This is the third (3rd) of the ELECTION SERIES – articles published by White Butterfly in anticipation of the forthcoming elections in May 2022.
This chapter, Buffalo – Responsible Leadership, was taken from Sr. Janice’s book, OSTRICHES, DUNG BEETLES, AND OTHER SPIRITUAL MASTERS, A Book of Wisdom from the Wild, published with permission from Orbis Books, Maryknoll, New York.
NOTE
Sr. Janice is an American Maryknoll nun. She lived in Africa and served hard and long as a courageous activist, joining the fight against human rights violations, standing side by side with victims of injustice and oppression.
Sr. Janice was a keen observer of the different habits and qualities of the animals in Africa and compared them to the habits and qualities of people. The African buffalo is what we know in the Philippines as the carabao. It lives in a community of buffalos that sometimes reach a thousand members. The herd is composed of many different clans.
Each clan has its own pathfinder, which leads the clan to sources of water and food and knows how to avoid danger. Without this pathfinder, the buffalo would die from hunger. Sr. Janice related this pathfinder to “Responsible Leadership.”
Sr. Janice believed that Julius Nyerere, the first President of Tanzania, was such a leader and pathfinder. Through his leadership, Tanzania became a united and peaceful country, a model for others to follow. When his presidency was over, he happily returned to his farm. Nyurere never pined for wealth or power.
Jesus himself taught us that a leader must be a servant to his people. He showed us through the washing of his apostles’ feet how we are likewise to serve one another.
In the coming elections, we hope to choose the pathfinder who will lead our country to “safe and verdant pastures.”
A country that has no responsible leadership is like an orphan with no guardian. That lone person will grope its way through life, eventually get weaker from want, risking danger in order to live, may follow anyone or believe any promise, sell his dignity or even soul just to taste a wisp of relief from destitution.
Let us take one by one those who aim to win the presidency in the following election. Let us identify those who would make glowing promises then leave our country in debt and poverty. Let us examine who has the qualities of a true leader with a proven record of continuous selfless service to the people.
Let us think seriously of which candidate will be a pathfinder with faith in God, honesty, integrity, and the conviction that a leader does not abuse its people but serves them with total commitment of mind and heart.
When we choose a true leader, we take care of ourselves and of one another. And we hold sacred our responsibility to the coming generations who will inherit our beloved country. (Teresita Tanseco-Cruz)
SR. JANICE MCLAUGHLIN
One of the “big five,” the African buffalo ranks with the elephant, the lion, the rhino, and the leopard as the most sought-after animals on the African continent because they are dangerous, powerful, and fearless. The buffalo, in fact, ranks second to the hippo as the most dangerous because it often gores or tramples to death unsuspecting humans who cross its path by mistake. Large herds of buffalo are a common sight on the African plain. The African buffalo is related to the Asian and American bison, as well as to the common cow, but its ancestry is unknown. While cattle have not adapted well to the harsh African climate and require human intervention to survive, the buffalo is at home in a variety of climates and terrains although it needs large amounts of water and vegetation to survive. Large herds of buffalo can be found throughout eastern, central, and southern Africa in woodlands, flood plains, savannas, and swamps. Its strong teeth and flexible tongue allow the buffalo to scoop up the long, tough grass that others can’t chew or digest.
Sociable animals, African buffalo are nonterritorial and live in mixed herds of male and female that number from fifty to one thousand beasts. When they are too old to breed, the males move out and join bachelor herds to give the young males a better chance to mate. The herds are subdivided into clans of a dozen or more related cows and their offspring. (
Leader or Pathfinder
Each clan has its own leader or pathfinder that guides the group to water and pasture. The pathfinder walks in front, while others file behind, often in a single line. The leader knows how to avoid danger and how to find water and grass even in times of drought. Without a leader, buffalo would perish in a fruitless search for food and drink in the arid plains where they roam.
Sometimes I facilitate leadership workshops in Zimbabwe and Kenya where we ask participants to name someone who was an outstanding leader or role model in their life. We ask them to recall those who played a positive role as well as those who had a negative influence on them. Many name parents or relatives who raised them. Some point to teachers or religious persons who encouraged or influenced them in their growth and development. Others single out well-known figures or national heroes such as Nelson Mandela or Bishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa.
Qualities of Personal Guides
As we explore the qualities of these personal guides, we usually find that they share common traits or characteristics: they put the good of others before their own interests; they are good listeners; they are courageous; and they have a positive outlook on life.
In contrast, those who played a negative role for participants are described as selfish, cruel, and uncaring. Jesus was very clear about his vision of leadership. He knelt down and washed the feet of his followers, telling them that they must do likewise. In another example, Jesus contrasts the behavior of earthly leaders with his own and sets out an ideal for his followers: “The kings of the pagan nations rule over them as lords, and the most hardhearted rulers claim the title, ‘Gracious Lord.’ But not so with you; let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as the servant….I am among you as the one who serves” (Luke 22: 25-27).
Julius Nyerere, 1st President of Tanzania – a Pathfinder and Great Leader
Julius Nyerere, the first president of independent Tanzania, was such a leader. Affectionately called “Mwalimu,” or Teacher, Nyerere did not crave wealth and power but was humble, good-humored, and willing to admit his mistakes. I first met him in 1970 when he came to Maryknoll in New York to address a general assembly of our community, which is held every six years. He called on us to live and work with the people, not as bosses but as companions. “Only by sharing work, hardships, knowledge, persecution, and progress can the Church contribute to our growth,” he said. “And this means sharing in every sense as ‘members one of another.’ For if the Church is not part of our poverty, and part of our struggle against poverty and injustice, then it is not part of us.’ He encouraged us to leave our institutional ministries and go live and work with the people in the ujamaa villages. “The poor and oppressed should come to you not for alms,” he stressed, “but for support against injustice” (Freedom and Development, pp.213-28, Nyerere, Julius K., London: Oxford University Press, 1973).
When he stepped down as president, Nyerere returned to his rural home to farm. He jokingly called himself an itinerant peasant – when he wasn’t in the village he was traveling to international meetings and conferences to share his vast experience and wisdom. He did not cling to the trappings of power but lived simply. On one visit to the United Nations, some Tanzania residents in New York brought him a coat for the cool weather since he came dressed only in sandals and his trademark safari suit. He reluctantly tried on the coat and then handed it to a Maryknoll sister who also had come to see him. “It fits Sr. Jean better than me,” he announced with a twinkle in his eye. “She should have it!”
Thanks to his wise leadership, Tanzania is a unified and peaceful country that serves as a model and inspiration to other African nations. If the Catholic community in Tanzania has its way, Julius Nyerere will be the first political leader to be declared a saint. Each generation and every nation and people needs a pathfinder like Mwalimu who can point the way to a better future for all. Each of us is called to be a person of integrity, who lives up to our ideals and provides responsible and credible leadership to those who come after us.
SCRIPTURE
When Jesus was finished washing their feet, he put on his garment again, went back to the table and said to them, ‘Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Master and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I, then, Your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you also must wash one another’s feet. I have just given you an example that as I have done, you also may do. (John 13:12-15)
One blind person cannot lead another one; if one does, both will fall into a ditch. No pupil is greater than one’s teacher; but every pupil, when completing the training, will be like the teacher. (Luke 6:39-40)
PRAYER FOR THE 2022 PHILIPPINE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
We implore you, Lord Jesus, to give our Filipino nation a chance to rise up from our misery and suffering and to cope with the pandemic crisis. Give us, through the coming election, a leader who will take care not of one’s self but of the poor and the needy, one who is God-fearing, who cannot be undermined by greedy, corrupt, and hypocritical politicians.
Save our nation, which is thirsty for your love and justice. Through the help of Mother Mary, our mother, and yours. Amen.
