In Book Eleven, Augustine contemplates the possibilities that lay in wait upon his death, possibilities that surely would have come to fruition if he had not converted to Christianity, being damnation and eternal punishment at the hands of Satan an Continue Reading...
St. Augustine's Confessions: Passage Explication from Book III Aurelius Augustine, or St. Augustine (354-430), one of the most important historical figures of the Roman Catholic Church and a major author of its doctrines (Lawall et al.) is the autho Continue Reading...
It was not simply that his body did not obey his will and that he possessed a stronger spiritual and a physical will after his conversion, but that before his conversion his will was not fully sincere internally. He had not yet accepted God's grace, Continue Reading...
St. Augustine and the Buddha A Comparison of World Views Were St. Augustine and the Buddha to have a conversation, they might find their points-of-view quite interesting. Of course, Augustine might feel a bit inconvenienced by having to crouch down Continue Reading...
The first ten books are mostly autobiographical, as Augustine describes in them episodes from his earlier life, and how his position concerning religion and philosophy had changed throughout his existence. All across the book, Augustine refrains fr Continue Reading...
Augustine's Confessions Q and a on Confessions What is Augustine confessing, why, and to whom? Augustine is confessing to God, because he was a public sinner and in order to justify himself as a Catholic it is necessary to confess and in this sens Continue Reading...
St. Augustine's Character as Illustrated Within His Confessions The character of St. Augustine (354-430) as seen within his Confessions (begun 397), which he wrote as a long epistle to God, in midlife, marks a distinct turning point in the life, att Continue Reading...
St. Augustine's autobiography Confessions is an honest, if not severe, work of introspection. Although many of its themes and motifs are outmoded, there are core elements that remain relevant to modern readers, which is why Confessions remains critic Continue Reading...
Thy anger had overshadowed me, and I knew it not. I was become deaf by the rattling of the chins of my mortality, the punishment for my soul's pride; and I wandered farther from Thee, and Thou didst "suffer" me; and I was tossed to and fro, and wast Continue Reading...
Confessions of Saint Augustine Carefully reviewing Saint Augustine's Confessions is a fascinating historical excursion to what it was like to be a believer -- four hundred years after the death of Christ -- who had lived a sinful life but was greatl Continue Reading...
Monica was honored for her forbearance in marriage to an undisciplined, often cruel pagan man. Augustine's father suffers by comparison to Augustine's mother, but rather than suggest that she should have left his father because of his mistreatment, Continue Reading...
God Look on My Works, Ye Mighty, and Despair Carl Jung, Sigmund Freud's seminal student, wrote that "Bidden or unbidden God is present." This motto of his might well stand in for the ways in which Freud, St. Augustine, and Sallie McFague write abo Continue Reading...
Thus while he does allow for some Aristotelian influence of the value of sensory experience so he does not fall back into a Manichean divide between good and evil, heaven and earth -- there is some 'good' to be learned with the senses -- Augustine's Continue Reading...
" When these words of mine were repeated in Pelagius' presence at Rome by a certain brother of mine (an Episcopal colleague), he could not bear them and contradicted him so excitedly that they nearly came to a quarrel. Now what, indeed, does God comm Continue Reading...
St. Augustine's "Confessions" The idea that sex should be equated with sin is a Catholic tradition that has its roots in the writings of Saint Augustine. Prior to this there was little opposition or shame associated with sexual activity, especially Continue Reading...
Conversion of St. Augustine comes about it would seem, as the result of three major forces. Augustine's mother was a Christian and never quit praying for him or witnessing to him; Augustine himself, spent, it would seem, every day of his life, in a s Continue Reading...
Anselm also added the passion of repentance and the exhilaration of praise to the bare texts, involving the supplicant in an intensity of feeling and a deepening of understanding. In the intensity of sorrow for sin, he is the heir of Augustine of Hi Continue Reading...
In Chapter 5, the great churchman informs us that Water is in fact an apt designation for the Divinity, better than any of the other elements. Water possess the unique properties of being more moveable than earth (though less movable than air) whil Continue Reading...
He describes a battle of the wills in the formation of his faith: "So my two wills, one old, one new, one carnal, one spiritual, were in conflict, and they wasted my soul by their discord" (168). Only when he was listening to Ponticianus describe th Continue Reading...
Aquinas argues that the fact that man can perceive himself to be true serves as a validation for God's existence; however this is dissimilar to Descartes impressions of the Mediator who, according to the philosopher, is capable of mistaking that whi Continue Reading...
Saint Augustine's conversion, as recounted in his Confessions This paper will explore the factors leading to Saint Augustine's conversion. This conversion was believed to be the result of an ultimate battle of sexual desire with spirit. Augustine Continue Reading...
Augustine relates the common human condition of procrastination directly to himself. It thus serves the dual purpose of expounding both the phenomenon of procrastination as experienced by humanity, and of illuminating for the reader the process that Continue Reading...
However, when referring to what is God's will and what behavior and actions are considered pleasing to God's eyes, St. Augustine did not specifically enumerate or identify these. Consistent in his arguments, however, is to live life in accordance t Continue Reading...
icio.us, which enable users to publish, categorize, and share their bookmarks Wikis Enables users to create and edit the content of a Web site, leveraging the expertise of online users Consumer Wikis enable users to comment on content, in addition Continue Reading...
Whether the notion of the futility of war played any role in his joining the Trappists is debatable but may have had an impact on his sensitive mind. (Graham); (King, 121); (Royal, 36) The study of Thomas Merton's conversion to Catholicism is undou Continue Reading...
To me, man is shoved into the future where his perfection waits, but which at this time, waits for his apt choices that will insure and accelerate that perfection. It would be anti-life to contradict that pristine urge placed within each of us by th Continue Reading...
It is my opinion that Calvin was not a Protestant, but only a Reformer. The Catholic doctrine of justification by faith is really a works-based recognition that somehow the individual is going to do enough to get himself to heaven. Calvin did littl Continue Reading...
Confessions of Augustine, The Life of Saint Teresa of Avila by Herself, "On the Oration and Dignity of Man," Petrarch's poetry, and Shakespeare's drama "King Lear" are both products of societies in which the dominant religious ethos was Christian ra Continue Reading...
.. she would disclose nothing about the one unto the other, save what might avail to their reconcilement." (Confessions, Book IX, 21) It is certainly true that Monica was patient and long-suffering with her arbitrary son. The pitiful story depicted Continue Reading...
Still, the central message of the book was peace within the self and towards others, although it does also advocate self-defense. The Koran for example states "Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for Allah Continue Reading...
Christ was always present, even before he came to earth, but he waited until humans were able to accept him. The incarnation is still important, as Aquinas would remind us, as this is the ultimate proof of the eternal power and existence of God's po Continue Reading...
Chaucer's "Retraction" and Its Meaning within the Context of the Canterbury Tales The "Retraction," a fragment that follows the last of the Tales in Chaucer's masterpiece, has attracted much critical attention, as students of Chaucer attempt to divi Continue Reading...
Natural Law For centuries the dominant philosophical thought on the issue of natural law was dominated by the Catholic Church's theocracy (Gula, 1989). Natural law is the idea that law exists that is set by nature and that therefore it is universall Continue Reading...
Conception of the Good One of the most critical and central aspects to human activity has presumably been the search for a good life and happiness. In attempts to understand and explain the quest for a good life and happiness, various philosophers s Continue Reading...
God's Existence And Evil Existence God's existence and the existence of evil When considering William Paley's Argument from Design, St. Thomas Aquinas's Cosmological Argument, and St. Anselm's Ontological Argument, one can only come to one conclusi Continue Reading...
Bernard of Clairvauxs on Love For anyone wanting to learn about the simple and complex realities On Loving God, the early writings by Bernard of Clairvauxs present a great place to start. His assessment is written in old style but is pretty easy to Continue Reading...
He clarifies his status i.e. A spiritual leader and a learned person by using well chosen ethos of St. Aquinas, Jesus and Paul therefore puts him forth as a trustworthy person. Also being an African-American makes him the right person to participate Continue Reading...
Donatist Heresy An Analysis of the Problems Posed by the Donatists in the Early Catholic Church Introduction Donatus Magnus represents a kind of Puritanism that has always existed in the Church. The Donatist movement of the early fourth century wa Continue Reading...
