http://www.web.pdx.edu/~ott/unst111/augustine/index.html

Background notes

Augustine, bishop of Hippo Regius in North Africa (part of modern Tunis, Tunisia), lived from 354-430 C.E. He served as bishop from 397-430 C.E., and soon after his lifetime was considered one of the great “fathers” of the Catholic Church (a distinction he continues to hold). This status was conferred because of his tremendous learning and impressive collection of writings, one of the largest to have survived from the early medieval period down to the present day. He wrote works on theology, morality, commentaries on the books of the Bible, on Christian ethics, history, and a host of other topics.

It is noteworthy that, given this illustrious list of accomplishments, Augustine did not convert to Christianity until his thirties, in 386. Of modest parentage and mixed religious upbringing--his mother, Monica, was a Christian and his father a polytheist--Augustine was raised and educated in the classical Greek curriculum and trained in rhetoric and oratory. He was schooled as a boy at Madauros, Apuleius' hometown. Prior to his conversion, he lived a fairly typical lifestyle of an educated person in the Late Roman Empire (which is to say that he moved frequently from city to city in search of educational opportunities, went to spectacles, and conducted himself as a man of privilege and entitlement). He kept a lover and with her fathered a son, Adeodatus (a name which in Latin means "Given by God"). He was thoroughly familiar with Platonic philosophy and also intellectually engaged with the religious sects of his day, including Manicheism, a dualistic religion first established in Persia and widely popular in the eastern Mediterranean in his day. He came to reject Manicheism and eventually wrote a series of hostile tracts against it. Prior to his full conversion to Christianity he was for a time a catechumen in the religion, a period that typically lasted about three years. He refers to this period in Book I.11 (p. 31). Catechumens could attend services, but were not granted full status in the Christianity community until they completed their probationary period. As bishop of Hippo, his leadership and intellect were widely recognized and sought out, and he has left over 200 letters—some still being discovered even in recent years—and 500 sermons and treatises, the earliest of which date to 386.

Perhaps the most famous of his works was the Confessions, his autobiography, composed about 397-400 C.E.

Questions

(1) How does the first book of the Confessions begin? Why does it consist of so many questions? What do you think is the purpose of Augustine beginning the work this way?

(2) What does Augustine remember about his youth? Is there a pattern to the way he describes his education? How does he describe his reaction to reading about the hero Aeneas and study Greek language and religion?

(3) What is his self-assessment of his shortcomings and weaknesses? How does he assess the "worldly pursuits" in which he found himself caught up?

(4) What does Augustine NOT include in his autobiography of his youthful years? (Think back to your own childhood--What do you remember? Why does it stand out in your memory? Does the pattern of your memories bear any resemblance to Augustine's?)