Monarchy,
according to a wide range of sources new and old, is one of the most natural
and beneficial forms of government, but you wouldn’t know it by reading history
books in the [u]nited States. There, it
is presented as the most contemptible form imaginable. We have a bit of a difference of opinion,
then. Whose judgment is more sound, the
friends of the king or his enemies?
Let
us take a look at three of the major religions/civilizations from world history
to try to find an answer.
First,
the Classical, pre-Christian civilization:
Much
of the Classical tradition insists on monarchy as the proper means for the
moralization and humanization of the people: e.g., Musonius Rufus:
In
the next place it is essential for the king to exercise self-control over
himself and demand self-control of his subjects, to the end that with sober
rule and seemly submission there shall be no wantonness on the part of either.
For the ruin of the ruler and the citizen alike is wantonness. But how would
anyone achieve self-control if he did not make an effort to curb his desires,
or how could one who is undisciplined make others temperate? One can mention no
study except philosophy that develops self-control. Certainly it teaches
one to be above pleasure and greed, to admire thrift and to avoid extravagance;
it trains one to have a sense of shame, and to control one's tongue, and it
produces discipline, order, and courtesy, and in general what is fitting in
action and in bearing. In an ordinary man when these qualities are present they
give him dignity and self-command, but if they be present in a king they make
him preeminently godlike and worthy of reverence. ~Musonius Rufus, That Kings Also Should Study Philosophy,
Fragment 8
Source: David Armstrong, https://www.eighthdayinstitute.org/heaven_favors_the_crown_an_apology_for_monarchy
Next,
the Jewish view:
Monarchy
in the Jewish tradition also begins with the conviction of divine kingship
mediated by a human representative. God is the ultimate king over the people of
Israel and, also, the cosmos . . . .
Hence
the opening to most of the wealth of Jewish prayer: Barukh atah Adonai Eloheinu Melekh HaOlam,
"Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe. .
." The kingship of Israel's God, both over the heavenly powers whom
the other nations worship as gods as well as over the earth and all of its
kingdoms, and especially of Israel, is the central theme of the
Psalms (e.g., LXX Ps. 43:4, 92:1, 94:3, 95:10, 96:1, 98:1, 144:1, 13, 145:10,
149:2). However, the Old Testament generally maintains that God's divine
kingship is to be rightfully mediated through the human Israelite
monarch. Despite the anti-monarchic material found in 1 Samuel 8, the
majority of the Deuteronomistic History seems to assume both the inevitability,
legitimacy, and necessity of the Israelite monarchy (see, for example, Dt.
17:14-20). This is the explicit apologetic point of the Book of Judges: namely,
the repeated idolatry and covenant infidelity displayed by Israel in the period
of the Judges was possible only because "in those days there was no King
in Israel; [therefore] every one did what was right in his own eyes" (Jg. 17:6, 21:25).
. . .
The
rest is at https://usareally.com/813-long-live-the-king
.
--
Holy
Ælfred the Great, King of England, South Patron, pray for us sinners at the Souð, unworthy though we are!
Anathema
to the Union!
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