In his book “The City of God”, Saint Augustine of Hippo writes to defend Christianity from pagan claims of abandonment by God. When the city of Rome fell in 410, many citizens argued that it was Christianity's fault, but Augustine says that blood was on the hands of those who oppose God seeking peace in earthly things. It also compares the city of Rome with the Celestial City to show the differences of true happiness through peace between the two cities. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Augustine begins his writing by expressing his response to people's claim that God is guilty. Augustine says that pagan believers “were more attached to the seductions of unclean spirits,” which is why they “take no blame for the evil they do, but blame Christianity for the evil they suffer” (208). This quote explains why the city becomes corrupt. Because of the citizens' sinful ways, the city's joy is crushed by the enemy. Joylessness emphasizes the pursuit of joy, which, when not focused on God, causes that pursuit to be in earthly things. This also explains Augustine's response to the pagans when he tells them that they "still wallow in sin, even in the abyss of sorrow" (208). Sin gets stuck in a cycle when the wrongful pursuit of happiness causes more sin which causes further pursuit and so on. Augustine says that in God this search is not necessary. Continuing, Augustine describes the only way one can find the sufficient source of happiness: peace with God. He begins by explaining that, even when Rome was under the praise of the pagan gods, the one true God was always in control. The ancient pagan heroes of Rome were moral, and Augustine says that the “splendour of Empire” was a small reward of “temporal glory” for the “praiseworthy efforts of virtue by which they strove to achieve” (212). This reward came from God, but because they praised others, the glory was only short-term. The pagans received their reward and basked in it, so now they “have no right to complain of the justice of the true and supreme God,” says Augustine (212). However, "the reward of the saints" is entirely different (212). While on earth, they suffered hatred and afflictions while defending God and loving Him supremely. This love and admiration was rewarded with citizenship in the City of God, something far more lasting than the pagan reward. Resisting the pursuit of happiness in earthly substances pays off for the righteous. Augustine says that in the City of God "that true and perfect happiness reigns" and this can only be explained as a "gift of God" (212). This becomes the basis of Augustine's comparisons between earth and Heaven. One of Augustine's main goals in “The City of God” is to not only show the differences between Rome and the Celestial City, but also to show how Rome should have imitated the Celestial City. Augustine first describes how earthly citizens use perishable means to ease the pain of “supreme evil” (214). There is no point in alleviating pain when you can eradicate it entirely. The earthly city seeks a limited amount of happiness and digs deeper and deeper in the wrong direction to achieve the truly valuable goal. Heavenly citizens morally use the happiness of earth as a stepping stone to the peace promised by God. The city of earth “has flourished from selfish love” and a “lust for dominion,” while the City of God is “rooted in the love of God” and in “mutual service in charity” (209). Modeling the earthly city of Rome after the Holy City of God makes sense to Augustine. He says that «the only true one: 9781581529999