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TexInternational Politics
Both Christianity and Islam are large and powerful religious forces in today’s world—forces powerful enough that they have caught the attention of the current ruling class, Western society.
TexInternational Politics
The primary difference between Christian and Islamic theories of statehood lies in the relationship between temporal and spiritual duties and by extension, temporal and spiritual authorities. Christian political theory has
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Islamic theology and political theory makes use of a distinction comparable to Augustine’s city of God and city of man. In Islam, this is the distinction between dar al-islam and dar al-harb. These two terms mean the house (or territory) […]
TexInternational Politics
Besides distinguishing between two cities: the city of God and the city of man, Augustine also pays close attention to the differences between the members of these two cities. By
TexInternational Politics
The conception of just war and its relationship to the state is indispensable in both Christian and Islamic political thought. Since both Christians and Muslims set up right authority as
TexInternational Politics
Just like Christian just war theory, Muslim scholars have formulated three very similar conditions under which a just war may be waged. Earlier this week we saw that the first
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Due to the importance of unity among the believers in Islam, legitimate authorization of war is imperative. The Islamic conception of the ideal government has one ruler (the deputy, or khalifa) at its head. This was modeled most perfectly in […]
TexInternational Politics
Before examining the Muslim conception of just war and jihad, let’s take a look at the religious context that has shaped the development of Islamic political theory. Islam is
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The three conditions of just war—legitimate authority, just cause, and right intent—are not unique to Christianity; they are also found in Islamic thought and are most often studied
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Earlier this week I introduced two major contributors to Christian just war theory—Augustine and Aquinas. Both of these men agree that a war can be just only when: it is prosecuted by a legitimate authority, is embarked upon for the […]
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There are three specific similarities between Christian and Islamic conceptions of just war: legitimate authorization, just cause, and right intentions. This week we’ll begin our comparison of these two religious points of view by examining the Christian conception of just […]
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Look for articles in this series every Monday and Friday…. The invasion of Iraq set off a volley of questions about the justifiability of war that continue to be asked as America, and the world, evaluates the continued presence and […]