CHRIST AND THE JUST SOCIETY IN THE THOUGHT OF AUGUSTINE

Written by Robert Dodaro Reviewed By Andy Draycott

In an extremely well researched book, based on his doctoral work, Robert Dodaro explores Augustine’s thinking on the just society. We find the expected extensive reference to City of God, as well as a deeper mining of Augustine’s thought from his polemical writings, letters and commentaries. All this with great awareness of the cultural context and its philosophical, political and ecclesiastical pressures. This is not an introductory text and would be more suited to the student researching a longer essay on Augustine’s political vision. Its strength, already noted, is its scope and its particular focus on Augustine’s Christology and his interpretation of Scripture as important sources for his theology and pastoral advice. The chapter headings are as follows: Introduction; 1: Eloquence and virtue in Cicero’s statesman; 2: Justice and the limits of the soul; 3: Christ and the formation of the just society; 4: Divine eloquence and virtue in the scriptures; 5: Wisdom’s hidden reasons; 6: Eloquence and virtue in Augustine’s statesman. A final general conclusion admirably summaries the findings of each part of the book and serves well as a guide to judicious reading.

Facing the problem of sin understood by Augustine as ignorance and weakness (ch. 2) we read that ‘[c]entral to Augustine’s conception of piety as practiced by statesman is their public acknowledgement of the limits of their virtue through prayer to God for forgiveness of their sins’ (p. 57—cf. might we consider Prince Charles’ recent wedding confession in this light?). Chapter 3 develops the notion of communication of justice by grace whereby the incarnation is presented, under the dominant influence of the rhetorical tradition, ‘as a divine discourse by which human beings are justified’ (107).

As Dodaro’s reading develops, in detail beyond the scope of this review, one emphasis is clear: Augustine cannot envisage true justice being known or practiced, even partially, without the effecting, by grace, of moral conversion (e.g. 119, 144). Chapter 4 deals with Augustine’s theology of Scripture as a function of his Christology leading to chapter 5’s examination of his understanding of scriptural examples of virtue that, in argument with Pelagius, become models of limit and penitence rather than simple ‘heroes of old’. Rather, true justice requires the true piety of love of God and neighbour and the abandoning of a presumptuous and pagan heroic effort to secure such virtue by dint of individual effort. So ‘faith and humility are the initial virtues required by human beings who desire to live justly’ (217). This fits a vision for the just society rather than merely just individuals by the same incorporating doctrine of the incarnation that issues in Augustine’s thinking about the church. The church is therefore that society that anticipates the future City of God. (There should be scope here to discuss Dodaro’s reading as to whether Augustine really thinks of the City of God as future and merely anticipated now, or finds it actually instantiated now in the church).

This is a work of historical theology where, happily, meticulously researched history does not drive out a nuanced theological reading. Nevertheless, the challenge remains for the reader to reflect in equal detail on our own context so that, in evaluating Augustine’s thought, this learning can guide our need for repentance, faith, humility and love in political thought.


Andy Draycott

Andy Draycott
Biola University
La Mirada, California, USA