THE IMPOSSIBLE STATE AND THE CITY OF GOD: AN EVALUATION

Alaa Abdelah Osman

ABSTRACT

This research paper sets out to use St. Augustine’s philosophies outlined in the City of God, as a resource in evaluating Hallaq’s thesis from the Impossible State. In order to legitimize a comparison between the two books, I analyze state properties the modern state shares with ancient Rome, including certain techniques it employs for shaping the subjectivities of its citizens.  This posed a problem to the formation of the Christian subjectivity, as argued by St. Augustine. The formation of a Muslim subjectivity faces a similar threat. I evaluate the way St. Augustine attempts to solve these proposed problems and compare them to the solutions offered by Hallaq, highlight the fundamental differences in the way Augustine and Hallaq conceive of the ideal state, and propose a third opinion in how to reconcile the moral and political.