22
COMPASSION –
THE MOTHER OF ALL VIRTUES
Prince Nnagozie, Nigeria
22.1 Introduction
I am delighted and honoured to have been selected by Globethics.net
to present a paper on ‘compassion’ for this book. I always thought I un-
derstood compassion as a virtue until I undertook the request to write
this paper. It has dawned on me that compassion is indeed the mother of
all virtues. It comes second only to the injunction, “You shall love the
Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your
strength and with all your mind [...]” Compassion is “Love your neigh-
bour as yourself”.
The Christian Good Samaritan parable best depicts the concept and
meaning of compassion. Delving further into the subject revealed that
compassion is a virtue and that all virtues are gifts from God. Compas-
sion swings in the law of balance by releasing joy to the giver and grati-
tude from the taker. It therefore must not be confused with pity. Culti-
vating and practising compassion is therefore a minimum condition for
leadership.