The City of God · Chapter
Of God's Clemency in Moderating the Ruin of the City explained
Augustine argues that the survival of the Romans after the sack of Rome is due to God's mercy, intended to lead them to repentance.
What happens
Augustine argues that the survival of the Romans after the sack of Rome is due to God's mercy, intended to lead them to repentance. He contrasts the asylum of Romulus and Remus, which welcomed all criminals to increase the city's population, with the Christian sanctuary in the martyrs' places that spared the ungrateful. The destroyers of Rome, by sparing those in Christ's sanctuaries, imitated the founders' policy, but with less credit since they acted to avoid diminishing their enemies rather than to increase citizens.
Themes in this chapter
Sin, Grace, and Redemption
God's clemency in sparing the Romans is meant to admonish them to repent and reform, highlighting the theme of redemption through divine mercy.
The Two Cities
Contrast between the earthly city's asylum for criminals (Romulus) and the heavenly city's sanctuary in Christ, which spares the ungrateful for their correction.
Characters to notice
Key passages
“It is said that Romulus and Remus, in order to increase the population of the city they founded, opened a sanctuary in which every man might find asylum and absolution of all crime—a remarkable foreshadowing of what has recently occurred in honour of Christ.”
Romulus and Remus established a sanctuary to attract people to Rome, foreshadowing the Christian practice of offering refuge in martyrs' shrines.
Augustine draws a parallel between pagan and Christian asylum practices, emphasizing the difference in motive.