Niebuhr Vs Augustine
Reading the selection by Reinhold Niebuhr on his thoughts of Augustine’s theories was an interesting comparison to the other works we have recently read. His views were similar to some, but almost opposite of others. Although Niebuhr and John Howard Yoder are not necessarily representative of opposing "schools" in Christian social ethics, they do emphasize opposing themes that have been hot topics in the Christian world in the past century. Niebuhr states that he does not believe that pacifism would actually work in society. He separates idealism away from his main point of view- what we know as Christian Realism. One of the greatest things Niebuhr accomplished was bringing Augustinian thought back into public eye. Augustine’s ideas had fallen out of fashion among modern Christians. Niebuhr modernized his ideas and brought them back into current discussion. Niebuhr’s Christian Realism is based on Augustine’s understanding of human nature. Recognizing that humans have the inn
Yoder and Niebuhr differ greatly in their opinions on religion. Yoder is a definite pacifist, whereas Niebuhr strongly believes pacifism is not a doable idea. Niebuhr isolates idealism as being when people are loyal “to moral norms and ideals, rather than to self-interest, whether individual or collective” (120). Pacifism in this sense is idealistic because it involves nonviolence for the benefit of all. In world affairs, pacifists believe that tyranny is far less troublesome than war. Niebuhr argues that fascism in Germany during World War II disproves this philosophy. He also feels that nonresistance as described in the New Testament was not only violent resistance. Niebuhr says that on a deeper level, it appears to be unsuccessful in power struggles, whether violent or nonviolent. Yoder, on the other hand, views existence as a community faithful to the kingdom on God should be our primary goal in life. Thus, in Yoder’s mind, we need to testify to complete non-violence by livin
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Approximate Word count = 673
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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