Augustine

The paper has two main aims: first, to offer a general overview about Augustine’s concept of corporeal matter, based on a comprehensive
examination of all the occurrences of the Latin lemmas "materia" and "materies" in his works; second, to discuss more in detail the vexed question of Plotinus' influence on Augustine’s conception of matter, in order to highlight that the major meeting points between Augustine and Plotinus rest on a purely literal level, and to rather point out the significant conceptual differences between these two thinkers.

This article explores the impact of Catholic confessionalism on humanist scholarship by focusing on the edition of Augustine of Hippo’s collected works produced by the Leuven theologians in 1577–8. This edition replaced Erasmus’ controversial version and claimed to provide an authoritative, Catholic text. Yet an analysis of the paratextual presentation shows that the result was a neutralised Augustine, rather than a paragon of Tridentine Catholicism. The editors avoid controversial theology, while silently copying substantial parts of Erasmus’ censurae and marginal notes. Local politics and publishing interests explain the intriguing survival of Erasmus and exemplify the disparate implementation of Trent in Catholic Europe.

In order to shed light on the meaning of John 1, St. Augustine would turn to “that image which the creature is, that is, to the rational soul for a more careful questioning and consideration” of the procession of the Son from the Father. He would do so by seeing a link between the way the mind “beget[s] its knowledge when it knows itself” and the way the Father begets the Son;  in other words, the way a word is spoken by man and the way the Divine Word is ‘spoken’ by the Father. In this essay, I investigate both the way this ‘analogy of the word’ was used by thinkers prior to Augustine and also the thought of the Latin Father himself. I have also added an appendix on the subsequent thought of Aquinas on this point.

This paper was originally presented at the Oxford Patristics Conference in 2019, and is being published in Studia Patristica in 2021. It has been commonly held by Pauline scholars and theologians -- myself included! --  that the factitive understanding of justification (i.e. being "made righteous") originated with Augustine’s Latin misreading of the underlying Greek verb. This paper presents a brief overview of the the conception of justification in Greek and Latin patristic sources prior to Augustine, which surprisingly finds the factitive understanding to be widely attested in earlier centuries.

This article deals with the theory of the so-called ‘intelligible Triad’ (esse, vivere, intellegere) to show in what way this theory was developed in Neoplatonism (by Plotinus, Porphyry, Iamblichus and Proclus) and transformed in the Patristic Thought (in Marius Victorinus, Augustine, Dionysius Areopagita, Maximus the Confessor, John Scott Eriugena),
where this theory was used to describe three main attributes of God as well as mutual relations between three Persons of the Holy Trinity and the structure of the created world and human soul.

An overview of Augustine of Hippo's views about freedom. I argue that Augustine the bishop was one of the first theological compatibilists, who believed that responsibility is compatible with at least certain kinds of necessity and that human freedom requires determination by divine grace.

Deriving from the myth of Narcissus, in which a beautiful youth falls in love with his own reflection, the concept of narcissism was given its first systematic treatment in Sigmund Freud's 1914 essay “On Narcissism.” Since Freud's account of narcissism remains the starting point for most subsequent discussions of the topic, this entry begins with a brief summary of Freud's views before moving on to consider some of the major questions that have consistently arisen in philosophical treatments of narcissism and self‐love. How ought we to draw the line between healthy self‐esteem and pathological narcissism? Given the apparently ubiquitous presence of “the dear self” (to use Kant's term) in human consciousness, what would it mean to cultivate a truly nonnarcissistic concern for others, and is such a thing possible – or even desirable?

Abstract - Roma Triumphans by Biondo Flavio represents the first treatise offering a systematic investigation of the religious, civic and political institutions of ancient Rome, evaluating data from a historical-comparative viewpoint. Observations on the religious structures of ancient Rome show Biondo’s original aptitude for noticing some specific aspects of Roman Paganism, civic meaning of some of its rituals and values, their evolution and influence on Christian ceremonies. reflecting nonetheless a critical position on Paganism and his profoundly Christian perspective influenced by Eusebius of Caesarea and Augustin. Key words: Biondo Flavio, Pagan Rome, religious institutions, critical position on Paganism, Eusebius of Caesarea
Key words: Biondo Flavio, Pagan Rome, religious institutions, critical position on Paganism, Eusebius of Caesarea - Augustin. ---

Sintesi - La Roma Triumphans di Biondo Flavio costituisce il primo trattato che offre una ricognizione sistematica delle istituzioni religiose, civili e politiche dell’antica Roma, valutando i dati dal punto di vista storico-comparativo. Le osservazioni sulle strutture religiose dell’antica Roma mostrano l’inclinazione originale di Biondo nel rilevare alcuni aspetti specifici del Paganesimo romano pur riflettendo una posizione critica nei riguardi del Paganesimo e la sua prospettiva strettamente cristiana, influenzata da Eusebio di Cesarea e Agostino.
Biondo Flavio, Roma pagana, istituzioni religiose, posizione critica nei riguardi del paganesimo, Eusebio di Cesarea - Agostino

Augustine’s Sermon 4 on Esau and Jacob is long (860 lines) and consists of a complex division in 37 chapters. This division makes it difficult to identify quickly and easily the rhetorical arrangement which must have been an important factor in making this sermon a success in the context of Augustine’s struggle against Donatism. This same division has been handed down through the centuries. Once the existing, complex division into 37 chapters is relinquished, it is possible, on the basis
of linguistic and Scriptural indications, to establish the existence of a new, simple division into 3 parts. A frame exists in these three parts that runs from creation (Gen. 1) to judgement (Mt. 25), in which Augustine discusses the stories of (the blessings of) Esau and Jacob (Gen. 25 and 27) in the context of the absence or presence of love (for which he employs 1 Cor. 13). Seen from this perspective, Esau represents the bad people who consciously permit themselves to be separated from the Church through the absence of love (a reference to the Donatist schism), while Jacob stands for the good people, who highlight the unity of the Church by availing themselves of love: by not acting on their own authority and expelling sinners, but by leaving judgement to God and by accepting them lovingly. The new division clearly reveals this message.

In almost all cultures, intriguingly, care has both positive and negative
connotations as in taking care of something or somebody and, at
the same time, carrying the burden of something or somebody. This
article claims that this contradictory use of care is a result of the
historical development of the meaning of care and that this is
a hindrance to understand the meaning of care in our lives. In the
course of its historical development, care has been understood as
a means to an end; either as care for the self or for others, or as
a transition to a higher end. Only in the phenomenological-existential
rehabilitation of care in the twentieth century, it has been examined
beyond this instrumental conception and placed at the center of who
we are. To explain these claims, the article has two sections: the first
section offers a historical outline of some of the main theories of care
that have been developed; the second section explains the novelty of
Heidegger’s and Arendt’s theories of care. The latter section aims to
demonstrate the necessity of understanding care as the source of our
existence, and why care cannot be postponed.

Care; Heidegger; Arendt;
existentialism;
instrumentality; historical
development of care

Quelques jours après le début du confinement imposé en Italie et ensuite dans beaucoup d’autres pays à cause la pandémie du COVID-19, le pape François a invité les catholiques empêchés d’aller la messe à adopter la pratique de la communion spirituelle. Alors, des milliers de sites internet à travers le monde ont publié des explications de ce qu’est la communion spirituelle. Nous allons voir, grâce à notre parcours dans l’histoire, toutes les richesses de la « communion spirituelle » pour aujourd’hui.

Augustine’s recognition of the lust to dominate and how it veils itself in concepts like “glory,” “honor,” and “nobility” are as relevant today as in his own time. Augustine’s deconstruction of Romanitas was done to offer all the people of Rome a greater project in its place. How often do we hear, like the Roman propagandists Augustine critiqued, that the benevolent empire advances liberty and prosperity? Augustine would take a step back and unmask American Exceptionalism and liberal exceptionalism to ascertain whether it really lives up to its promises. In fact, one could go as far as to say that Augustine was the first systematic deconstructionist in his penetration into the heart of Rome, its ideological mythology, and its self-understanding—revealing the lust to dominate, rather than love, as being at its core.

RESUMO Desde a antiguidade, até a filosofia contemporânea, os filósofos têm enfrenta do questões relacionados ao conhecimento e ao ceticismo. Como obter a certeza diante de tantas dúvidas epistemológicas? Santo Agostinho enfrentou as questões céticas, tomando o caminho do autoconhecimento a partir de uma reflexão epistemológica sobre o cogito. Este artigo visa analisar a posição de Santo Agostinho diante do ceticismo. Ele enfrentou os céticos e, para isso, reconheceu a importância do autoconhecimento. A filosofia cristã de Santo Agostinho pode mostrar possibilidades para repensar o papel filosófico do autoconhecimento e a importância da superação do ceticismo.
Palavras-chave: Ceticismo. Agostinho. Autoconhecimento.

ABSCTRACT From ancient times to contemporary philosophy, philosophers have faced questions of knowledge and skepticism. How to get certainty in the face of so many epistemological doubts? St. Augustine faced the skeptical questions, taking the path of self-knowledge from an epistemological reflexion on the cogito. This paper aims to analyze the position of Saint Augustine in the face of skepticism. He confronted the skeptics and he recognized the importance of self-knowledge. The Christian philosophy of St. Augustine may show possibilities for rethinking the philosophical role of self-knowledge and the importance of overcoming skepticism.
Keywords: Skepticism. Augustine. Self-knowledge.

This paper dispels the Cartesian reading of Augustine’s treatment of mind and other minds by examining key passages from De Trinitate and De Civitate Dei. While Augustine does vigorously argue that mind is indubitable and immaterial, he disavows the fundamental thesis of the dualistic tradition: the separation of invisible spirit and visible body. The immediate self-awareness of mind includes awareness of life, that is, of animating a body. Each of us animates our own body; seeing other animated bodies enables us to see other animating souls or minds. Augustine’s affirmation of animation lets us perceive that other minds are present, but Descartes’ denial of animation renders others ineluctably absent. Augustine’s soul is no ghost, because his body is no machine.

The message of peace and nonviolence was believed in the early church until the claim of Constantine's vision was endorsed by Eusebius and Lactantius. Scriptures and quotes from early church writers are reviewed, and thought questions challenge the reader.

The article deals with Rhetoric in Antiquity and the Middle Ages from the perspective of eleven philosophers – Plato and Aristotle, Cicero, Seneca and Quintilian, Rhetoric to Herenium (by unknown author), Augustine, Martianus Capella and Isidore of Seville, Bernard of Clairvaux and Ramon Llull. It also offers an extract from us translated from the New Rhetoric (1301) of the Catalan philosopher, the first translation into Portuguese.

Although the quest for God’s Wisdom is something very personal for Augustine, the paper sets the ecclesiological context of his doctrine. Augustine’s way to the wisdom is not a way accessible to intellectuals only: it is open to anybody who does not remain closed to other man and is willing to love with charity, laid to his heart by God to whose image and likeness he was created. The paper lays the ecclesiological background of Augustine’s search for wisdom and his spirituality. The Bishop of Hippo Regius teaches that it is only through the mediation of the Church, where man can find God’s Wisdom: and the way is Christ himself that allows his believers, parts of his Body, to accept God’s Wisdom as a gift and grow in it through charity. This anti-individualistic way of charity remains a credible way for today where “only love remains credible”.

The paper analyzes the correlation of time and creation in St. Augustine. Building upon researches of recent decades, it subdivides the issue into three topics, which facilitates the treatment of memory as a philosophical and theological problem, and thus enables to deal with the problem of time. First, it is the question about the content of memory, or rather, of its ability to keep some content, which may be called synthetic ability. This question not only clarifies psychological objectives of memory — the possibility to keep impressions, feelings, and images, to bring together and hold whatever experience of thinking — but also exposes any synthesis whatsoever as dependent on the ability of memory to constitute the duration. The second question fo-cuses on the analysis of memory as a guarantee of self-identity of the subject. The human being, taken in her spiritual existence, is viewed by St. Augustine through the Trinitarian schema of «memoria-intelligentia-voluntas», expounded in his treatise On the Trinity. Hypostatized memory is a representation of God the Father who embodies the principle of being within the Trinity. Besides the obvious influence on the further elaboration of the Trinitarian dogma and the doctrine of filioque, this idea of St. Au-gustine reveals an additional anthropological dimension, since the Trinitarian unity implicates the unity of soul, perception and thought. The third aspect conveys the ontological significance of memory, which explicates the nature of creation and its associate mutability. Undoubtedly, the doctrine of memory contains a Platonism, which is inherent in all  Augustinian epistemology. Attempting to clarify the effect of this combination of Platonism and Christianity on the dealing with the problem of time, the author also probes a modern phenomenological interpretation of the doctrine of memoryformulated by J.-L. Marion.

Augustine's account of the conscience is often construed in legalistic and guilt-laden terms. A closer look at his corpus, especially certain works from the 390s, reveals a far more dynamic and positive aspect to conscience, especially as it pertains to the way in which conscience is related to our approach to sapientia, divine wisdom. This study also shows how conscience for Augustine, far from some static or reified entity, is actually highly dynamic, and is constituted by the 'call and response' between God and the human soul.

Oi Christianoi - Sezione antica, n. 27 ----- Avendo spaziato in molti campi e trovandosi all'incrocio di tante strade sulle quali ha lasciato la sua originale impronta, Agostino d'Ippona (354-430) occupa un posto centrale e, per certi aspetti, unico nella storia del pensiero, della teologia e della spiritualità occidentale. Se le sue opere maggiori sono ben conosciute, tuttavia gran parte dei suoi scritti rimane nell'ombra, anche quando si tratta di scritti importanti per l'esegesi, la dottrina e la morale. Proponendo una sintesi dei contenuti di ciascuno di essi, questo Dizionario offre un quadro completo di tutta la vastissima produzione di Agostino, permettendo ad un vasto pubblico di lettori di avere a disposizione uno strumento utile di consultazione e di orientamento.

The volume contains Czech translation of Augustine’s sermones dedicated to the Our Father (s. 56–59A). In the first section, an introductory study on Augustine and the Lord’s prayer is presented. Firstly, an overview of the patristic approach to this prayer is offered. Second, the text of five Augustine’s sermons is inserted into their context, which is the baptismal preparation in Hippo Regius at the beginning of the fifth centu-ry. Third, a summary of the stages of the catechumenate in Hippo Regius is sketched, to facilitate a better understanding of the sermons. A note on the critical editions of the text is added. The second section offers a Czech translation of the afore-mentioned sermons with a commentary. The translation into the Czech language of s. 59A, pu-blished by C. Weidmann in CSEL 101 in 2015, is believed to be the first translation of the sermon into a modern language. A biblical index and indices of ancient and mo-dern authors, as well as the topical index and the bibliography, are included.