Marcelina Delgado-Walker Saint Augustine of Hippo is one of the most influential philosophers of the early Christian faith. He lived from 354 AD to 430 AD in Northern Africa before traveling to study in Italy for several years. After his conversion, he moved back to Northern Africa, Algeria to be exact, and became a Catholic bishop. His birth and conversion occurred several years after Constantine had first declared Christianity to be a state religion and played an important role in mainstreaming the religion. Therefore, Augustine’s responsibility was not to make Christianity a well-known religion but to help identify how to best live out the religion. Through Augustine’s teachings and writings, Christians are given a role model on how to
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Augustine was not born a wealthy man and his father did not have any strong religion affiliations. His mother, Saint Monica, was a devout Christian and role model for her son. However, his intellect and interest in philosophy caused him to question both the world and religion in general. Before his conversion, Augustine was considered a man with few morals; his interests included philosophy and sexual pleasures. After spending several years as a follower of the pagan religion Manicheism, he became a Christian after “…entrusting himself into the hands of God…which he was unable to will on his own” (CTT 187). It was returning to the faith that his mother Monica had taught him when he was young that helped give Augustine the ability to trust God and become an influential thinker in the Church. His mother’s influence during his childhood helped shape his teachings on the rewards of a free and open will paired with the grace of the Holy …show more content…
He became a bishop of a Northern African Christian community and dedicated his time to working “against the pagans, the Manichees, and other Christian heretics” (CTT 188). Through his debates with the Donatists, Augustine cemented the belief that unity within the Church trumps any other Earthly arguments regarding leadership or politics. That, along with his characterization of the Sacraments, are foundational beliefs of the Catholic Church today. Furthermore, Augustine’s debates with the Pelagian ideas left the Church with a strong stance on the idea that Baptism absolves humans of Original Sin. While the Church did not choose to take on all of Augustine’s ideas, such as predestination, his teachings gave the Catholic faith beliefs that are foundational to the religion today: characterization of the Sacraments, Baptism and Original Sin, and the importance of unity in the
Augustine was not born a wealthy man and his father did not have any strong religion affiliations. His mother, Saint Monica, was a devout Christian and role model for her son. However, his intellect and interest in philosophy caused him to question both the world and religion in general. Before his conversion, Augustine was considered a man with few morals; his interests included philosophy and sexual pleasures. After spending several years as a follower of the pagan religion Manicheism, he became a Christian after “…entrusting himself into the hands of God…which he was unable to will on his own” (CTT 187). It was returning to the faith that his mother Monica had taught him when he was young that helped give Augustine the ability to trust God and become an influential thinker in the Church. His mother’s influence during his childhood helped shape his teachings on the rewards of a free and open will paired with the grace of the Holy …show more content…
He became a bishop of a Northern African Christian community and dedicated his time to working “against the pagans, the Manichees, and other Christian heretics” (CTT 188). Through his debates with the Donatists, Augustine cemented the belief that unity within the Church trumps any other Earthly arguments regarding leadership or politics. That, along with his characterization of the Sacraments, are foundational beliefs of the Catholic Church today. Furthermore, Augustine’s debates with the Pelagian ideas left the Church with a strong stance on the idea that Baptism absolves humans of Original Sin. While the Church did not choose to take on all of Augustine’s ideas, such as predestination, his teachings gave the Catholic faith beliefs that are foundational to the religion today: characterization of the Sacraments, Baptism and Original Sin, and the importance of unity in the