GUIDE TO THE PHILOSOPHY 1938 - 1947.pdf - Rare Books at ...

1 28 ETHICS AND POLITICS: THE GREEKS
necessary or obvious part Indeed, except for the perfunct-
ory recognition of its existence implied by the injunction
to "render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar's ", the
State tends to drop out of the Christian scheme of things
altogether, to drop out, that is, in theory. In practice
the State is a factor very much to be reckoned with,
making claims upon the individual's attention and
demanding foe itself an allegiance which is apt to conflict
with that which he owes to God. Now the allegiance
which a man owed to God was in the Middle Ages for
all practical purposes indistinguishable from the allegiance
which he owed to the Church. Hence, the political theory
of the Middle Ages is concerned very largely with the
attempt to reconcile the conflicting claims of State and
Church* Theorists endeavoured to effect a division of
the individual into two halves; there was the spiritual half,
which was responsible to God and the Church, and there
was the temporal half whose loyalty was claimed by the
State. Controversy arose over the question, where was
the division to be made? Both the spiritual power, repre-
sented by the Pope, and the temporal power represented
by the ruler of the State, were continually trying to
encroach upon the half of the individual which was
claimed by the other as his especial province. It will be
worth while to take a passing glance at this controversy
in the form in which it intrudes itself into the works of
two of the most celebrated writers of the Middle Ages,
St. Thomas Aquinas and Dante.
St. Thomas Aquinas (1227-1274). St. Thomas's
writings on politics will be found in Volumes II and III
of his comprehensive work, Sianma Theologica. St Thomas's
philosophy being based upon a Christian foundation, his
ethical views are such as would necessarily follow from
Christian doctrines, and do not here call for special
comment. It is his political views with which we are
concerned. St. Thomas was writing at a time when
Christendom was a whole, owning a unified culture and