St Louis IX of France: The Kind of Leader we Need

Today we celebrate a very unusual saint, about which we read in the book In Caelo et in Terra. He was the king of France! His name was Louis IX, and as you can imagine, his father was Louis VIII. His mother was Blanche, and she was a very devout Christian who instilled the love of Jesus into her son. She also ruled France from the time that Louis VIII died until her son was old enough to assume the throne. 

Louis IX tried very hard to be a good king. He was also a good husband and father to eleven children. He had homes built for the blind. He established the Sorbonne, which was a theological seminary at the University of Paris. He also led two unsuccessful crusades, and died of dysentery in Africa. 

It's hard not to compare this godly king to the poor excuses for leaders that we have today. Even the better leaders today are terrible when compared to this saint, who was a great king, husband, father, and the one responsible for the beautiful Sainte-Chappelle, which is in the picture above. We don't have any pictures of Louis IX because he lived in the 13th century, but we do have a picture of what he built. Let's pray for good leaders, that might strive to be saints as well as good leaders, husbands, and fathers. PS you can read more about Louis IX here.

God, thanks for inspiring this great king to lead your people well. Please give us some good leaders today. St Louis IX, pray for us.