Keterampilan Kepemimpinan Ester dan Implikasinya Bagi Pemimpin Perempuan Kristen di Pemerintahan

Abstract

This study aims to examine the leadership skills of Esther, as portrayed in the Book of Esther, and explore their implications for the development of Christian women’s leadership in government settings. The research contributes to biblical leadership discourse, which often overlooks the systematic study of female leadership figures. Employing a qualitative descriptive approach through library research, this study integrates textual analysis of the Esther narrative with Robert Katz’s leadership skills theory, which comprises technical, human, and conceptual skills. The findings reveal that Esther exemplifies an effective integration of all three skill domains in responding to an ethnic and political crisis in the Persian Empire. She demonstrates diplomatic precision, moral courage, strategic vision, and deep spiritual dependence on God. Esther’s leadership delivered her people from destruction and resulted in social transformation. The study concludes that Christian women leaders should develop leadership competencies grounded in both professional excellence and Christian ethical values. Governmental roles must be viewed as platforms for service rather than power, and Esther’s model offers a compelling framework for cultivating transformative, principled, and community-responsive public leadership.