Augustine, the author of “The Confessions of Saint Augustine”, went through different trials and triumphs throughout the course of his life. One of the most important concepts to analyze is the idea of sin and the effects of sin on Augustine’s journey of faith. Throughout the beginning of his confessions, Augustine makes a big ordeal over sin in his life and what it means to him, as a reflection of his crisis point. During Augustine’s early years his life was preoccupied with the notion of sin. The symbol of his regret and disgust with his adolescent years eventually led to a transition point in his life that brought him closer to God.
The readings from the Confessions evoke a background idea of sin. Sin is important in Augustine’s life, …show more content…
Original sin comes from the first sin, which was the punishment for disobedience, when Adam and Eve were put into temptation and ate the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden. Sin is believed to bring us further apart from God. Original sin is a part of the human condition and the human tendency towards evil. For Augustine, original sin is an attempt to explain the corruption of our good, being that humans are essentially good. I see this as a way to recognize when we do something wrong and then feel bad about our wrongdoing. In order to be led away from the path of sin, Augustine takes a journey towards God. From Book I we can see that Augustine believes that without God, whatever exists would not exist. Augustine states, “Thus you will keep me, and the things that you gave me will be both increased and perfected, and I will be with you, for you have also given it to me that I exist” (1:20:31). I think that this book is trying to foreshadow that God was an enormous influence on changing Augustine’s path of sin, and bringing him towards the direction of better work. In Book VIII, we see Augustine steps away from sin completely and begin to move forward. With the help of Victorinus, Augustine decided to completely devote his life to God, and move past the stages of self-guilt. I feel that Book VIII is a turning
The readings from the Confessions evoke a background idea of sin. Sin is important in Augustine’s life, …show more content…
Original sin comes from the first sin, which was the punishment for disobedience, when Adam and Eve were put into temptation and ate the forbidden fruit from the Tree of Knowledge in the Garden of Eden. Sin is believed to bring us further apart from God. Original sin is a part of the human condition and the human tendency towards evil. For Augustine, original sin is an attempt to explain the corruption of our good, being that humans are essentially good. I see this as a way to recognize when we do something wrong and then feel bad about our wrongdoing. In order to be led away from the path of sin, Augustine takes a journey towards God. From Book I we can see that Augustine believes that without God, whatever exists would not exist. Augustine states, “Thus you will keep me, and the things that you gave me will be both increased and perfected, and I will be with you, for you have also given it to me that I exist” (1:20:31). I think that this book is trying to foreshadow that God was an enormous influence on changing Augustine’s path of sin, and bringing him towards the direction of better work. In Book VIII, we see Augustine steps away from sin completely and begin to move forward. With the help of Victorinus, Augustine decided to completely devote his life to God, and move past the stages of self-guilt. I feel that Book VIII is a turning