2026 IJRSE – Volume 15 Issue 7
Available Online: 9 March 2026
Author/s:
Cordero, Dalmacito Jr.*
De La Salle University, Philippines (dalmacito.cordero@dlsu.edu.ph)
Santos, Mark Joseph
De La Salle University / Philippine Women’s University, Philippines (mark_joseph_santos@dlsu.edu.ph)
Abstract:
We are accustomed to a unidirectional flow of biblical preaching, wherein we derive principles from the text and then apply them to the Filipino context. In this article, we attempt to reverse this flow by following the “mutual relationship of two springs” in Jose de Mesa’s “Mabathalang Pag-aaral.” A sample discourse between the Bible and Filipino culture is constructed by focusing on Nehemiah 5, particularly on leadership. Among Hans Georg Wunch’s approaches to Nehemiah, we follow the method of deriving leadership principles from contemporary social sciences and then applying these to Nehemiah. To accomplish this, the article utilizes the anthropological concept of “ginhawa” borrowed from de Mesa, who gave it theological content as a dynamic translation of “salvation.” It is then linked to leadership through Zeus Salazar’s writings, which discuss the preservation of “ginhawa” as the primary responsibility of leaders in ancient Filipino society. The outcome is the concept of “mapagpaginhawang pamumuno” (leadership that brings total well-being), which is then applied to Nehemiah 5. The analysis shows that the socio-economic reform in chapter 5 is intended for the “ginhawa ng katawan” (physical well-being). However, this reform initiated by Nehemiah is not merely physical but is clearly rooted in Judaism. It is further argued that Nehemiah 5 must be read alongside Nehemiah 13, where religious reform is enacted for the sake of the “ginhawa ng kalooban” (spiritual well-being). This mirror reading presents leadership that brings total well-being as a holistic feature of an ideal leader for contemporary times.
Keywords: ginhawa, mabathalang pag-aaral, mapagpaginhawang pamumuno, Nehemias, pamumuno, teolohiyang Pilipino
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5861/ijrse.2026.26828
Cite this article:
Cordero, D. J., & Santos, M. J. (2026). Mapagpaginhawang pamumuno: Isang pagbasa sa Nehemias 5 sa Diwa ng Mabathalang Pag-aaral. International Journal of Research Studies in Education, 15(6), 163-176. https://doi.org/10.5861/ijrse.2026.26828
* Corresponding Author