Moral scandals and toxic church culture reveal the evil within us. This Masterclass explores markers of healthy church leadership among Canadian churches, as drawn from a 2024 study of 31 congregations using Jim Collins’ good-to-great framework. These findings engage theologically with Scot McKnight and Laura Barringer’s work on harm caused by unhealthy church structures and narcissistic leaders. Finally, the practice of presence is promoted as an embodied posture exemplifying goodness in Canadian church leadership. This research offers practical insights for developing virtue-centered leadership that resists toxicity and cultivates flourishing congregational life.

Elizabeth Millar (Doctor of Practical Theology) is a Research Fellow at the Canadian Institute for Empirical Church Research – Wycliffe College (University of Toronto) and conducted the “Greatness” in Canadian Congregations research study in 2024-25. She also works as a spiritual director, a mentor for students at two Canadian seminaries, and the Storyteller for Vision Ministries Canada. Elizabeth lives on Prince Edward Island with her family.

Masterclass is a series of events from our CBAC Leadership Development department, seeking the transformation of our CBAC leaders through continued learning from world-class speakers. Sponsored by Crandall University.