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.E.Augustine seems to be using this material to make theological points rather than sociological ones.III.At the port of Ostia, while waiting to go back to Africa, Augustine and his mother share a beautiful meditationon the joys of heaven immediately before her death.A.Because it is an attempt to describe the infinite, it is a particularly important document in the history of theChristian mystical tradition.12 ©2004 The Teaching Company Limited Partnership B.It is one of the most beautiful passages in the Confessions.1.The entire description consists of one long sentence.2.In the attempt to go beyond language, the images are, paradoxically, physical ones.3.The passage describes the process of going beyond itself by not thinking of itself.4.It is an important discussion of the nature of time and timelessness and, therefore, prepares us for themore extended discussion of memory and time in Books X and XI.IV.After this meditation, Monica tells her son that she is ready for death.A.She had previously wanted to be buried alongside her husband.B.Now she realizes that this is unimportant.V.Augustine describes his reaction to her death.A.He doesn t cry, but he describes his own pain at her death by explaining how close he has become to her.B.Augustine wishes us to compare his response to her death to his response to the death of his friend, earlierin the Confessions.Suggested Readings:TeSelle, pp.59 89.Cooper, chapter 9.Questions to Consider:1.What are some of the most surprising aspects of the life of Augustine s mother, as described in Book IX?2.How do the stories of Augustine s father and mother remind us of the gap between domestic life in Augustine stime and in our own?3.How does Augustine use the death of his mother to illustrate his own spiritual life at this point in his life?©2004 The Teaching Company Limited Partnership 13 Lecture NineteenBook X Augustine the BishopScope: Unlike the previous nine books, Book X of the Confessions is written in the present.Augustine is no longerreflecting on his life up to the time of his conversion; rather, he is reflecting on the present, on his life as abishop.In the course of this reflection, he tells us that his flock ought to know who their bishop is.Thismeans that part of what he is doing in the Confessions is setting the record straight.Augustine is no spindoctor.He is not trying to present a sanitized account of his life, either in the past or in the present.Rather,he knows that people have heard stories about him.(He was already a famous writer by this time and onewho had something of a past. ) He presents himself in Book X as one who is still seeking and struggling,who is still subject to temptations, especially sexual temptations (which he describes movingly), andtherefore, as one whose struggle can serve as a model for the brothers and sisters who are part of his flock.Thus, Book X offers a powerful interpretation of the idea of conversion, not as something over and donewith, but as a continual struggle in the present.Book X of the Confessions provides a unique account ofsome of the reasons why Augustine undertook the writing of this book.OutlineI.Unlike the previous nine books, Book X of the Confessions is written in the present.A.Most modern readers tend to think of the strictly biographical part of the work contained in Books Ithrough IX as what is most interesting and most important.B.Indeed, many ignore the last four books in the reading and evaluation of the work.C.We need to ask both what the purpose of the last four books is and how they are related to what has comebefore.D.The form of the Confessions remains the same: The last books are, like the first, a prayer addressed to God.II.If the most important meaning of confession is praise, then we can look at the last four books as alsoproviding praise, although in a different way.A.The first nine books are only one way of praising. B.The last four books also offer praise but in different ways.C.These books contain more overtly philosophical and theological material.D.But it is also important to point out that the philosophical and theological underpinnings of the first ninebooks are often not given sufficient attention.III.In Book X, Augustine is still reflecting on his life, but now, he is reflecting on his life in the present, as abishop with all the responsibilities that office entails, rather than as a series of events leading up to hisconversion.A.Because he is a bishop addressing his flock directly, he is concerned with misinterpretations that theymight have had.1.In the course of his reflections, he affirms that his flock ought to know who their bishop is.2.This means, for Augustine, that he needs to tell the truth.He is not interested in being a spin doctor.3.He realizes that he is someone with a past and that people may have heard stories about him.4.He is also a famous writer by this time and must deal with the implications of that.5.Thus, he is addressing those who know me but who do not really know me. B.Augustine believes that his confessions can make his readers his brothers and sisters, a model for thosewho are in his flock.C.He now understands more fully the power of storytelling, whether in the Bible or in the works of paganwriters.D.He considers himself part of a brotherhood with those, like Paul or Antony, who have taken a similarspiritual journey.14 ©2004 The Teaching Company Limited Partnership IV.Augustine talks movingly about temptations in the present.A.He talks about the presence of temptation, especially sexual temptation.B.But he does not know which temptations I may have the strength to resist and to which ones I shallsuccumb. C.Sexual images have been imprinted on his mind because of his previous life.D.They act on him in the present, especially when he is asleep.V.This book provides a powerful support for the idea that conversion is not something that is over and done withbut is, rather, a continuous activity.We might easily overlook this idea if we paid attention only to the first ninebooks of the Confessions.Suggested Readings:O Connell, St.Augustine s Confessions: The Odyssey of Soul, chapter 14.Wills, St.Augustine s Memory, pp.3 36 [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ]
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.E.Augustine seems to be using this material to make theological points rather than sociological ones.III.At the port of Ostia, while waiting to go back to Africa, Augustine and his mother share a beautiful meditationon the joys of heaven immediately before her death.A.Because it is an attempt to describe the infinite, it is a particularly important document in the history of theChristian mystical tradition.12 ©2004 The Teaching Company Limited Partnership B.It is one of the most beautiful passages in the Confessions.1.The entire description consists of one long sentence.2.In the attempt to go beyond language, the images are, paradoxically, physical ones.3.The passage describes the process of going beyond itself by not thinking of itself.4.It is an important discussion of the nature of time and timelessness and, therefore, prepares us for themore extended discussion of memory and time in Books X and XI.IV.After this meditation, Monica tells her son that she is ready for death.A.She had previously wanted to be buried alongside her husband.B.Now she realizes that this is unimportant.V.Augustine describes his reaction to her death.A.He doesn t cry, but he describes his own pain at her death by explaining how close he has become to her.B.Augustine wishes us to compare his response to her death to his response to the death of his friend, earlierin the Confessions.Suggested Readings:TeSelle, pp.59 89.Cooper, chapter 9.Questions to Consider:1.What are some of the most surprising aspects of the life of Augustine s mother, as described in Book IX?2.How do the stories of Augustine s father and mother remind us of the gap between domestic life in Augustine stime and in our own?3.How does Augustine use the death of his mother to illustrate his own spiritual life at this point in his life?©2004 The Teaching Company Limited Partnership 13 Lecture NineteenBook X Augustine the BishopScope: Unlike the previous nine books, Book X of the Confessions is written in the present.Augustine is no longerreflecting on his life up to the time of his conversion; rather, he is reflecting on the present, on his life as abishop.In the course of this reflection, he tells us that his flock ought to know who their bishop is.Thismeans that part of what he is doing in the Confessions is setting the record straight.Augustine is no spindoctor.He is not trying to present a sanitized account of his life, either in the past or in the present.Rather,he knows that people have heard stories about him.(He was already a famous writer by this time and onewho had something of a past. ) He presents himself in Book X as one who is still seeking and struggling,who is still subject to temptations, especially sexual temptations (which he describes movingly), andtherefore, as one whose struggle can serve as a model for the brothers and sisters who are part of his flock.Thus, Book X offers a powerful interpretation of the idea of conversion, not as something over and donewith, but as a continual struggle in the present.Book X of the Confessions provides a unique account ofsome of the reasons why Augustine undertook the writing of this book.OutlineI.Unlike the previous nine books, Book X of the Confessions is written in the present.A.Most modern readers tend to think of the strictly biographical part of the work contained in Books Ithrough IX as what is most interesting and most important.B.Indeed, many ignore the last four books in the reading and evaluation of the work.C.We need to ask both what the purpose of the last four books is and how they are related to what has comebefore.D.The form of the Confessions remains the same: The last books are, like the first, a prayer addressed to God.II.If the most important meaning of confession is praise, then we can look at the last four books as alsoproviding praise, although in a different way.A.The first nine books are only one way of praising. B.The last four books also offer praise but in different ways.C.These books contain more overtly philosophical and theological material.D.But it is also important to point out that the philosophical and theological underpinnings of the first ninebooks are often not given sufficient attention.III.In Book X, Augustine is still reflecting on his life, but now, he is reflecting on his life in the present, as abishop with all the responsibilities that office entails, rather than as a series of events leading up to hisconversion.A.Because he is a bishop addressing his flock directly, he is concerned with misinterpretations that theymight have had.1.In the course of his reflections, he affirms that his flock ought to know who their bishop is.2.This means, for Augustine, that he needs to tell the truth.He is not interested in being a spin doctor.3.He realizes that he is someone with a past and that people may have heard stories about him.4.He is also a famous writer by this time and must deal with the implications of that.5.Thus, he is addressing those who know me but who do not really know me. B.Augustine believes that his confessions can make his readers his brothers and sisters, a model for thosewho are in his flock.C.He now understands more fully the power of storytelling, whether in the Bible or in the works of paganwriters.D.He considers himself part of a brotherhood with those, like Paul or Antony, who have taken a similarspiritual journey.14 ©2004 The Teaching Company Limited Partnership IV.Augustine talks movingly about temptations in the present.A.He talks about the presence of temptation, especially sexual temptation.B.But he does not know which temptations I may have the strength to resist and to which ones I shallsuccumb. C.Sexual images have been imprinted on his mind because of his previous life.D.They act on him in the present, especially when he is asleep.V.This book provides a powerful support for the idea that conversion is not something that is over and done withbut is, rather, a continuous activity.We might easily overlook this idea if we paid attention only to the first ninebooks of the Confessions.Suggested Readings:O Connell, St.Augustine s Confessions: The Odyssey of Soul, chapter 14.Wills, St.Augustine s Memory, pp.3 36 [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ]