We do not exist for ourselves. We are made to serve the community. This service is not always easy, and it is not always appreciated. Yet we must be willing to bear hardships and toil for the sake of others. As Cicero put it, “justice is the single virtue which is mistress and queen of all virtues” (On Obligations, 93). He lays out this vision in his book On Obligations or On Duties.
The key to understanding our obligations is realizing that we are not isolated individuals. We are created for community and for service:
I have often made the point earlier, but it must be repeated again and again: there is a bond of fellowship which in its widest sense exists between all members of the entire human race, an inner link between those of the same nation, and a still closer connection between those of the same state (107).
We are made for one another. Our destiny is not private. It is to use our resources in service of those around us. As Cicero says, the interest of the individual is bound up with the interest of the community.
So why do we often fail at this? Cicero says our minds are clouded—full of anxieties and entangled in pleasures. That is why our first obligation is to clear our heads. Courage, fortitude, and temperance are essential for this. He writes:
A spirit, which is utterly courageous and noble is conspicuous especially for two features. The first of these is disregard for external circumstances, springing from the conviction that a man ought to revere or aspire to or seek nothing except what is honourable and proper, and should not lie down before any man or emotional disturbance or twist of fortune. The second is that once you have attained this case of mind which I have mentioned, you should embark on activities which are of course important and highly useful, but are in addition extremely taxing, full of toils and dangers which threaten both life and the many strands that compose it (24).
First, clear your head. Second, take on significant and difficult work.
What Cicero wants is a noble, lofty spirit. Such a spirit can rise above the praise or blame of others: “[F]or we must consider it characteristic of the brave and noble spirit to think little of the things which most men reckon special and glorious and to despise them with the steady and unflinching eye of reason” (24). It also refuses to be trapped by pleasures. What use is despising dangers if we cannot also despise the distractions that keep us from pursuing what is best?
This lofty spirit is not satisfied with small things. It longs to serve the community in the greatest way possible and to achieve something significant.
Some object that they have abandoned fame and fortune in favor of study and the pursuit of higher things. Cicero respects this, but he presses the question: have they really let go of such concerns, or are they simply afraid of the struggle of public service? He says, “It is difficult not to approve their stance in so far as they claim to despise fame as worthless, but they give the impression of fearing the toils and troubles, together with the apparent disgrace and dishonour of setbacks and rejections” (25). Engagement with the community is hard. It brings blows, setbacks, and discouragements. The real test is whether we will accept this cost, because we are not made for ourselves.
Cicero’s On Obligations is a powerful book on leadership. It calls us to confront our inner weaknesses, but never for our own sake alone. Clear your head so you can serve the community, Cicero says, for this is what we are made for.
________
Photo by Boxed Water Is Better on Unsplash