The View of God Upon Which to Build Statesmanship I believe everyone is familiar with the encounter that David had with Goliath. David was a teenager. Goliath was a 9’9” tall, seasoned, powerful warrior. Everyone knows that David fearlessly felled this giant with a pebble employing a slingshot, perhaps the crudest of all instruments. However, […]
The Fallen Nature of Mankind as It Impacts the Statesman The reality is that the objective of the Statesman is to achieve well-being for the people in an imperfect world. As we seek to be just and fair leaders, it is essential that we are realistic about what we are dealing with. We need this […]
The Statesman Embraces the Partnership with Civil Society The person who first introduced me to the challenge of development 45 years ago was at the time a student from Bhutan. He described how the King would travel to a village to meet with the elders to discuss what projects where needed. Then, the […]
The Role of Justice in the Making of a Statesman Early in our exploration of statesmanship, I proposed four leaders I consider to have been Statesmen during the past two and a half centuries: William Wilberforce, Abraham Lincoln, George Catlett Marshall, Nelson Mandela. Recently, we reflected on the importance of justice to the Statesman. As […]
Regression From Statesman to a Politician We know very well that it is not sufficient just to begin well. If I were to ask who was the outstanding leader of all time, using external criteria of wealth, wisdom, grandeur, as well as avowed desire to obey God and to be His instrument, instinctively we […]
The Statesman Creates Statesmanlike Behaviors in Those around Them, Including Inducing Members of the Opposition to Participate in the Vision The Statesman faces a dilemma while operating within democratic governance. The Statesman cannot single-handedly enact legislation to support his/her vision without the help of those who are largely Politicians. Hence, one of the […]
The Statesman Recognizes the Partnership Between Religion and Government In the battle against the coronavirus, misunderstandings have arisen over the Church and the State. Many Governments have banned gatherings of people, including worship services. A handful of religious leaders have argued that ‘separation of Church and State’ allows the Church to operate without […]
Do We Need God to Be a Statesman? Can we be a Statesman without depending upon God? I believe that potentially we can. However, I believe that it is absolutely necessary for us to have the values, character qualities that we as humans can best receive by depending upon God for these qualities. How […]
Could Statesmanlike Behavior Cause One to Be Viewed as Weak? One Prime Minister, who had recently placed his faith in God, shared that if he told his people of his new-found faith in Jesus Christ and dependence upon God, he would be considered weak. His perception is that the elected leader must be viewed […]
The Statesman Recognizes the Need to Operate in Accord with the Creator’s Instructions We each step into a complex world ‒ because of your responsibilities, especially you! The truth is that the creation was set up with the need for the Creator’s instruction and guidance in order to be able to operate optimally within […]
