Abstract
D.Litt. et Phil.
The whole world, including Africa and South-Africa, is moving in
transitional phases between premodern, modern and post modernistic
tendencies. In Southern-Africa we see the coexistence of at least these
three worldviews. On the one hand we witness signs of Pre-modernism, as
well as an increase in Modernistic tendencies. On the other hand we
experience a strong growth and emphasis on the so called Postmodernism
(Compare Gibbs 2001:30, Hendriks 2004:16; Niemandt
2007:25-28).
Post modernism, also called Post colonialism in the African context, is
basically an attempt to make sense of what is happening in the current
period (Powell 1998:17). It endeavours to reconceptualize the way the
world is experienced and explained (Boje 1996:2). Post modernism can
also be summarized as an increasing awareness that the last say has not
been said on anything. That there will always be yet another perspective
about life and about God (Niemandt 2007:47-48).
The world-wide realities of cultural shifts coupled with the transitions
between the traditional-, modern- and post modern worldviews, have
implications for leadership in general. In various institutions, including
commercial, educational, medical and religious circles, leaders are facing
growing challenges of ever changing ways of living, thinking and doing.
The collective impact of all these changes in thought and culture,
information tegnology, the advent of globalization, as well as the plurality of
race and religion, has displaced the historical role of the church and its
leaders (Gibbs 2001:19). It also contributes to the marginalization of the
church as an institution (Regele 1995: 182). One of the consequences of
this, is that the nature of leadership in the church also has to change.
Congregational leaders experience a disintegration of culture and
traditional values in the daily operation of their congregations and many do
not know how to adress the resulting changing demands on their
leadership (McLaren 2003:141).
The point of departure in this study is that in order to develop a better
notion of the demands that the current time frame places upon
congregational leaders and to support them as leaders, it would be
valuable to listen in an explorative way to their practical experiences. From
their experience, it should be possible to observe certian phenomena and
tendencies and to develop potential strategies to support them in
addressing the demands placed upon them as leaders in the local
assemblies. Consequently this study followed a qualitative, explorative,
descriptive, contextual and phenomenological research design (Compare
Brink 1996:11; Maxwell 1996:59).
The research was done by conducting seven semi structured focus groups
in which fifty congregational leaders participated. The research took place
in two phases: In phase one congregational leaders’ experience of the
demands of the current time frame were explored and described. Phase
two was conducted in two steps: In step one a conceptual framework was
derived from the results of phase one. In step two, strategies based on this
conceptual framework were described.
The researcher made use of Tesch’s method of data analyses (Creswell
1994:155-156). Word for word transcriptions of the focus group
interviews were used for the data analyses, which was verified by an
independent coder. As this is a phenomenological investigation, it was not
directed by literature. A literature study to confirm the results of the
research and the experience of congregational leaders about the demands
of current times, was done later in the study.
The data analyses exposed a main theme and six sub-themes relating to
the experience of congregational leaders about the demands of current
times on them as leaders. Their main experience was that fast changes
over a broad spectrum of society, places great pressure on the internal
and external capacities of congregational leaders. Many of these leaders
experience ever increasing emotional exhaustion and distress, because of
present-day demands. This leads to them experiencing dejection,
loneliness and guilt.