Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
JOURNAL OF ACADEMIC RESEARCHES IN RELIGIOUS SCIENCES, cilt.24, sa.1, ss.305-331, 2024 (ESCI)
Augustine is one of the most authentic theologian -philosophers of early Christian thought and a foundational figure in Christian Orthodoxy. His originality in the history of philosophy stems from his effort to create a strong and consistent synthesis between philosophy and Christianity, drawing inspiration from both the church fathers before him and the philosophies of Plato and the New Platonists. It is stated in this synthesis that he prioritized religion and faith over philosophy and free thought, even instrumentalizing philosophy over religion, thus establishing religious idealism. This is true because his religious belief and the specific idea of God that he builds on this belief always come across as decisive in ontology, epistemology, and axiology, which are the main areas of philosophy. For instance, when examining his ontology, we observe that, contrary to the emanation of the Neo-Platonist theory, he prefers creation from ex nihilo. According to him, the entire world of existence was created by God, who possesses absolute power, knowledge, and will, is eternal, and has a personality separate from all creatures. Additionally, our philosopher suggests that existence is a compound structure consisting of matter and form, with an ontological hierarchy in the realm of existence. Forms become more perfect as they approach God and resemble Him and less ideal as they move away from Him and approach matter. According to Augustine, man is most capable of resembling and perfecting God due to his rational faculty. However, despite God creating man as an intelligent being and in His image, Augustine introduces Christian dogmas, emphasizing that man is a "fallen" being. Exiled to earth because of the original sin committed by his ancestors, Adam and Eve, man's nature is corrupted, and his soul is polluted. As a result, accessing the knowledge of truth in this world or achieving salvation in the next world is deemed impossible without the grace of God. A similar situation applies to Augustine's epistemology. In his epistemic system, Augustine discusses various acts of knowledge and types resulting from human intellectual effort, including corporeal and intellectual knowledge. However, these alone cannot guide a person to the knowledge of the truth. To achieve this, the human mind and soul must be illuminated by the light of God. In other words, divine light or enlightenment is necessary to attain knowledge of reality. Our philosopher's understanding of morality is shaped within a similar framework. For him, God is the source of values, being, and knowledge. Since we cannot discern what is good, beautiful, and true due to our sinful nature, we can only understand them by referencing God. All values, especially our moral judgments, can be justified concerning God. Augustine's entire philosophy is based on God as an active agent, building upon a religious idealism through this divine foundation. According to this idealism, politics should also be based on God and legitimized through God. However, when it comes to politics, Augustine compromises this idealism and lays the foundations of political realism. Some argue that Augustine prioritized the church over the state, establishing the groundwork for a theocratic state design and remaining committed to his religious idealism through the views presented in City of God, one of his two essential masterpieces. However, in our opinion, this is not entirely true. Augustine conceptualizes the difference between the City of Earthly and the City of God in his book. Yet, in the final analysis, this distinction remains conceptual and does not correspond to any socio-political reality. His City of God represents the kingdom of God, established only after death, making it an eschatological design. The state that must be obeyed and adhered to in this world is the earthly state. Even in the worldly state, rulers derive their authority from God, aiming to establish God's will on earth. God's purpose in this world is the manifestation of justice, and although states may have different perceptions of justice, they seek to establish and manifest justice in this world. Therefore, every Christian, desiring to live according to their beliefs in this world and achieve salvation in the next, must obey the state to which they are bound as citizens. Even if earthly states deviate from their aims of establishing justice and begin to commit injustice, citizens must still adhere to this necessity. The exception to this necessity arises when the state directly forces its citizens to rebel against God. In such cases, citizens should choose to obey God's commands, voluntarily consenting to the punishment applied by the state. Consequently, obedience to the state is essential in all cases, except in cases of violating God's commandments, and rebellion, even in the form of civil disobedience, is not a legitimate right. As evident from the preceding explanations, it can be stated that Augustine promotes a religious idealism, placing Christianity at the core of his overall philosophy. Building upon the insights shared earlier, Augustine's advocacy of religious idealism is apparent in his ontology, epistemology, and ethics. However, a distinct scenario unfolds in the realm of politics. In political matters, it is noteworthy that he significantly deviated from his idealistic stance, embracing political realism. In this context, he endeavored to morally and religiously justify a non-religious political system.