The Abbot ought always to remember what he is and what he is called, and to know that to whom much hath been entrusted, from him much will be required; and let him understand what a difficult and arduous task he assumeth in governing souls and accommodating himself to a variety of characters. Let him so adjust and adapt himself to everyone—to one gentleness of speech, to another by reproofs, and to still another by entreaties, to each one according to his bent and understanding—that he not only suffer no loss in his flock, but may rejoice in the increase of a worthy fold.
Benedict of Nursa, 480-547 AD, The Holy Rule of St. Benedict, Chapter II, What Kind of Man the Abbot Ought to Be (translated by Rev. Boniface Verheyen, OSB of St. Benedict's Abbey, Atchison, Kansas, 1946 Edition, from Calvin College, Christian Classics Ethereal Library)
Should a Christian leader be concerned about the character of the flock and how best to minister to each of them? How can this be accomplished?
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