PRUDENCE DICTATES A MONARCH FOR THE REPUBLIC:

McCormick's scholarly study of De Regno argues that Thomas intended to provide a pedagogical tool--not a treatise--for the "intellectual and moral edification" of a head of state. The text, he notes, is an example of the practical application of theology. The author of The Christian Structure of Politics, a Jesuit priest and political scientist at St. Louis University, contends that the writing of De Regno was a political act by Thomas intended to win favor from the Cypriot king on behalf of his Dominican religious order whose missions were expanding into the Levant. 

McCormick disputes the claim that Thomas wrote a book of political theology, since appeals to history far outnumber scriptural references to kingship. Scripture by no means uniformly praises monarchy, and Aristotle, upon whom Thomas relies heavily, recognized the legitimacy of alternative forms of government. The author singles out for praise Robert Kraynak, whose scholarship locates where Thomas approves of various regimes based on prudential considerations. In other words, all legitimate political systems have strengths and weaknesses. Why then does Thomas favor monarchy uncritically in De Regno? The author contends that he "wants to predispose the king to take the duties of his royal office seriously." By exalting the kingly office, says McCormick, Thomas is deepening the king's obligations to justice. "[H]is elevation of monarchy is a rhetorical strategy, not a philosophical blindspot."

Because politics is a natural activity, the king is not a minister of the church though he is a minster of God (Rom 13:1) and therefore subject to God. According to Thomas, just kings are minsters of God when they serve the common good. He follows Aristotle by elevating the nobility of politics beyond anything St. Augustine said in The City of God, in which the government is described as nothing more than a band of robbers. That being said, Thomas's indictment of tyranny can be interpreted as a concession to Augustine's darker vision of politics. Thomas knows that tyrants use fear and excessive force against their people to accumulate power and personal wealth. While the proper response is not tyrannicide, he admits that such unstable regimes are often overthrown. We should not expect perfection, however. Even the best regimes are flawed. An accurate understanding of human nature guards against political utopianism. 

One of the achievements of Christianity was to secure the independence of the church from the state. The final spiritual end of man--beatitude--is the responsibility of the church, a "distinct spiritual government," not the state. On matters of religion, writes Thomas, "kings must be subject to priests." Thus we are to give Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's (Mk 12:17). There is no explicit relationship between church and state prescribed in De Regno. This, says McCormick, allows Aquinas to "valorize the integrity of politics" for the king, but also to emphasize the "superiority of the church" regardless of the political conditions.

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