juncture. Leadership of any kind is legitimate
only if it is educational. Religious education ought to bring the best of religious ideas of
leadership into education. Religious organizations themselves have to work at being truly
educational. There are tensions between a religious outlook and contemporary educational
organizations but religious leadership can be a way of mediating the differences