St. Augustine Political Philosophy - 990 Words

Saint Augustine was born is 354 in a North Africa province part of the Roman Empire. Growing up in the Roman Empire was a major influence on his work. He is well known for his theological teaching on Christianity and developed much of its doctrine. Augustine wrote on political philosophy as well and developed his own ideas on what the ideal state is. Augustine believes that government is an act of God and its function is to allow people to live good lives. The state is a part of Gods ultimate plan. The type of government is not important as the state playing its role to God. The church and government will be the key institutions in society and each will take care of different functions. The purpose of Augustines ideal state is to†¦show more content†¦The state would support the church but not interfere. The church will have considerable power in the religious and spiritual aspects of peoples lives. In Augustine state the leaders of the state would be Christians. The s election of who will lead depends on what the style of government is. The leaders however must be Christians. If a monarchy the monarch would be hereditary selection, however the royal family should maintain a image that they are representatives of God. Doing Gods work would be central to legitimizing a persons role in a position of power in the state. Government officials and bureaucrats should also be Christians to. There should be a level of Christian influence in the state at all levels. Religion should not dominate the state but there should be enough influence to keep it from dividing too far from the church. Legislation and laws will be directed to achieving the ends of the state. The church will be influential in the type of legislation that is considered. Legislation that would exceed the original function of the state would not be enacted. Augustines state is based on Christian themes and legislation would reflect promoting Christian moral values. The law itself wo uld be based on the Roman legal system of legislation of codes. The law would be broken down into different groups according to where it applies. Saint Augustines ideal state would not be veryShow MoreRelatedThe Golden Age Of Medieval Philosophy771 Words   |  4 PagesMedieval philosophy is the philosophy which formed during the medieval time period after the fall of the Roman Empire. This time period was the rise of independent philosophy and the linkage between their understandings with the theories of past philosophers. The history of medieval philosophy is divided into two periods; the period of the Christian philosophy, which included St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Augustine, and Marsilius of Padua. The next period of the medieval philosophy known as the goldenRead MoreSaint Augustine Essays719 Words   |  3 PagesSaint Augustine Saint Augustine, b. Nov. 13, 354, d. 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