A Christian’s Accent to Heaven “You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” A Christian’s whole life is centered around the incomprehensible, around the Divine creator and around that which he must strive for but, ultimately, can never attain on his own. This is a central theme for Augustine “For what is like to your Word, our Lord, who abides in Himself forever, yet grows not old and makes all things new!” This theme of striving for that which is out of our reach is central to the Confessions and in book nine Augustine relates his exploration of this topic alongside his mother.
There we talked together, she and I alone in deep joy . . . we were discussing in the presence of Truth, which You are . . . But with the mouth of our heart we panted for the high waters of Your fountain, the fountain of the life which is with …show more content…
But this was not in vain; Augustine says that he and Monica left “the first fruits of our spirit bound to it” finishing the themes set down before. Once you have prepared your garden and panted after the Word, if you truly seek after him, like one who is thirsty for the water of life, you will be left with a seed both in your garden and the fruits of your labor attached to Him. But this is not the end for Augustine; the last things necessary is an interior silence, one allows us to hear God speak to us directly “not by them but by Himself”. The ascent at Ostia is a crucial moment for Augustine; it is there that he fully embraces his Catholicism, a moment long awaited by Monica, and it is there that he learns the full extent of his mission on earth. Again, the ascent is important as it gives us insight into how Augustine will approach his learning of Christian Theology for the rest of his life. “Such thoughts I uttered, though not in that order or in those actual words; but You know, O Lord, . . on that day when we
There we talked together, she and I alone in deep joy . . . we were discussing in the presence of Truth, which You are . . . But with the mouth of our heart we panted for the high waters of Your fountain, the fountain of the life which is with …show more content…
But this was not in vain; Augustine says that he and Monica left “the first fruits of our spirit bound to it” finishing the themes set down before. Once you have prepared your garden and panted after the Word, if you truly seek after him, like one who is thirsty for the water of life, you will be left with a seed both in your garden and the fruits of your labor attached to Him. But this is not the end for Augustine; the last things necessary is an interior silence, one allows us to hear God speak to us directly “not by them but by Himself”. The ascent at Ostia is a crucial moment for Augustine; it is there that he fully embraces his Catholicism, a moment long awaited by Monica, and it is there that he learns the full extent of his mission on earth. Again, the ascent is important as it gives us insight into how Augustine will approach his learning of Christian Theology for the rest of his life. “Such thoughts I uttered, though not in that order or in those actual words; but You know, O Lord, . . on that day when we