Religion and Leadership

Catalog description

Different religions have portrayed leaders in different ways, through stories, exemplars and which attributes of leaders and followers are emphasized or downplayed. Drawing upon a wide variety of resources in religious studies, history, philosophy, psychology, sociology, and cultural studies, this course will examine how a wide variety of religions depict leaders and leadership, highlighting both the differences and the similarities across religions and within religious traditions. The course will also draw upon research on leadership, cultural values, and norms to systematically compare and contrast how religion shapes perceptions of leadership. Applications explored will include religion-based portrayals of gender, race ethnicity, and age in assessing leaders. Also considered will be whether these portrayals make specific religious lenses more or less amenable to leadership development in different contexts (for example where innovation is important or where co-leadership is essential). 001332