Notes 5
Why study the Confessions?
Christianity had a great impact on Roman Empire late fourth and fifth century
3 problems
1. Problem of evil
2. Relation between body and soul
3. Understanding of sin and redemption
All of these are dealt with thoroughly in Augustine’s work
More thorough than any other
Ancient thinker
Philosophical and Psychological investigation
Men go out and gaze at astonishment at high mountains… But they pay no attention to themselves
An examination of the author’s heart – intellectual and emotional
Reads dialogue by Cicero hortensius
Convinces him life of mind most important
About a search for truth
That takes a lot of wrong turns
A confession of sin
About spiritual yearning
An intellectual and a passionate person
Not apposed to desire
Love is a psychological need
I was in love with the idea of love
Both sexual and spiritual
Also a believer in friendship
He is ambitious
Ability to write
Read
Argue
At that time the course of success
Was government service
Rhetoric and law
Rhetoric is the art of persuasion
Writing well and elegantly
Highly valued in Roman Empire
Mother is extremely pious
Augustine’s mother is a saint now
Wants him to be a success which means delaying baptism
Involvement in government service
Which involves dealing with sin,
Wrangling, parties, honours,
Sexual conquests
Gives it up when converts
What bothers Augustine?
Problem of evil
Why does a good God allow bad things to happen
Compared to the works of the Greek writers and philosophers the Bible seems awfully crude
Rhetorically in terms of style
And conceptually in terms of ideas
The Old Testament God seems temperamental
The flood
Kills man touches the ark
Anthropomorphism
Walking in garden
Talks to people
Likes Manichaeanism
Two gods one bad
Christian belief
There will be bodies as well as spirit in resurrection
Platonism
Evil is the absence of something Good
It is the absence of being and meaning
Turning away from the good is the human problem
People of cave
Chained looking at back of cave
Seeing images of what is outside
Forget chained
Think this is the real thing
If you tried to liberate them
Persecute you, don’t want to change
Key differences
Platonism assigns evil to ignorance
Christianity to sin
Why steal pears?
Bored
Not hungry, not desire
It’s gratuitous – not from need
Platonists don’t have a good idea of why this happens as not to do with ignorance.
If human beings are sinful and education not going to help,
What will?
The nature of sin is the pears
The way out of it is the conversion
At least in part
After his conversion Augustine’s plan was to lead a life of contemplation with his friends
Leisure with dignity
He did not follow through with it
Went back to North Africa
Became bishop
Defended doctrine against heretics
Died defending his city of
Hippo from the Vandals
Writes City of God when Rome falls in 410 to Vandals
You cannot live a life of perfection
Becomes more and more against doctrine of perfectionism
Cannot in any way earn salvation
Some saved by grace
Visible elect – know who’s going to heaven
Small community seeking salvation
Everyone outside doomed
Invisible – then everybody ought to be in the church
Ought to be roping in every one you can
Augustine believes in forced conversion
With baptism
Doesn’t mean perfection
Means entering the process
Key points
Opposition to perfectionism
Exaltation of grace
Sin as indelible