St. Augustine: Knowledge, Truth, and the Path to God
St. Augustine on Knowledge
According to St. Augustine, truth brings true happiness to man. Even skeptics can be sure of something: their doubt gives evidence of their existence. Man can know the truth. In knowledge, there are three hierarchical levels, from lowest to highest:
- Sensitive Knowledge: Perceives objects and their modifications through the senses. This is not true knowledge due to the potential deficiencies of the senses.
- Rational Knowledge: Makes judgments about objects and compares them with eternal models (the ideas, reflecting Platonic influence) through divine illumination.
- Contemplation (Highest Level): Involves seeing the eternal ideas directly, unaffected by senses or judgments. It is achieved through divine illumination and leads to objective knowledge and true wisdom. Truth cannot be reached solely through experience.
Historical and Sociocultural Context
St. Augustine’s life is framed within the last phase of the Roman Empire, which was experiencing decline. The Empire had spread, fostering cultural relations between peoples, with Alexandria as a major center. In the eastern part, Christianity emerged, blending Hellenistic thought and Jewish tradition. It represented a form of liberation for the Jewish people against the Romans through transcendence.
Third Century
This period saw the birth of Platonic Christian thought amidst crises involving political and economic problems, and corruption.
Fourth Century
Christianity became the official religion of the Empire following the Edict of Milan (313).
Fifth Century
The barbarian invasions began, ultimately leading to the end of the Western Roman Empire. This is the era in which St. Augustine lived.
Culturally, he lived during a time of synods and councils that laid the foundations of the Christian world.
Philosophical Context
A number of major philosophical schools emerged after Plato and Aristotle:
- Epicureanism (Epicurus, 341 BC): Advocated withdrawal from political life, valuing individual freedom. Morality aimed at happiness, defined as pleasure managed wisely and the avoidance of pain.
- Stoicism (Zeno, 336-264 BC): Encouraged political participation. Virtue was defined as austerity, and morality was based on self-control. Advocated accepting fate with equanimity, as everything is determined. Happiness lies in this attitude of acceptance.
- Neoplatonism (Third Century AD):
- Philo of Alexandria: Equated God with the Platonic Good.
- Plotinus (205-270 AD): Defended an emanationist conception of the world, where all things proceed from emanations of the One. Man acts as a bridge between matter and the intelligible world. Happiness involves ascending to rid oneself of the sensible world.
Christianity and Philosophy
Christianity draws on arguments from the authority of Scripture but also connects with the philosophical currents of its time.
Augustine’s Response to Heresies
St. Augustine sought truth in opposition to various heresies of his time:
- Manichaeism: Posited two original principles governing the world (good and evil).
- Donatism: Advocated for a separation between Church and State.
- Pelagianism: Argued that man could “earn” salvation through personal effort and works, diminishing the role of grace and the Church.
St. Augustine aimed to combat these doctrines by seeking the truth. For Augustine, seeking truth is synonymous with seeking God. Plato’s influence on Augustine was immense, with Augustine adapting Platonic concepts into a Christian framework.