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Servant Leadership in the Consecrated Life
Mary Jane Aririguzo
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DOI:10.17265/2328-2177/2026.03.006
Catholic Institute of West Africa, Port Harcourt, Nigeria
The International Union of Superiors General, UISG, held their Plenary Assembly in Rome from 9-13 May 2016. The theme for this plenary assembly was “‘It will not be so among you’: The service of leadership according to the gospel”. The assembly challenged itself with deepening the religious commitment to the service of leadership which has been entrusted to the Leaders by their various religious institutes. One of the presenters at that Plenary Assembly of the UISG, Sr. Mary Pat Garvin, RSM, Ph.D., reflected on “Graced Companionship: A Metaphor for Religious Leadership Today”. Using the biblical reference, “It shall not be so among you” (Mt. 20:26), Pat created the image of Jesus exhorting his disciples about the use of power to serve. She notes that Jesus agitated and disappointed with the type of behaviour of the leaders of the time, used this human situation to teach his disciples saying, “You know how those who exercise authority among the Gentiles lord it over them; their great ones make their importance felt. It shall not be so among you” (Mt. 20:26). This paper argues that servant leadership constitutes the essence of authority in the consecrated life following the footsteps of Christ. We shall reflect on “the Church’s Understanding of Leadership in the Consecrated Life” from the Canonical perspective. Hence, by examining: the concept of servant leadership, the biblical foundation of servant leadership, the canonical manner of leadership in the consecrated life, scope/limit of authority, and the canonical requirement of advice and consent in the leadership role of the Superior with her council, this study demonstrates that servant leadership is central to the identity and position of authority in the consecrated life.
Consecrated Life, Leadership, Service
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