What Christian versions of Natural Law concepts are present in the religious and political ideas of Augustine? Be sure to include a discussion of statesmanship and the Christian ideas of covenant and dual citizenship, temporal and spiritual.
Original Post
Augustine of Hippo was a Christian philosopher who lived between the 4th and 5th Centuries in Hippo. He was a bishop for thirty-five years and was popular among his congregation (The School of Life, 2015). He made major contributions to Christian philosophy, and his writings on Christian doctrine and theology provided one of the greatest influences on the works of theological scholars who came after him. He criticized Rome, its values, and its outlook. Romans believed in earthly happiness and a just social order. In his writing, The City of God, Augustine came up with the idea of original sin that is still relevant today. The concept states that no human is righteous, as we have all inherited the sins of Adam and Eve. He pointed out that there was no justice in Rome and that God did not reward the good with wealth and power and condemned those who lacked. Augustine stated that humans cannot achieve a just society alone, as it can only be found in the city of God. Humans are in the city of evil where power does not lead to justice. Augustine has also made significant contributions to the development of natural law concepts. According to him, natural laws were written based on eternal law. The Bible reveals the eternal law during creation, and temporal laws must be derived from eternal laws. He emphasizes the need for a just law, as an unjust law is not a law.
Augustine claimed that an unjust law is not a natural law (Theology of Law, 2022). In his writing, On Free Choice of the Will, Augustine states, “A law that was not just will not seem to me to be a law” (Augustine et al., 1964). He prefers a law to be declared, not a law at all, than say it is a law when it is unjust. He also argues that nothing in the temporal law is just that humans have not derived from eternal law. According to Augustine, justice is when each person receives their due. The eternal law is in the Bible, and humans should derive temporal law (laws made by humans) from eternal law (Chroust, 1944). An unjust law contradicts the natural law. It lives the unjust unpunished. This principle suggests that there is a scripture preceding natural law on which the natural law has its foundation. Without the help of scriptures, we wouldn’t distinguish between wrong and right or bad and good. Augustine spoke about two cities, The City of Man and The City of God. He condemned the claims that Rome was just as justice can hardly be applied to the Roman empire. According to Augustine, God alone is just, and true justice can only be found in Christ. Only a heavenly city (The city of God) could be called just. Human societies cannot achieve justice on their own. According to Augustine, natural law should be used to measure any legal system. For any organization to be successful, it has to operate according to the natural law.
According to Augustine, humans should love their neighbors and help them. However, with injustices in the world, someone should lead and control injustices. Augustin thus believed that there should be leaders who fight against injustices in a world full of injustice. Statesmen should be a part of the church but not lead it. They would be present to offer guidance. When talking about The City of Man, Augustine stated that it was one community where all individuals were moved by the desire to pursue personal interests (Augustine, 1954). These community members do not understand that even though a person might choose to follow their desire outside Christian law, they cannot be completely fulfilled. This implies that only ‘Absolute Being’ can meet the needs of human nature (Augustine, 1954). Augustine further argues that a statesman should perform morally good acts that can improve some of the injustices in the world and secure earthly peace and order, which are gifts from God. He does not permit the end-justifies-the-means thinking. According to him, leaders should choose good when they face moral dilemmas. They should make the difficult decisions to eliminate injustices in society. A statesman should be guilty of acting evil.
Augustine came up with the idea of the City of God and the earthly city. According to him, citizens in the earthly city are those that have inherited Adam and Eve’s sins and are damned. The earthly city is full of injustices, people dominate over others and are lustful. The City of God is a future where God will dominate, power will lead to justice, and virtue will reign. No church or state can be compared with the City of God. Also, dual citizenship does not exist in the two cities. One has to choose between the two.
In a nutshell, Augustine’s writings have significantly contributed to our understanding of his religious and political ideas. For example, he believes that the natural law should guide all legal systems. According to him, there is no law if the law is unjust, and temporal laws are derived from the eternal law. Augustine believes that men are not supposed to be governed, but due to the injustices on earth, they need a leader to control injustice. A statesman should be religious and do what is good, even when it means making difficult decisions. He came up with the idea of The City of God and the earthly city. The earthly city is unjust, and people are born with the original sin inherited from Adam and Eve. He also points out that there is no dual citizenship in the two cities. One either belongs to one or the other.
References
Augustine, S., Benjamin, A. S., & Hackstaff, L. H. (1964). On free choice of the will (No. 150). Indianapolis, IN: Bobbs-Merrill. https://www.truth-defined.com/PDFs/OnFreeChoice-noT-relevant-only.pdf
Augustine. (2008). The City of God, books xvii–xxii (Vol. 24). CUA Press.
Chroust, A. H. (1944). The philosophy of law of St. Augustine. The Philosophical Review, 53(2), 195-202.
Chroust, A. H. (2017). The fundamental ideas in St. Augustine’s philosophy of law. In Augustine and Modern Law (pp. 171-193). Routledge.
Fogleman, A. (2019). Augustine and natural law: Negotiating the saeculum with Markus, Milbank, and Mathewes. Political Theology, 20(7), 595-612.
Kowalkowski C., (2023). Rhetoricians and Statesmen. DOMINICANA. https://www.dominicanajournal.org/rhetoricians-and-statesmen/
The Holy Bible: New International Version. (1983). Hodder and Stoughton. (Original work published 1978).
The School of Life, (2015). PHILOSOPHY – Augustine. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBAxUBeVfsk
Theology of Law, (2022). Augustine’s Contribution to Natural Law. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVaMWj8fI54
Warren, M. O. (2022). The sack of Rome. DigiCat.
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