During the most turbulent duration of my time at my former employer, this course, and the following course were the timeliest courses in the ORGL program. 

 

Circumstances in my professional employment required me to look inward for both justice and forgiveness in my life.  With what had happened during the preceding two months, I was anxious to absorb the learnings contained within.

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This course was based on engaging on a series of questions.  These were firstly, what are the basic understandings of servant leadership, restorative justice (modeled from Nelson Mandela), and forgiveness?  Secondly, how can a person choose restorative justice and forgiveness in the face of great harm and suffering?  Finally, who and how do we forgive? 

 

We studied Nelson Mandela and his leadership in restoration of the country of South Africa.  We studied Victor Frankl, Simon Wiesenthal, and Elie Wiesel and their books on the holocaust and atrocities committed on millions of Jews during WWII.    We watched movies involving justice and forgives, most strikingly to me being “The Count of Monte Cristo” starring Jim Caviezel.  We also watch a locally produced film “Smoke Signals”, the story of young Native American Indian men that journey to Arizona to retrieve the ashes of an abusive father. 

 

All this coursework lead my classmates and me to a more throughout understanding of servant leadership, justice and forgiveness in our own leadership journeys. 

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The representative artifact for ORGL 532 is one verse from the Bible that has guided my life since my university days.  I learned of this verse in Campus Crusade for Christ meetings and I have applied it, or tried to apply it, throughout my life.  I was reminded of it again in this course.

 

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