Justice in medieval and early modern political thought

 Here are 15 points about justice in medieval and early modern political thought:

1. Medieval and early modern political thought was heavily influenced by Christian theology, which shaped ideas about justice and the role of government.

2. In Christian thought, justice was seen as a divine attribute and a fundamental moral principle.

3. The medieval philosopher and theologian Thomas Aquinas developed a comprehensive theory of justice based on Aristotelian principles and Christian theology.

4. Aquinas distinguished between commutative justice, which involves transactions between individuals, distributive justice, which involves the fair distribution of goods, and legal justice, which involves the administration of laws.

5. Aquinas also argued that justice requires the common good to be upheld and that the state has a duty to promote the common good.

6. In the early modern period, the philosopher and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli challenged traditional notions of justice, arguing that the political leader should prioritize the interests of the state over moral considerations.

7. Machiavelli believed that justice was a means to an end rather than an end in itself and that the political leader should be willing to use any means necessary to maintain power.

8. The English philosopher Thomas Hobbes also challenged traditional notions of justice, arguing that justice is simply a social contract that arises out of the need for self-preservation.

9. Hobbes believed that individuals in the state of nature are in a constant state of war and that the only way to ensure peace is through a strong central government that can enforce the social contract.

10. The philosopher John Locke, on the other hand, emphasized the importance of natural rights and the rule of law in a just society.

11. Locke argued that individuals have natural rights to life, liberty, and property, and that the role of government is to protect these rights.

12. The French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau emphasized the importance of the social contract and the general will in creating a just society.

13. Rousseau argued that individuals should surrender some of their individual rights to the general will in order to promote the common good.

14. The German philosopher Immanuel Kant emphasized the importance of individual autonomy and the rule of law in a just society.

15. Kant believed that individuals have a duty to act in accordance with the categorical imperative, a universal moral principle that requires individuals to treat others as ends in themselves rather than as means to an end.