Saint Augustine of Hippo

Augustine Heritage Institute

Description

The restless heart and searching mind of this influential early church father can offer spiritual and intellectual companionship for your spiritual journey.

Augustine of Hippo (354–430), theologian, priest, and bishop, is one of the most important figures in the development of Western Christianity. He is known as much for his long interior struggle that ended with conversion and baptism at age thirty-two as for his influential teachings on human will, original sin and the theology of just war. Cherished as a model for the pursuit of a life of spiritual grace and criticized for his theory of predestination, Augustine is recognized as a living expression of the passion to understand and communicate the deeper meanings of human experience.

With fresh translations drawn from Augustine's voluminous writings and probing facing-page commentary, Augustinian scholar Joseph T. Kelley, PhD, provides insight into the mind and heart of this foundational Christian figure. Kelley illustrates how Augustine’s keen intellect, rhetorical skill and passionate faith reshaped the theological language and dogmatic debates of early Christianity. He explores the stormy religious arguments and political upheavals of the fifth century, Augustine’s controversial teachings on predestination, sexuality and marriage, and the deep undercurrents of Augustine’s spiritual quest that still inspire Christians today.

Preface ix
Introduction xiii
A Note on the Translation xliii

Part One:The Journey of Faith 1
Unquiet Hearts 3
Keep On Moving 5
Searching Minds 7
Faith Seeking Understanding 9
Doubt and Skepticism 13
The Will to Believe 15
Give Me Chastity—But Not Yet 17
The Will to Power 21
The Divided Will 23

Part Two: Through Sin to Grace 27
The Devil Made Me Do It 29
Our Sins Are Our Own 33
Original Sin 37
The Disorder in Sin 41
The Nature of Evil 45
Paralysis of Will 51
Saved by Grace: The Pelagian Controversy 55
Give What You Command 59
Conversion 63
Predestination 65
Reconsideration 67

Part Three: Intent upon God 69
Knowing God 71
Loving God 77
God as Trinity 81
Jesus Christ 85
The Holy Spirit 91
Loving One Another 97
Friendship 101
Community 109
The Church 113
The Donatists 121
The Sacraments 127
Ministry 131
Prayer 137

Part Four: While in the World 143
Creation 145
Concupiscence 151
Marriage 159
Women 165
Politics 171
Justice 177
War 187
Peace 195
Death 203

Suggestions for Further Study 211
Index of Texts 213

Sujets

• Religion
• Christianisme
• Books
• Philosophie et théologie
• Christian theology
• History of Christianity
• Christianity
• Augustine of Hippo

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 01 février 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781594733260
• Langue: English

Extrait

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For Alina, Kasia, and Patryk
Et quo nisi deo plenus est qui plenus est dilectione? De Trinitate VIII.5.12
Saint Augustine of Hippo: Selections from Confessions and Other Essential Writings-Annotated & Explained
2010 Quality Paperback Edition, First Printing
Annotations and translations for City of God , Instructing Beginners in the Faith 12.17, and Letter 130.2.4 © 2010 by Joseph T. Kelley.
Translations (except City of God , Instructing Beginners in the Faith 12.17, and Letter 130.2.4) © 2010 by the Augustinian Heritage Institute.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
For information regarding permission to reprint material from this book, please mail or fax your request in writing to SkyLight Paths Publishing, Permissions Department, at the address / fax number listed below, or e-mail your request to [e-mail].
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Kelley, Joseph T., 1948- Saint Augustine of Hippo : selections from Confessions and other essential writings, annotated and explained / annotation by Joseph T. Kelley. - Quality paperback ed. p. cm. - (Skylight illuminations series) “Translation from the Augustinian Heritage Institute, The Works of Saint Augustine: A Translation for the 21st Century.” Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-1-59473-282-9 (quality pbk.) ISBN-10: 1-59473-282-5 (quality pbk.) 1. Augustine, Saint, Bishop of Hippo. I. Augustine, Saint, Bishop of Hippo. Selections. English. 2010. II. Title. BR65.A9K395 2010 270.2092-dc22 2010004943
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Manufactured in the United States of America Cover design: Walter C. Bumford III, Stockton, Massachusetts, and Tim Holtz Cover art: bas relief of Augustine, Cassago Brianza, Italy; Kevin Salemme, MFA (photo), Enrico Manfrini (sculpture).
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Contents
Preface
Introduction
A Note on the Translation
Part One:The Journey of Faith
Unquiet Hearts
Keep On Moving
Searching Minds
Faith Seeking Understanding
Doubt and Skepticism
The Will to Believe
Give Me Chastity-But Not Yet
The Will to Power
The Divided Will
Part Two: Through Sin to Grace
The Devil Made Me Do It
Our Sins Are Our Own
Original Sin
The Disorder in Sin
The Nature of Evil
Paralysis of Will
Saved by Grace: The Pelagian Controversy
Give What You Command
Conversion
Predestination
Reconsideration
Part Three: Intent upon God
Knowing God
Loving God
God as Trinity
Jesus Christ
The Holy Spirit
Loving One Another
Friendship
Community
The Church
The Donatists
The Sacraments
Ministry
Prayer
Part Four: While in the World
Creation
Concupiscence
Marriage
Women
Politics
Justice
War
Peace
Death
Suggestions for Further Study
About SkyLight Paths
Copyright
Preface
Friendship was very important to Saint Augustine. He writes eloquently about it in his Confessions and in several letters and commentaries on scripture. His biographer, Peter Brown, remarks that Augustine seems never to be alone. Friends and family are always at hand, constant companions in mind and heart. For Augustine, the love of friends is one way in which we experience God, an important way into the reality of God who is love.
There are many friendships behind this book. First, there are my teachers and mentors. I mention particularly the Augustinian friars Donald Burt, George Lawless, James Wenzel, and John Rotelle (of happy memory). Each one has enriched my life with his particular understanding of Saint Augustine and expertise in Augustinian studies. Together, their guidance, encouragement, and support have made possible this introductory text to Augustine’s life and thought.
Beyond these four men, there is the wider community of friends known as the Order of Saint Augustine. Founded as part of the mendicant movement in thirteenth-century Europe, this Order draws its inspiration and rule of life from Augustine. Its members taught his theology in the medieval European universities. Augustinian friars continue to teach and preach throughout the world today. As a high school student in New York City, and later as a student at Villanova University, I benefited from their insistence on academic excellence and moral development. For a number of years I was a member of the Order. My life has been influenced and enriched by its spiritual and communal traditions, and many Augustinian friars are still among my closest friends.
My faculty colleagues at Merrimack College have been an extension of that Augustinian friendship, especially those who, over the past decade, have worked side by side with me in the Center for Augustinian Study and Legacy. I count these long associations among the greatest gifts of my life. In addition, I have been privileged to serve for many years on the board of the Augustinian Heritage Institute, which oversees the project of translating Augustine’s works into a new English collection of his entire corpus. Patricia Lo, chair of the board, and the other members are dedicated to Augustinian scholarship and to advancing knowledge of Augustine’s life and work. The translations of Augustine’s writings in this anthology are taken mostly from the books in this series. I am indebted to the many scholars who have participated in this project and whose labors in the always difficult work of translation from Latin to English have made Augustine accessible to a new generation of readers.
Another friendship, begun in the mid-nineteenth century, is also responsible for this book. In the tiny Irish village of Rathbran, two young lads, John Fedigan and James Kelley, grew up as boyhood friends. The former immigrated to America, joined the Order of Saint Augustine, and became president of Villanova College (now Villanova University) and leader of the Order in the United States. The latter also found his way to Pennsylvania where he married and raised a family of six, supporting them through his trade as a tinsmith. He was my great-grandfather.
The friendship between these two immigrants continued in their new country, and together they helped the young Irish-Catholic community west of Philadelphia take root. It was also the beginning of a long association of my family, the Augustinian Order, and Villanova University. That acquaintance, four generations and over a century ago, has influenced my life in profound ways, both personally and professionally. This book is a fruit grown from the root of their friendship and from the love and support of my family.
More recent associations have also enriched my life and this text. Without the expert guidance and help from editors Emily Wichland and Michaela Powell of SkyLight Paths Publishing, this book would not have been possible. I am deeply grateful to them for their skill and support.
There is one more friendship to note: the one that may grow from our present association through this text. Though we may never meet in