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Strauss’s Machiavelli and Dostoyevsky’s Grand Inquisitor1 3 5who counseled him on what he had to counsel the people,” 67 as well asMachiavelli’s references to the manipulation of the Aruspices by the Romanpriests, 68 indicate that he regards religion as a human invention the purposeof which is the control of the vulgar multitude. Moreover, Strauss arguesthat Machiavelli does not make any distinction between paganism and biblicalreligion, viewing Moses as just another legislator who made use of afictional religious authority in order to impose new institutions. 69 Machiavelliargues that “religion” is “a thing altogether necessary” in order “to maintaina civilization,” and “there was never any orderer of extraordinary laws fora people who did not have recourse to God, because otherwise they wouldnot have been accepted.” For, although “a prudent individual” understandsthe importance of “many goods,” these “do not have in themselves evidentreasons with which one can persuade others.” 70 If taken for granted, Machiavelli’sstatement apparently contradicts Strauss’s interpretation of him as anEnlightenment thinker who as such wants to undermine religion by popularizingphilosophy. And given Machiavelli’s belief that nothing essentialchanges in the order of human things, the interpretation according to whichhe considers religion a necessity only in the early stages of human historyalso seems to be excluded. Whether we follow Strauss’s interpretation, andread this passage in the Discourses as one of the instances in which Machiavellihides his true intentions, or prefer to see in Machiavelli somebody whobelieved that religion will always be socially necessary, is of little importancefor the purpose of this article. What interests us here is Machiavelli’s beliefthat religion is a “useful falsehood” and the fact that, as stressed by Strauss,“Machiavelli has no moral or other objections to pious fraud.” 71 Moreover,as will be demonstrated in what follows, if we accept that for Machiavellireligion will always be socially necessary, for him, there is one religion inparticular, namely Christianity, which proves to be socially detrimental.For Machiavelli, the Roman religion was the foundation of Roman republicanvirtue, and in particular, of Roman military virtue. The loss of that virtueis the main explanation for Italy’s state of decadence and servitude, the overcomingof which represents Machiavelli’s goal. The decline in virtue resultsfrom a decline in religiosity and this in turn is caused by the scandalizing67Machiavelli, Discourses, 1.11.68Ibid., 1.14.69Strauss, Thoughts on Machiavelli, 51, 205.70Machiavelli, Discourses, 1.11.71Strauss, Thoughts on Machiavelli, 168.