This crime was committed by Lucretia; that Lucretia so celebrated and lauded slew the innocent, chaste, outraged Lucretia. Indeed, it’s presence in the city saved a great many people. But not to mention this, where can we readily find a man who holds in fit and just estimation those persons on account of whose revolting pride, luxury, and avarice, and cursed iniquities and impiety, God now smites the earth as His predictions threatened? He took steps also to preserve the chastity even of his enemy. Here, the law of sanctuary forbade what the law of war elsewhere permitted. Indeed, to worship conquered gods as protectors and champions, what is this but to worship, not good divinities, but evil omens?
2. What happens when you cross a brilliant, highly detailed, philosophical classic with a lack luster reader with a short attention span?
2 – Part 1, Book 2. to continue reading.
It is a towering achievement of Christian philosophy that defends Christianity in light of the pillage of Rome. ], Preface: Augustine gives the reason for writing this great work. Obviously we named him after Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430). However, he fails to turn the same clear-eyed analysis to Christianity. “Seeing, in this connection, only the foul passion of the one and the chaste will of the other, and regarding not so much the union of bodies as the opposition of wills, he declared: ‘Two persons, but only one adulterer.'”. But they fancy they bring a conclusive charge against Christianity, when they aggravate the horror of captivity by adding that not only wives and unmarried maidens, but even consecrated virgins, were violated. Neither was it love of life that prevented him from killing himself. It is wicked to say this; it is therefore wicked to kill oneself. And bind with ninefold chain. On the city of God against the pagans (Latin: Dē cīvitāte Deī contrā pāgānōs), often called The City of God, is a book of Christian philosophy written in Latin by Augustine of Hippo in the early 5th century AD. Is it not better to commit a wickedness which penitence may heal, than a crime which leaves no place for healing contrition? That's way cool!
Summary: Part 1, Books 1-5 Part 1: Book 1. Matthew 26:10-13 And the Gospel speaks with commendation of those who were careful to take down His body from the cross, and wrap it lovingly in costly burial cloths, and see to its burial. First of all, they must humbly consider those very sins which have provoked God to fill the world with such terrible disasters; for although they be far from the excesses of wicked, immoral, and ungodly men, yet they do not judge themselves so clean removed from all faults as to be too good to suffer for these even temporal ills.
Augustine shows that the pagan religion of the Romans was responsible in its own way for the cracks that lead to their downfall. Know then, you who are ignorant of this, and you who feign ignorance be reminded, while you murmur against Him who has freed you from such rulers, that the scenic games, exhibitions of shameless folly and license, were established at Rome, not by men's vicious cravings, but by the appointment of your gods. But let this city bear in mind, that among her enemies lie hidden those who are destined to be fellow citizens, that she may not think it a fruitless labor to bear what they inflict as enemies until they become confessors of the faith. That’s it for book 1. There is Virgil, who is read by boys, in order that this great poet, this most famous and approved of all poets, may impregnate their virgin minds, and may not readily be forgotten by them, according to that saying of Horace.
He belabors these points, but then goes on to a treatise on Christian theology which sets a decided uncompromising tone. Even the good need to be weaned away from their love of temporal things and comfort, and they need to learn to speak up against evil (sometimes they refrain because they don’t want to lose temporal advantages or be rejected).
Augustine writes in response to attacks on Christianity for which the decline of the Roman Empire is being increasingly blamed. Box 222, Kulpsville, PA 19443. is one of the most influential works in the history of literature. It is He who has permitted you, ungrateful as you are, to escape the sword of the enemy, by calling yourselves His servants, or by finding asylum in the sacred places of the martyrs.
Don't care to. What I decided to do was, in the space between each chapter, write in a one or two sentence summary of that chapter.
If, however, they preferred torture to the surrender of the mammon of iniquity, then I say they were not good men.
I've read most of the ancient works of some repute, including Roman histories from Greek and Roman historians. Samson, too, who drew down the house on himself and his foes together, is justified only on this ground, that the Spirit who wrought wonders by him had given him secret instructions to do this.
But even their own philosophers have despised a careful burial; and often whole armies have fought and fallen for their earthly country without caring to inquire whether they would be left exposed on the field of battle, or become the food of wild beasts.
I simply can't; it's overwhelming. Well, if this be hard to bear, it is assuredly the common lot of all who are born into this life.
The world view, the intellectual approach, the scientific and experiential underpinnings were so alien to my context that I never found an entry point or a moment of interest. There is no question which she was.
The first half of the book criticizes, effectively, the irrationality of pagan belief. For the body is not an extraneous ornament or aid, but a part of man's very nature.
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This is proved especially by the omission of the words your neighbor, which are inserted when false witness is forbidden: You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. Pronounce sentence. Indeed, Cato condemns himself by the advice he gave to his dearly loved son. To kill oneself at God’s command is not suicide, but one should be absolutely certain about the divine command.”.
For, stirred up with the same movement, mud exhales a horrible stench, and ointment emits a fragrant odor. Why did he not persuade him to die along with himself?
], fled for sanctuary to the temples of their gods, [The Benedictines remind us that Alexander and Xenophon, at least on some occasions, did so. But do they against whom we have to defend not only the souls, but the sacred bodies too of these outraged Christian captives, — do they, perhaps, dare to dispute our position? Moreover, suicide is not a proper means to use in protecting one’s chastity.”.
Who guiltless sent themselves to doom, But what was novel, was that savage barbarians showed themselves in so gentle a guise, that the largest churches were chosen and set apart for the purpose of being filled with the people to whom quarter was given, and that in them none were slain, from them none forcibly dragged; that into them many were led by their relenting enemies to be set at liberty, and that from them none were led into slavery by merciless foes. Those who did commit suicide may have had good intentions, but they were not wise. He endorses the predestination arguments later made by Calvin, and shows a narrow moral view. But for this calamity also sacred Scripture affords great consolation. Romans 8:28, They lost all they had. For if there could be any just cause of suicide, this were so.
Those who were taken into captivity are still with God, and stand in the tradition of Daniel and others.
Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight.
There bondage was strict; here strictly excluded.
For if purity can be thus destroyed, then assuredly purity is no virtue of the soul; nor can it be numbered among those good things by which the life is made good, but among the good things of the body, in the same category as strength, beauty, sound and unbroken health, and, in short, all such good things as may be diminished without at all diminishing the goodness and rectitude of our life. Marcus Attilius Regulus, a Roman general, was a prisoner in the hands of the Carthaginians.
I got enough of the gist by making it about halfway through and then skipping around through the rest.
And, lastly, I must meet those who, when on this point convinced and confuted by irrefragable proofs, endeavor to maintain that they worship the gods, not hoping for the present advantages of this life, but for those which are to be enjoyed after death. But the seductions of evil-minded devils had more influence with you than the precautions of prudent men. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. That weekend, opening the tome and beginning to read, I decided it was simply too much.
Being a junior and having accumulated a lot of religion credits almost by chance, I determined a switch was doable in the time remaining and that I'd learn more of the history I was interested in by making the switch. When I arrived at 411 AD, I picked up The City of God.
She could not exhibit to men her conscience but she judged that her self-inflicted punishment would testify her state of mind; and she burned with shame at the thought that her patient endurance of the foul affront that another had done her, should be construed into complicity with him. Part 1 contains Books 1-10, and Part 2 contains Books 11-22. If any one forbears to reprove and find fault with those who are doing wrong, because he seeks a more seasonable opportunity, or because he fears they may be made worse by his rebuke, or that other weak persons may be disheartened from endeavoring to lead a good and pious life, and may be driven from the faith; this man's omission seems to be occasioned not by covetousness, but by a charitable consideration. The City of God consists of two parts which are divided into numbered books.
Augustine takes the ancient pagan beliefs to pieces by showing that they simply can't be rationalized--then immediately forgets the obvious lesson and tries to rationalize Christianity in order to defend it. But seeing He did not do this, nor proposed this mode of departing this life, though He were addressing His own friends for whom He had promised to prepare everlasting mansions, it is obvious that such ex amples as are produced from the nations that forget God, give no warrant of imitation to the worshippers of the one true God. In Rome, libel laws protected people from being slandered in plays, but the gods were.
But truly, with respect to this, it is not Christian faith, nor piety, nor even the virtue of chastity, which is hemmed into any difficulty; the only difficulty is so to treat the subject as to satisfy at once modesty and reason. For he asked of what sort they were; and when they reported to him that there were not only many large images, but some of them armed, Oh, says he, let us leave with the Tarentines their angry gods.
Augustine does an excellent job (though unintentionally) of showing how religious doctrines do not come about by an organic, bottom up process, but are the products of artificial acts of committees and compilers. And he also shows how large institutions are necessary in order to keep a doctrine going once it gains a modicum of acceptance. For under these tortures no one lost Christ by confessing Him, no one preserved wealth save by denying its existence. For he serves, not one man alone, but what is worse, as many masters as he has vices.”.
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