St Augustine and classical education Essay - 1029 Words

nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Saint Augustine and Classical Education nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In Saint Augustine’s deeply personal work, Confessions, he shares the story of his life up to his eventual conversion to the Christian faith. His odyssey through life is, at times, one of bitter inner conflict between his intellect and faith. Augustine’s classical education had a profound affect on the way he viewed the world, and eventually had a major affect on the way he approached Christianity. He is definitely an â€Å"intellectual† Christian, and viewed many aspects of his faith from this perspective. Augustine’s attitude towards classical literature and thought was at times slightly self-contradictory. It†¦show more content†¦In book five, Augustine spoke of this principle by comparing two men: â€Å"A man who knows that he owns a tree and thanks you for the use he has of it, even though he does not know its exact height or the width of its spread, is better than another who measures it and counts all its branches, but neither owns it nor loves its Creator. In just the same way, a man who has faith in you has all the wealth of the world†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (V, 95) It can be argued that his intellectual pursuits further complicated his conversion because he was tormented by certain philosophical questions that became obstacles to his ultimate goals. In his youth he was obsessed with counting all the branches, while never seeing the whole tree. At times Augustine asserted that his pursuit of worldly wisdom was in direct conflict with his journey towards God. â€Å"What, then, was the value to me of my intelligence, which could take these subjects in its stride, and all those books, with their tangled problems, which I unraveled without the help of any human tutor, when in the doctrine of your love I was lost in the most hideous error and vast sacrilege?† (IV, 89) Despite all of the negative aspects of his education on which Augustine focused, it is obvious that his schooling was an essential part of his character. Other than Christianity, his education was the most importantShow MoreRelatedSt Augustine and Classical Education1040 Words   |  5 PagesSaint Augustine and Classical Education In Saint Augustines deeply personal work, Confessions, he shares the story of his life up to his eventual conversion to the Christian faith. His odyssey through life is, at times, one of bitter inner conflict between his intellect and faith. Augustines classical education had a profound affect on the way he viewed the world, and eventually had a major affect on the way he approached Christianity. He is definitely an intellectual Christian, and viewedRead MoreSaint Augustine Essays719 Words   |  3 PagesSaint Augustine Saint Augustine, b. Nov. 13, 354, d. Aug. 28, 430, was one of the foremost philosopher-theologians of early Christianity and, while serving (396-430) as bishop of Hippo Regius, the leading figure in the church of North Africa. He had a profound influence on the subsequent development of Western thought and culture and, more than any other person, shaped the themes and defined the problems that have characterized the Western tradition of Christian Theology. Among his many writingsRead MoreSaint Augustine : The Confessions Of St. Augustine704 Words   |  3 PagesSt. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, is a true defender of the Catholic faith with an inspirational conversion story which he shares in his writings titled the Confessions. Published around 400 A.D., St. Augustine Confessions had a major influence on western civilization. This beautifully written and intellectually brilliantly narrative on his conversion, St. Agustin brings to light his personal spiritual journey during his conver sion to Catholicism. Completing his book in 400, St. Augustine incorporatedRead MorePolitics And City Of God : Issues And Medieval Political Thought Essay1717 Words   |  7 Pagesthis paper we have attempted to show the significance of St. Augustine’s thought on the problems of politics as contained in his famous work The City of God. We established that his theoretical enterprise on politics and State based as it were on the theory of the two cities, the earthly city and the heavenly city is that of necessity. In arriving at this conclusion, the paper shows that there is logical and consistent correlation between St. Augustine’s conception of the nature of the universe onRead MoreSaint Augustine: How He Fused Classical Culture (I.E., Both Stoicism and Platonism) with Christianity1880 Words   |  8 PagesSaint Augustine: How he fused Classical culture (i.e., both Stoicism and Platonism) with Christianity In Augustine’s day there were many religions available to choose from some of which had many gods. St. Augustine was born to a pagan father and a Christian mother. He lived a life of immorality until his early thirties when he suddenly took a new path. During his upbringing his parents began to instill their beliefs and way of living which he later began to question. Though his mother taughtRead MoreThe Apostle Paul, Saint Augustine Martin Luther Essay3381 Words   |  14 PagesThe Apostle Paul, Saint Augustine Martin Luther Their impact on the Christian Faith March 12, 2009 The Apostle Paul, Saint Augustine, and Martin Luther have been three very important figures in the Christian church. Each went through a unique personal experience that changed the course of their lives. Those experiences were important to them and they should be important to anyone of the Christian faithRead MoreComparative Essay on Uniformitarianism and Catasophism1386 Words   |  6 Pagesecclesiastical prestige derived, not from Peter, but from the church in Rome. Leo I â€Å"The Great† is considered to be the â€Å"First Pope† or â€Å"Bishop† of Rome. Leo was the first to state the Petrine doctrine outright, saying that he was the â€Å"heir† of St. Peter and that Christ had appointed Peter as the head of His church. He said that all bishops were heirs to the apostles (this was a general belief at the time), and that Peter was the chief of the apostles. The Bishop of Rome was the chief of allRead MoreEarly Civilization Essay621 Words   |  3 Pages-weapons -windmills-various statues -royal graves-many different dances for Gods-Temples -Towers-Belief in many Gods-Cuneiform Records -Hebrew BibleAncient Egyptian 2615 – 332 B.C.E.-Revolved around a Pharaoh-trading -farming -education-Known Calendar -Plows -Wheeled carts -cotton fabric-Sculpture -painting with pharaohs chariots-very religious -many Gods associated with music-Pyramids-Belief in life after death-Hieroglyphics -Papyrus rollsArchaic Greek 800 –Read MoreSt. Augustine s Reasoning For The Toleration Of Slavery2010 Words   |  9 PagesNothing about slavery was considered â€Å"normal† in classical Greece. Later, even deeply religious people like St. Augustine and Aristotle accepted this practice. Norms have changed dramatically since then. The very idea is reprehensible to almost everyone. St. Augustine believes the condition of slavery is the result of sin, and slavery is a name introduced by sin and not by nature (Ebenstein 114). Today, when a person sins, it is something that he or she has to cope with, if they are religious andRead MoreEssay on A Very Brief History of the Papacy1499 Words   |  6 Pagesdevelopment of the practical arts within the education system. St. Leo I (The Great) Leo the Great and Pope Gregory were the only two Popes to be called â€Å"the Great†. Leo courageously confronted Attila the Hun and neutralized other barbaric invaders. St. Leo the Great was pope during the middle of the 5th century. This was very troubling times for the Roman Empire. The barbarian armies were trying to destroy the once mighty empire. St. Leo the Great was a very powerful teacher and