Power and authority

Took Thathi to Cambridge yesterday.  It was amusing to see him take in that whole structure as his vision of "Cambridge" crumbled! 

Anyway, spent time at King's College Chapel.   In one of the small displays was the following text, written in the context of King Henry VI (or written by him??):

The king's power came from heaven, 

but on earth it depended on the loyalty of his people.  

His authority was threefold:

it came down from heaven

and up from the people

it carried along on earthy by natural succession, 

and political achievement.  

Though the latter part is very hierarchical, I found the opening sentence very insightful.  However great a king may claim his power to be, it actually lay in the loyalty of his people. 

In the first reading of today, there is the whole list of virtues an elder and a deacon is expected to have had, as per St Paul in the days of early Christianity. The last of the expected qualities of an elder:

He should be a man of respect even among the non-believers.  

Genuine power and authority are endowments from those around you, not exercised over them!