The Holy Virtue of Charity (I)

Christian charity is not just about what we know as philanthropy. Its real root is to love God above all things, and from there stems our love for our neighbor.

This may not seem like the most likely image to embody this virtue, given that we see a king seated on his throne while others entreat him for boons.

But what struck me about this image, why I accepted it as a result for this prompt, is that this king, despite his earthly power, is beneath the Cross. This is someone who acknowledges whatever power he holds in the world was given to him by God and therefore he is answerable to God for how he uses that power. And if he follows this faithfully, then he will indeed be charitable and gracious to his subjects.

While it's an improvement to not be under the rule of kings (which God warned the Israelites about before they decided to follow the crowd! XD ), we have lost the idea of leadership being answerable to God and leading from virtue rather than lust for popularity and power.