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GHADA BARSOUM — EMAN SHENOUDA strategic action." Similarly, Rock’? underscores the power of encouraging better thinking in others by improving the quality of conversations to create sustainable behavioral change in their teams instead of imposing solutions. This line of research challenges traditional notions of leadership as an extroverted or forceful endeavor, instead positioning it as an exercise in patience, deep listening, and guidance that fosters self-discovery and growth in others. Quiet leadership is, therefore, not about passivity but about thoughtful action, deep engagement, and long-term impact." The COVID-19 pandemic prompted a surge in research on leadership responses across various sectors that was not matched in the field of religious leadership. There was a notable focus on the study of leadership in politics and government”! and in government.” However, this rich body of research in the fields of politics and government contrasts sharply with the relative scarcity of studies on how leaders in other sectors—such as religious institutions, nonprofit organizations, or smaller community networks—responded to the pandemic. Pastoral leaders, in particular, faced unique challenges during COVID-19, such as maintaining spiritual connections in the absence of physical gatherings, addressing the emotional and psychological toll taken by the pandemic on their communities, and adapting traditional practices to virtual or socially distanced formats. The limited focus on these areas highlights an opportunity for future research to explore how leadership in faith-based and community organizations adapted to the pandemic and the lessons their experiences offer for navigating crises in contextually specific ways. This is but another reflection of the dearth of research on Christian leadership. Writing during the lockdown, Pillay”? emphasizes the need for churches to go beyond short-term adjustments and instead embrace long-term transformative practices that enable them to thrive in an increasingly uncertain and rapidly changing world. Adaptation, as highlighted by Pillay, refers to the capacity of churches to modify their structures, practices, and strategies in response to new challenges, such as the pandemic’s disruption of traditional worship formats. Resilience, on the other hand, focuses on the ability of churches to withstand and recover from crises while maintaining their core identity and purpose. Pillay’s work challenges churches to view crises not merely as obstacles to overcome but as opportunities to grow, innovate, and better align their 18 Badaracco: Leading quietly. Rock: Quiet leadership. 20 Mahadevia: Quiet Leader. 21 E.g. S. Wilson: Pandemic leadership: Lessons from New Zealand’s approach to COVID-19. Leadership, 16(3), 2020, 279-293. 22 E.g. P.H. Huang: Put more women in charge and other leadership lessons from COVID-19. FIU L. Rev., 15, 2021, 353. 23 J, Pillay: COVID-19 shows the need to make churches more flexible. Transformation, 37(4), 2020, 266-275. +16 e
