Saint Augustine of Hippo: Life, Philosophy, and Theology
Saint Augustine of Hippo: Life and Historical Context
Born in Tagaste in 354 AD, Saint Augustine lived during the decline of the Western Roman Empire. Following the death of Theodosius, the empire was divided in two. Barbarians resided both inside and outside the Roman frontiers. The empire suffered a significant economic crisis and witnessed the sack of Rome by the Visigoths.
Historical Context
- Religious Context: In 380 AD, Christianity became the official religion of the empire. The influence of polytheistic morals and thought waned, ending religious tolerance. Christianity began influencing economic, political, and legal structures.
- Sociocultural Context: In the field of literature, prominent figures included poets like Ausonius and Porfirio. In Christianity, key figures included Augustine, Ambrose, Damasus, and Athanasius. This period saw discussions on major Christian dogmas and the fight against heresies.
- Philosophical Context: Neoplatonism dominated the Roman Empire during the fourth and fifth centuries. Works of Aristotle were largely unknown. Notable philosophical authors included Proclus (410-485 AD), a representative of the Neoplatonic School of Athens, and Porphyry (232-304 AD), a disciple of Plotinus who systematized and published Plotinus’ work.
Saint Augustine’s Thought
Saint Augustine believed that faith and reason both serve to clarify the truth. As a believer, he considered this truth to be Christian. His work aimed to understand this truth, employing both faith and reason. He furthered the revealed message using concepts from Neoplatonic philosophy.
Humanity, Soul, and Divine Illumination
Following Plato, Augustine defined humanity as “a soul that uses a body.” He established a separation between body and soul. To explain how humans gain universal knowledge, he resorted to “divine illumination.” God, present within each human, illuminates them, becoming the source of all universal knowledge. Consequently, the path of true knowledge is from the inside out: “Do not go outside, turn to yourself, for inside lies the truth.” His work shows a predilection for introspection. Thus, the demonstration of God’s existence is unnecessary for him. God appears “proven” in the very structure of the soul that thinks and loves.
God, Creation, and the Origin of Evil
God, infinitely perfect, possesses within Himself “divine ideas,” the “reasons” or models under which all things were created. God created everything that has been, is, and will be in the future. All beings were produced from the beginning as “seminal reasons” to be developed over time, according to the order and laws that God planned.
Every human being is unique and unrepeatable. Death is personal and final. Humans are characterized by a search that leads them to transcend themselves. In the field of knowledge, self-transcendence leads to the discovery of God within oneself. True happiness lies in pursuing immutable actions, not mutable ones. The human being is also the origin of evil, which is not a being itself but an absence of being. Therefore, evil cannot originate in God.
The Two Cities
Augustine believed that in every society, there are two cities: those who love themselves to the contempt of God, and those who love God to the contempt of themselves. However, these two cities cannot be identified with the state and the Church, respectively. All states are “earthly states,” even when governed by Christian emperors. As such, they must focus exclusively on organizing the peaceful coexistence of citizens and ensuring everyone has access to temporal goods.