Celebrating Inspirational Leadership

It seems that since 2020 the reasons for celebration have been considerably dimmed. That fated and easy-to-remember year is still, apparently, haunting us with its unfortunate reverberations. Have you been denied the right to say farewell to your loved ones while some politicians fought the virus with drinks and cakes? Are you struggling with the soaring energy prices? Have you been stranded in the airports or had your long-desired holiday cancelled? Have you filled up your tank with less petrol for more pounds? Are you bemused by the rising taxes and the end of cheap products? Do you fear the Ukraine invasion could escalate into another devastating world war? Welcome to the new, brave world that is not that brave and certainly, not entirely new. Therefore, is anything left to celebrate?

This year, on 6 February 2022, the Queen became the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years of service to the people of the United Kingdom. As we already know, the festivities culminated in a four day bank holiday weekend from Thursday 2nd to Sunday 5th June 2022. It is, without a doubt, an outstanding performance for a leader to achieve such a status of being the servant of the people for 70 long years.

Yet, the times we live in might not be congruent with the Platinum Jubilee. How are we supposed to celebrate these days when we have more reasons to be anxious rather than be immersed in a celebration state? The reason is unexpectedly simple: piercing the ideological veil of tradition and pageantry, pomp and glitter, dominant markers of power displayed by any monarch, what we are honouring, though, is a particular interpretation of what inspirational leadership means, as the life and service of Her Majesty the Queen, Elizabeth II, reveals, especially now when there is an acute leadership crisis.

From this vantage point, the Queen acts and lives like an organic parable of what it means to be fully committed to the call to serve the people you pledged to. What we celebrate here is not a traditional establishment or an anachronistic structure for some. We observe the powerful example of a woman, a wife, a mother, a servant, a leader who has dedicated her entire life to this goal: to be the people’s servant. Reflecting on how the Queen has managed to live and serve during the past 70 years, affected by domestic and global crises, losses and betrayals, scandals, and media scrutiny, it is a wonder how she has survived all this, even becoming more adamant about continuing her work.

Within this context, we have published a special edition of the Communicator. This June edition is dedicated to all leaders, regardless of their context or other peculiarities. While we acknowledge the 70 years of the Queen’s service and her inspirational example, the core theme of this edition is that of leadership or genuine leadership as advertised in the biblical teachings and by Jesus’ example as the ultimate Servant Leader. There are other subthemes too exhibited in the articles written by our committed authors: serving others, sacrifice, servant leadership, genuine leadership, responsibility and accountability, moral leadership, ethical leadership, leadership in education, leading by example and so on. We hope this current edition will inspire all leaders and anyone else, responding to God’s call to serve others.

Sorin Petrof, PhD is the Executive Editor of the Communicator