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Identifying Modern Leadership Philosophies in the Book of Mormon

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Identifying Modern Leadership Philosophies in the Book of Mormon Brigham Young University BYU ScholarsArchive Theses and Dissertations 2019-07-01 "Our Leaders Were Mighty": Identifying Modern Leadership Philosophies in the Book of Mormon Christopher J. Peterson Brigham Young University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd Part of the Arts and Humanities Commons BYU ScholarsArchive Citation Peterson, Christopher J., ""Our Leaders Were Mighty": Identifying Modern Leadership Philosophies in the Book of Mormon" (2019). Theses and Dissertations. 7581. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/7581 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. "Our Leaders Were Mighty": Identifying Modern Leadership Philosophies in the Book of Mormon Christopher J. Peterson A thesis submitted to the faculty of Brigham Young University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Bradley Wilcox, Chair Keith Wilson Bradley Owens Religious Education Brigham Young University Copyright © 2019 Christopher J. Peterson All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT "Our Leaders Were Mighty": Identifying Modern Leadership Philosophies in the Book of Mormon Christopher J. Peterson Religious Education, BYU Master of Arts The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints provides a multitude of leadership opportunities to its members. Although many valuable leadership training resources are available, the Book of Mormon is surprisingly absent as a source material on leadership. Written by and about leaders in the ancient Americas, it seems like the Book of Mormon should contain important principles on how to lead within the context of building God’s kingdom that could be instructive. The Book of Mormon was not preserved to teach modern leadership styles, nor does its usefulness depend on how it does or does not connect to these leadership theories. However, an analysis of the leadership qualities and practices exhibited by leaders in the Book of Mormon could help leaders in the Church to use the Book of Mormon for inspiration and guidance. This paper analyzed the leadership decisions exhibited by Captain Moroni and identified remarkable similarities to transformational leadership and its four components. Nephi, on the other hand, showed a servant leader mentality. Both of these leaders achieved remarkable levels of success, consistent with the current literature on both styles of leadership. Keywords: Book of Mormon, Captain Moroni, Nephi, leadership, transformational leadership, servant leadership, followership ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This paper would not have been possible without the help of my wife, Elise, and our kids, who cheered me on the whole time and gave up a lot in the process. Their support was my motivation. I also appreciate Brad Wilcox, Keith Wilson, and Brad Owens. Their feedback and guidance were invaluable. Thanks to Vernon Heperi, Nathan Ward, and David Rockwood who helped me refine my ideas. A special thanks to Neal Cox for igniting a passion for studying leadership and demonstrating it so effectively. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS TITLE PAGE ................................................................................................................................... i ABSTRACT .................................................................................................................................... ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ............................................................................................................. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................... iv Introduction ..................................................................................................................................... 1 Scope of Analysis: Leaders ......................................................................................................... 2 Scope of Analysis: Philosophies ................................................................................................. 3 Literature Review............................................................................................................................ 5 Transformational Leadership Literature ..................................................................................... 5 The Four I’s............................................................................................................................. 9 Idealized Influence ................................................................................................................ 10 Inspirational Motivation........................................................................................................ 11 Intellectual Stimulation ......................................................................................................... 11 Individualized Consideration ................................................................................................ 12 Transactional vs. Transformational ...................................................................................... 13 Criticism ................................................................................................................................ 16 Servant Leadership Literature ................................................................................................... 17 Servant Leadership Attributes............................................................................................... 19 Criticism ................................................................................................................................ 21 Followership Literature ............................................................................................................. 21 v Book of Mormon Leadership Literature ................................................................................... 24 Latter-day Saint Leadership Literature ..................................................................................... 25 Chapter One: Captain Moroni—The Transformational Leader.................................................... 28 Moroni’s Appointment to Leadership ....................................................................................... 29 Doctrinal Impact ....................................................................................................................... 30 Old Testament Teachings ..................................................................................................... 30 Book of Mormon Teachings Pre-Moroni ............................................................................. 31 Christ’s Teachings ................................................................................................................ 31 Moroni as a Transformational Leader....................................................................................... 32 Moroni’s Idealized Influence ................................................................................................ 33 Moroni’s Inspirational Motivation ........................................................................................ 37 Moroni’s Intellectual Stimulation ......................................................................................... 49 Moroni’s Individualized Consideration ................................................................................ 54 Other Book of Mormon Examples of Transformational Leadership ........................................ 57 King Mosiah’s Idealized Influence ....................................................................................... 58 Alma’s Individualized Consideration ................................................................................... 58 Amalickiah: The Pseudotransformational Leader .................................................................... 59 Abandoning His Followers ................................................................................................... 62 Inspiring the Lamanites......................................................................................................... 63 Selecting His Leaders ........................................................................................................... 64 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 65 Chapter Two: Nephi—The Servant Leader .................................................................................. 66 vi Nephi’s Unique Leadership Position ........................................................................................ 66 Lehi—Patriarch and Prophet................................................................................................. 67 Tensions Created by Nephi’s Leadership ............................................................................. 68 Divine Appointment to Leadership ....................................................................................... 72 Doctrinal Foundation for Servant Leadership........................................................................... 75 Nephi as a Servant Leader ........................................................................................................ 77 Care for Laman and Lemuel ................................................................................................
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