Conversion

Does Augustine provide an archetypal conversion story that influences Christian history and theology for the future? How does he do this? How is Augustine's conversion like the "born again" experience and how is it not?

Plato, Neo-Platonism and Augustine

I wanted to add a summary to how Plato and specifically Plotinus, a Neo-Platonist may have had some influence on Augustine.

To summarize the relevant points under Plato's philosophy: Basically Plato taught that the real world was the world of ideas, or forms. These forms were perfect universal abstractions from what we come to know as reality in the material world. The relevant piece for Plotinus and Augustine is that the realm of the immaterial, the ideas is the true world that we must strive for in our mind's eye to realize. I believe that at the heart of the forms was the triad, the good, the true and the beautiful. I can't quite remember if Plato gives primacy to the good. Here is where Plotinus picks up.

Plotinus taught that at the highest level of reality there was the One, or the Good. This is God. But God is completely transcendent, and so it is impossible to predicate anything of him. There is no creation, the world around us is far removed from this one and emanates several levels from the one, like light from the sun. Human beings have a higher and lesser part of themselves. The soul is the higher part and the goal is to seek mystical union with the Nous, or Mind which is a secondary emanation from the One.

Some elements of Plotinus that come up in Augustine: Matter is tends toward evil because it is far removed from Nous. Evil itself then becomes privation. Augustine argued elsewhere that evil is the absence of good and has no reality in itself. This is more or less straight Plotinus. Plotinus had strong elements of mystical union with God, though his thought tended toward ecstatic mystical union. Also Plotinus wrote that to achieve this union one must not look outside oneself because God was everywhere present. This is used I believe is closely reflected in Book I of Confessions toward the beginning.

So the question remains does Augustine legitimately adapt or illegitimately adapt elements of neo-platonism into his Christianity? In other words does it destroy of pollute the integrity of his Christian system?

Augustine's Youthful Sin (Book II)

What the the pear tree episode in book II tell us about Augustine's view of sin and the nature of human depravity?

Augustine and Sex (Book II)

What is your reaction to Augustine's view on sex? (see section 3) How about singleness and marriage? How did Platonism and ascetic views of his day influence his views here?

The invention of the inner self (Book 1.2 (ii))

Philip Cary, a philosophy professor of mine at Eastern University, argued in his dissertation that Augustine was the first writer in western civilization to "invent the concept of the self as an inner space." In other words the idea of an inner world within a human being comes from the pen of Augustine. His book was 90 bucks so I didn't get it and read exactly how he argued his thesis. But in your knowledge of other ancient writers do you think this is the case? Pay close attention to the way he speaks in book 1.2 (ii). Maybe we can keep our ears open to see if this language arises again in the book. Perhaps someone (ehem Pete) who really knows Latin can help us here with the intricacies of translating that passage.

Augustine's Childhood (Book I)

As your reading the beginning of Confessions and about Augustine's childhood, why do you think he emphasizes his sinfulness as a child and youth? Do you think his analysis of the psychology of children is accurate?

Augustine and Plato (Whole Book)

Augustine has been noted to be heavily influenced by Platonism. Specifically it is often argued that he has been influenced by the Neo-Platonist Plotinus. You might want to read a little bit of his work the Eeneads to check on this. Chadwick has said that Augustine uses Plotinus' language to describe his relationship with God.

As you read have you found this to be so? How have you found it? Do you think he is adapting Platonism in a way that remain consistent with Biblical Christianity (a little anachronistic here perhaps)? Ancient Christianity? or has he gone too far?