Augustine of Hippo

Within the Confessions St. Augustine divides his thoughts up into various sections of his life. Two sections that spoke out more than the rest were firstly the topic of his dear friend who had passed away; the next was that of the consolation in others. St. Augustine pondered on the memories that he had shared with his fellow friend along with the grieving process that encompassed death. He looked to God to help him cope with the loss as well as the fluctuating emotions that entailed. As humans,…

Under the enlightenment of conversion Saint Augustine opens up his famous autobiography, Confessions, with an exclamation to God, “you have made us for yourself, and our heart is restless until it rests in you” (I. i. 1). The sentiment, while spoken to the Lord, is really directed at the readers on whom he hopes to impart his wisdom. Starting from his physical birth on Earth and ending with his spiritual birth into Christianity, St. Augustine weaves together a narrative in nine books using…

The Rule of St. Augustine Applied to Dorm Living The dorms of St. Norbert College mirror the dynamics and interaction found in a small community. Many bonds are forged in the lower classmen housing and these often times harbor everlasting friendships that stand the test of time. However, this is not always the case. Especially in freshmen housing, many quarrels arise between residents as well as RAs. In attempt to steer away from such hazards, I am in search of a plan of action that would build…

Saint Augustine opened my eyes into realizing how important religious beliefs and the prospect of sacred living. He not only spoke about God's Grace and the search for God's love, but the way spiritual wisdom can approach us or make our lives much better. Augustine was going through rough times before encountering God's path, however he never gave up his religious beliefs. As days go by for me, I question myself if I believe just like Saint Augustine did. At the end of the day, I believe!…

Augustine places his response to the Fall of Rome in his most influential exposition, The City of God. The origin of The City of God starts out with creation, and Augustine shows how God’s final goal is to return man to his original state of perfection and complete the City of God with heaven. God uses many instruments throughout history to achieve his ultimate goal of bringing men back to the garden and into the City of God, one of them being war. Consequently, Augustine provides a detailed…

Predestination The concept of salvation for Augustine was an idea in which human free will had practically no place. He believed that a predestined eventual return to the Lord was a gift that He extends to all since we are compulsive sinners from which we have no control unless He rescues us from it. Here Augustine, again, refers back to the Fall for this concept, believing that because of this, all humans are inherently evil and God alone, by His grace saves from eternal death.…

Augustine, a Saint for Our Times. Today we see that selfishness is one of the biggest impediments for some people to become members of the Church. We see that there some people that are very self-absorbed and self-important. They care for no one, but themselves and their own personal gratification. This gratification comes in many forms, but the most prevalent, in this hookup culture, is sex. This is exactly why Saint Augustine is a saint for our day. Saint Augustine had the same…

In Augustine “Confessions” he explains in a different perspective or angle that disordered love is a sin in terms of bad actions, it is love out of order. We need to discern good from bad thoughts. Augustine emphasizes in we should find satisfaction in God alone, everything good we do should revolve around God and nothing else. We should not create idols within ourselves or love other things more than God. Augustine defines “Idol” as “anything you love more than God or rest your heart in other…

Confessions starts off by Rousseau telling us how he grew up in Geneva, Switzerland. Even though he was a bit of a trouble maker he was very kind at heart. His dad also has a knack for getting in trouble and when he get into trouble with the law, that forces his dad to flee Geneva forcing Rousseau to have to move in with his cousin to study Latin and build illegal aqueducts. Rousseau tries his hand at a few professions as an apprentice, but he's just not a fan of the working life. A mysterious…

St. Augustine" Augustine develops a image of what a true friend is and how he once had the truest friendship but it didn't last and was replaced with grief instead. In the text Augustine states " My heart was black with grief." (Confessions of St. Augustine, section, IV) what I assume Augustine is saying is that the only emotion he could feel is grief because losing his friend was a difficult time for him especially since Augustine and his friend were not on speaking terms and then Augustine…