413. The difference between love towards the neighbour and its exercise, when directed towards an individual and when it is directed towards a group of people or a community, is like that between the functions of an ordinary citizen, a magistrate and a duke; or between one trading with two talents and one with ten talents* (Matt. 25:14-30). It is like the difference in value between a shekel and a talent**; or between the produce of a vine and that of a vineyard, or an olive tree and an olive grove, or a tree and an orchard. Love towards the neighbour can rise to ever more interior levels in a person; and as it rises it is directed towards the community rather than an individual, and towards the country rather than the community. Now since charity consists in wishing well and so doing good, it follows that it ought to be exercised in much the same way towards the community as towards the individual. But a distinction should be drawn between a community of good people and one of wicked people. In this latter case charity should be exercised in accordance with natural equity, in the former case in accordance with spiritual equity. The difference between these two kinds of equity will be discussed elsewhere.
* The Gospel has 'five talents', but cf. Luke 19:11-27. ** 3000 shekels make one talent.