Justinian - Great or terrible leader?
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I believe that Justinian was not a great leader, not just because of what he did, but his actual character. Justinian’s character is a complicated one. He was very sly, and was the very opposite of trust. He knew how to get the highest return for himself, and himself only. Yet Justinian was also easily tricked by others, and he was terrible at reading other’s emotions, or, he just didn’t care.
He was a cowardly man, but he managed to push Byzantine’s outer borders much farther, mainly due to his excellent general, Belisarious. But not all of Justinian was bad, he appeared friendly (at least on the outside) , and he took his job as emperor very seriously. He was one of the first in a while to completely reform the Roman laws, the new laws being called the Corpus Juris Civillis. It is still influential to this day, being passed down through history and around Europe.
Justinian’s main flaw is that he was a self-loving tyrant. He would pass laws to gain money for himself either through murdering, or just plain robbing of wealthy houses; he was willing to do anything to gain wealth. Justinian didn’t care about the people in his kingdom, as long as they payed him taxes, and as long as the benefited him.
Now in a secular culture, this isn’t considered a bad leader, maybe not the best leader, but not a bad one. Of course, a leader today wouldn’t break the law or kill anyone to rise to the top, but it isn’t uncommon for a leader to simply, not care about others, as long as the others didn’t hurt them.
But as Christians, this is a terrible leader. This kind of leader demands authority and respect, instead of gaining it. The Bible says to think of others before yourself, and Justinian blatantly disobeys that. The Bible also states that you should treat others like you would want to be treated, another area Justinian fails miserably on.
From a Christian point of View, Justinian’s leadership qualities are quite limited, and his treatment of others is morally unjust.
He was a cowardly man, but he managed to push Byzantine’s outer borders much farther, mainly due to his excellent general, Belisarious. But not all of Justinian was bad, he appeared friendly (at least on the outside) , and he took his job as emperor very seriously. He was one of the first in a while to completely reform the Roman laws, the new laws being called the Corpus Juris Civillis. It is still influential to this day, being passed down through history and around Europe.
Justinian’s main flaw is that he was a self-loving tyrant. He would pass laws to gain money for himself either through murdering, or just plain robbing of wealthy houses; he was willing to do anything to gain wealth. Justinian didn’t care about the people in his kingdom, as long as they payed him taxes, and as long as the benefited him.
Now in a secular culture, this isn’t considered a bad leader, maybe not the best leader, but not a bad one. Of course, a leader today wouldn’t break the law or kill anyone to rise to the top, but it isn’t uncommon for a leader to simply, not care about others, as long as the others didn’t hurt them.
But as Christians, this is a terrible leader. This kind of leader demands authority and respect, instead of gaining it. The Bible says to think of others before yourself, and Justinian blatantly disobeys that. The Bible also states that you should treat others like you would want to be treated, another area Justinian fails miserably on.
From a Christian point of View, Justinian’s leadership qualities are quite limited, and his treatment of others is morally unjust.