Many define justice as rendering each his due, however Augustine makes a bold claim in the City of God that there can be no true justice in the earthly kingdoms. Scholars and theologians throughout the ages argue that society can not exist without justice. Adam Smith the Scottish philosopher, insisted that “justice is the main pillar that holds up the edifice of society.” What Smith was saying is that society needs some form of justice in order to be considered a functional order, even if this justice is not pure justice we still need some form of it in order to function. In order to understand Augustine’s claim more clearly we must understand what justice was defined as to him. Augustine considered justice, not rendering each man his due …show more content…
He says this for a variety of reasons. Firstly, he believes that Christian rulers are inclined to live in a way that sets an example for their subjects. Secondly, the Christian ruler should set his rule in the church as to further its mission. What this assertion concludes, is that while there are two cities, the earthly, and the spiritual, secular government does not always have to be of the earthly kingdom, in fact, it should be led by Christians as examples for non-Christians. Unfortunately, even with a Christian government, we still cannot have a truly just government. As we are all bound to sin we cannot love God with all of our hearts, souls, and minds. However, we a fortunate to be saved by grace through Christ, who truly lived a just life according to Augustine’s model by rendering God his due. So, through being called to follow Christ as a Christian, we are called to live just …show more content…
While we cannot achieve a true heavenly justice, we must try and achieve the closest thing to it, in order that we maintain order and protect citizens. We must keep in mind that true justice will be fulfilled on the Last day. The idea that there is no distinction between good and bad action seems to me similar to the Manichean principal that our bodies are of this world so anything we do with our sinful bodies is not really sinful to our soul. Augustine refutes the teachings of the Manichees in his book Confessions, and dismisses them as purely