State

The state is the soul writ large; a just polity mirrors the rational ordering of the just person.

The state is a natural community that exists for the sake of the good life, not merely for survival.

The earthly city is ordered by love of self; the city of God by love of God. No earthly state achieves true justice.

The state is a natural institution ordained by God for the common good, governed by law that participates in eternal reason.

The state is an artificial creation, a Leviathan constructed by contract to end the war of all against all.

The state is formed by consent to protect natural rights; when it violates those rights, the people may dissolve it.

The structure of the state varies with climate, custom, and commerce; liberty requires the separation of powers.

The legitimate state is constituted by the general will, which expresses the common good and cannot err.

The state is the actualization of rational freedom, the divine idea as it exists on earth.

The state must protect individual liberty from both governmental tyranny and the tyranny of public opinion.