Magnanimity And The Christian Life

Christianity has been accused of destroying the the Aristotelian virtue of Magnanimity since it lowers and crushes a man under the strict demands of the law. After all, how can a man think he is great-souled if he has been shown to be utterly unrighteous and a stinking pit of sin? Does not the condemnatory work of the law reduce all men to the same equal station?

Recently I have been considering this, and I hope to elaborate more on this as I get to think about it. My initial reaction to the above questions is that these accusations are false. The doctrine of vocation and its companion understanding of two kinds of righteousness preserves the Aristotelian virtue of magnanimity. While it is most certainly true that coram Deo we are all vile gross sinners whom Christ has died for, coram hominibus some men certainly are greater than others. It is most certainly evident that God gives his first article gifts out in varying degrees and men pursue excellence and refine their gifts in varying degrees. In light of these two realities, it seems that Christianity is compatible with the idea that coram hominibus some men simply are greater than others.