The theory of the divine rights of kings was created to defend kings. The theory asserted that the authority of the kings was derived from God and so the kings could not be held accountable for their decisions by the earlier authority like a parliament. The theory originated in Europe and it can be associated with the medieval conception that God awarded temporal power to kings and other political rulers and at the same time, he awarded the church with spiritual power. King James 1 developed the theory in England and this is after he had disagreed with the government concerning a share of the government. He claimed that a King is someone that has been chosen by God and he can never be wicked. Consequently, the king was sent by God to the people to punish them for their sins and so it is unlawful to go against the king (Hill, 2014) .
Characteristics of a Good King
A good king, just like any other leader believes that success is achieved through a higher purpose. The most important thing that motivates a king is making his people successful. On the other hand, a king that is uninspiring think that success is associated with his higher purpose. In this case, when the king is asked what makes him be motivated, he will talk about things that personally satisfies him. Another characteristic of a good king is gratitude. This means that a good king is deeply grateful. The king believes that his success is highly dependent on accidents of circumstance and birth. On the other hand, an uninspiring king is self-satisfied and he believed that his success is naturally because of him being better and smarter than everyone is. For example, in the theory of the divine rights of kings, the kings believed that they were chosen by God to lead the people and God directed their actions. People who disobeyed them were executed.
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A good king is the one who has energy. Energy, in this case means someone who is uplifting. Therefore, a good king is the one who all his people are depending upon. A king is considered successful if his followers believe in him and freely communicate with him. Additionally, a good king is the one that acknowledges the importance of his people. In this case, a good king is the one who listens to his people and obtains information that he does not know. His people will become happy with him because he pays attention to their ideas and grievances (Gächter & Sefton, 2012) .
Consequently, a good king is the one who treasures his beliefs. He does not wear his values on his sleeves, but his convictions pervade everything he does and say. An uninspiring king foists his opinions. An articulate and careful speaker is another characteristic that can be associated with a good king. A good king chooses his words carefully because he understands that the words he uses as an impact on the attitude of his people. Careful selection of words will help his people feel good about themselves and it will make the king feel better about himself too.
A good king should not talk about the failures of other people. If a king laughs at other people, the people around him will wonder if he sometimes laughs at and discusses their failures. To add on this, a good king is the one who when giving criticism, does it right by telling the person privately. Finally, a good king owns up to shortcomings (Gächter & Sefton, 2012) . This means that the king is humble, shares his screw-ups and admit mistakes. He should laugh at himself while laughing at other people and this will make his people like him more.
The problem in the theory
The theory of the divine rights of kings provides that God created the state and he sent his servant the king to rule over the people. Therefore, obedience to the king was considered a religious duty while disobedience was a sin. The theory did not recognize that God did not create the state, but it came into existence because of people occupying a territory and organizing themselves to achieve a common goal. If people accept that it was a creation of God, they would defy nature.
In addition, the theory justifies the exercise of the royal authority by claiming that authority the authority enjoyed by kings has a religious origin and sanction. In a case where only God holds the kings accountable for their actions and only kings who make and implement laws, then this will be considered as preaching absolutism. If a king is God’s deputy, why does there exist a bad king? However, the theory only considers a monarch and it ignores the other forms of government. A monarchy government does not support a democratic ideal; which promotes consent as a basis of a state. Therefore, one cannot dispose a bad king because God choses him and no one can challenge his action, but only by God himself.
Conclusion
The theory of the divine rights of kings was created to defend kings. The theory provides that God sends kings to rule over people. Only God made the kings accountable for their actions and disobedience to the kings was considered a sin punishable by death. This made it hard to dispose bad kings despite the fact that people were suffering under their hands.
References
Gächter, S. N., & Sefton, M. (2012). Who makes a good leader? cooperativeness, optimism, and leading ‐ by ‐ example. Economic Inquiry, 50(4) , 953-967.
Hill, C. (2014). The century of revolution: 1603–1714. New York: Routledge.
