"These lectures speak directly to my heart and to my head“

On January 7, 2014 the third section of the International Master Course Diaconic Management started in Manila, Philippines. The programme of the course started with a phase of field-research in different diaconic institutions of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP) in Manila. Presently studies are continued at Silliman University, Dumaguete-City, with a three weeks-phase of lectures and seminars. In the sections, the 13 students – eight women and five men from Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Cameroon, Rwanda, Congo (DRC), Tanzania, South Africa and Namibia – reflect theology and economy in South East Asia, with the social situation in the Philippines and with  leadership und management in Church and Diaconia, for example in the face of extreme poverty. A focus is laid on the question how leadership is being practically done, which attitudes influence it and which competences are required for it.  In a second field research- phase the students will accompany leaders of diaconic institutions for two days in their daily work in hospitals, cooperatives or prisons and will observe what they are practically doing as leaders.  – the practical part of “How does a Leader Lead”.

The course is based on an interdisciplinary concept. Lectures and seminars are given by professors from the Divinity School and the School of Public Administration and Governance (SPAG). At the beginning of the section, Dr. Noriel Capulong, Professor for Old Testament, and Dr. Muriel Oreveillo-Montenegro, Professor for Asian and Feminist Theology introduced the students in the Philippine „Theology of Struggle“– a liberation theology which is grounded in the fight of the oppressed and the poor.

„These lectures speak directly to my heart and to my head“ commented Joyce Kibanga, participant of the course from Tanzania. „After the encounters of the last week with the women who have been forced into prostitution and with the people who live on the garbage mountains of Manila I did not know anymore how and in which way a pastor can preach in this situation. But this theology roots deeply in the sufferings of people and names it. It takes care of the concrete needs of people. To me, this is like an answer to my questions from Manila“.

In the coming days and weeks the perspective of the students shall be widened even more: Experts from the fields of economics and leadership will introduce them into the different areas of diaconic leadership, for example corporate governance, strategic planning or culturally sensitive management. The integration of organisation, leadership und theology is one of the aims of the course. The students discussed, for example, whether the organisational structure of an institution is at all adequate for a church fighting for and with the poor. Such questions are of high relevance for the students´ own professional future.  All of them have been sent into the Master Course by their churches because they are expected to take over leadership functions in the diaconic work of their churches after their graduation.

Interdisciplinary Learning is a topic in different talks between the leading team of the course and the leadership of Silliman University. During a welcome-reception for the international mastercourse Prof. Dr. Martin Büscher, IDM Bielefeld, called for a process of opening-up the different disciplines and for overcoming the strict separation which is based on the European tradition of science. Dr. Ben Malayang, President of the Silliman University, encouraged all Christian academic institutions and universities to be aware about their role in the development of interdisciplinary research and to develop academic programmes which integrate different subjects and disciplines. UEM, IDM and Silliman University have agreed to continue these talks in order to further develop existing Master- and PHD- Programmes.

It is the first time that the whole course is complete. In the previous sections in Germany and South Africa students there were always students who had been refused their visa. For them IDM and UEM had organised study visits to a fellow student in a neighbouring country after the section, so that they could take in the contents of the studies and be enabled to write the required papers. After these experiences students were especially happy to be able to start the Philippine-section course as a complete group.