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Why did St. Augustine write The City of God after the sack of Rome?

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Justus of Ghent: Saint Augustine — St. Augustine *Saint Augustine*, oil on wood panel by Justus of Ghent, c. 1475; in the Louvre Museum, Paris.

St. Augustine wrote The City of God (c. 413–426 CE) primarily as a theological defense of Christianity following the sack of Rome by the Visigoths in 410 CE.12

The fall of Rome, which had not been captured by outsiders since 390 BCE, caused widespread shock and prompted speculation that the Roman Empire had suffered because it abandoned its traditional pagan gods in favor of Christianity. Critics suggested that the Christian God was either unable or unwilling to protect the city, leading some to wonder if the old gods had been more effective guardians.2

Augustine utilized this event as a polemical opportunity to refute these claims. He argued that:2
* The sack of Rome was not a consequence of abandoning pagan worship but rather a result of the city's internal moral decay.1
* Christianity actually saved Rome from complete destruction.1
* The history of Rome and all earthly powers (the "City of Man") is of no ultimate spiritual importance compared to the eternal "City of God".2

By contrasting these two "cities," Augustine provided a new framework for understanding human history as a linear, predestined journey toward the Second Coming of Christ.13