St. Augustine and the Theory of Just WarThe decline of the Roman Empire gave rise to two problems, which combined to form one of the most perplexing philosophical questions of late antiquity. On the one hand, Rome found itself under constant military threat as various tribes from the north and east encroached along its borders to fill the power vacuum left by the receding Empire. On the other hand, adherents to the Empire's new official faith - Christianity - found themselves without clear guidance as to what military roles their faith would permit; the death of the apostles left them without revelatory guidance, and the New Testament writings were not definitive on the subject. The question, then, became: "Can a Christian answer the empire's call to military duty and still answer a clear conscience before God?" Fifth-century philosopher, St Augustine of Hippo, sought to provide a solution to the two problems. His approach formed the foundation of the 'just war' tradition, which has had enormous influence upon moral-philosophical thought on military issues in the West ever since. This major new study identifies the fundamental Augustinian premises and evaluates them in light of historical, neo-Platonic, and Christian contexts. It also identifies the effect of the Augustinian legacy upon medieval and modern philosophical reflections on the nature of warfare and on how war might be waged justly and morally. |
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Page ix
... human' ones. As a result, the prism through which the West tends to view the world bears the unmistakable hallmarks of Augustinism. These hallmarks include a fascination with questions related to the emergence of order out of chaos ...
... human' ones. As a result, the prism through which the West tends to view the world bears the unmistakable hallmarks of Augustinism. These hallmarks include a fascination with questions related to the emergence of order out of chaos ...
Page 7
... human experience requires , by defini- tion , the adoption of some perspective , some frame of reference that inevitably will accentuate certain features of the phenomenon at the expense of others . This cannot be helped . The best that ...
... human experience requires , by defini- tion , the adoption of some perspective , some frame of reference that inevitably will accentuate certain features of the phenomenon at the expense of others . This cannot be helped . The best that ...
Page 10
... human flourishing – in short, a just and lasting peace – must be the end toward which the war is fought. These nine principles, or similar expressions of them in different combina- tions, traditionally are taken to specify the ...
... human flourishing – in short, a just and lasting peace – must be the end toward which the war is fought. These nine principles, or similar expressions of them in different combina- tions, traditionally are taken to specify the ...
Page 14
... human race . According to Cicero , human flourishing simply would not be possible if the state ceased to exist . Hence , the death of any individual is less to be lamented than the extinction of the state : ' [ T ] here is some ...
... human race . According to Cicero , human flourishing simply would not be possible if the state ceased to exist . Hence , the death of any individual is less to be lamented than the extinction of the state : ' [ T ] here is some ...
Page 18
... human life, which would be utterly illegal and immoral if they committed the acts in a private capacity.) Good faith Of paramount importance to Cicero in the conduct of a just war is the main- tenance of good faith with the enemy. If a ...
... human life, which would be utterly illegal and immoral if they committed the acts in a private capacity.) Good faith Of paramount importance to Cicero in the conduct of a just war is the main- tenance of good faith with the enemy. If a ...
Contents
1 | |
14 | |
3 Augustines JustWar Theory | 44 |
4 NeoPlatonism and the Augustinian Just War | 92 |
5 Christianity and the Augustinian Just War | 121 |
6 Augustines Theory and Beyond | 161 |
Bibliography | 180 |
Index | 191 |
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Common terms and phrases
Ambrose Amorites Ante-Nicene Fathers army Augus Augustine argues Augustine takes Augustine's just-war theory Augustinian authority Bainton barbarians bellum principle Book of Psalms Catholic cause Christ Christian Church Cicero Cirta citizens City of God claim comparative justice considered defence doctrine Donatist earthly city enemy evil example exists fact faith Fathers Faustus the Manichaean fight Gilson God’s Hence hierarchy History human Ibid injustice James Turner Johnson Jesus jus ad bellum jus in bello justified kind Letter Lord's Sermon Manichæan means merely moral Moses nation nature Neo-Platonic Nevertheless NPNF VII NPNFI Old Testament one’s pacifist Patristic writers peace philosophical Plato Plotinus political position Princeton problem Psalms punishment reason Reply to Faustus result right intention righteous Roman Empire Rome says Augustine Scriptures soldiers sovereign specifically temporal things tine tion Translated true justice ultimate University Press violence violent action virtue wage wars fought writings York