The same could not have been said of slaves in slave-based economies. Similarly, much of biblical law in the Old Testament focuses on rules for property ownership, so much so that not even kings could take land that belonged to a family. As a result, Thomas Aquinas argued that property was a fundamental right, and William of Ockham contended that since property is a right, it is more fundamental than laws and thus cannot be taken away arbitrarily by the government. This type of thinking
