THE STATE AND COMMON GOOD IN THOMAS AQUINAS’ PHILOSOPHY

Abstract

Since time immemorial, the idea of State and what amounts to common good in a sociopolitical order remains one of the most contested issues among philosophers. Thomas Aquinas, an Aristotelian and a Christian Theologian posit that one of the natural goods to which human beings are inclined is to live in society, which must be established, built and maintained by human industry. This is the ideal State, for Aquinas. The study is a qualitative research and data were sourced from primary and secondary sources. The study employs the expository and evaluative methods of research. The expository method exposes what constitutes the State and Common Good for Aquinas while the evaluative method examines the concept and presents a value judgment on same. The study found that the ideal point of departure for one of the most important teachings of Thomistic political philosophy is the political nature of man which is a view taken primarily from the first book of Aristotle’s Politics. Aquinas, like Aristotle, opines that the state emerges from the needs and aspirations of human nature itself. The state develops from other lower societies including both the family and the village, geared towards achieving a common good and in his view, like Aristotle, the good is what all things desire. The common good include such things as protecting life, preserving the state, and promoting peace. The study concludes that the common good attainable in political community is thus a complex good attainable only if the state’s rulers, its families, and its individual citizens all perform their roles and responsibilities.