Confessions by St. Augustine - Book Report/Review Example

Confessions by St. Augustine St. Augustine serves as one of the most influential personalities belonging to the very initial Christian history, whose noble works and services have left indelible impressions on the growth and popularity of the faith he remained dedicated and committed to since his early youth to the rest of his life. He embraced the faith and devoted his life for Christianity at the time when the faith was virtually in its budding particularly in the vast deserts of Africa, and the overwhelming majority of the region viewed the newly introduced religion as perversion to the prevailing paganism had been in vogue for centuries in Africa. He has depicted a detailed account of his conversion from paganism to Christianity in his magnificent Confessions, which is revered as one of the most sacred philosophical treatises of the religion. The book discusses the heavenly blessings upon the young Augustine, in the form of some sonorous tone, which filled his heart with spiritual light. Consequently, he surrendered his adherence to paganism, in order to adopt the true path of glory and righteousness. The book reveals the intensity of love he maintained for God, the Creator of the universe, and His profound mercies and bounties, which saved him from going astray from the right path God has selected for the chosen people. Apparently an autobiography that throws light on various aspects of his life, the Confessions appears to be more an intellectual and spiritual treatise than an ordinary story about the life and achievements attributed to the author. Consists of thirteen volumes, the work narrates the birth place and childhood period of the author. Augustine describes that he was born to pagan father and Christian mother in the state of Numidia (modern Algeria) by 354 A.D (10). St. Augustine had very liberal ideas about life. The book has been decorated with the pageant flowers of wisdom and glory that narrates the tale of bounties the deity bestows upon humans. In the beginning pages, the author expresses his deep feelings of gratitude to the Lord by praising His countless attributes (8-9). Augustine declares God as the source of all powers and glories existing in the universe, and views the human beings mere ordinary beings, which seek the support of the Lord while undergoing problems and difficulties as well as at the need of the hour. Augustine confesses that he adopted the religious beliefs of his father, and had no charm in the faith his mother used to follow. However, being an intelligent and talented student, he was appreciated as an intellectual and brilliant student containing profound imagination and outstanding proficiency in learning. The author has vast knowledge about renowned philosophers and poets of ancient eras, and had studied Cicero’s Hortensius, which had imperative influence on his mind (13). Augustine was not satisfied with paganism altogether, and was looking for some change that could provide him with spiritual relief. As a result, the young man converted to Manichaean when he was twenty years old (15). Somehow, embracing new religion did not bring the glad tidings of mental and spiritual peace to him, and he carried on pondering on the realities of life and universe. St. Augustine had developed great taste for rhetoric, and he also obtained command over the discipline. It was the era when poetry used to be an essential part of every syllabus. The author was selected as a rhetoric teacher in order to coach the children during his stay in Carthage and Rome. The author was successful in getting introduced at the Royal Court of Milan eventually, where he had been appointed to teach the children belong to the royal family (20). Augustine felt himself as financially independent and secure while living in Milan. However, there was some unquenchable thirst that kept his soul dissatisfied. Such an unsteady mental state of affairs urged him to search out the truth and realities of life. On the one side, he found him as a stable person, and on the other side the feelings of leading a life of slavery under the royal commands continuously pricked his conscience. Although his mother accompanied him in Rome and Milan, yet he did not want to share his mental condition with her due to the divergence in belief of both the mother and son. Nevertheless, he could observe the grave concerns his mother maintained regarding the religious beliefs he had been following. She also asked Augustine to study the Christian mythology and teachings, as they were based upon truthfulness and righteousness; however, he always turned a deaf ear to all her demands. He maintains perils and reservations about Christianity; consequently, he did not allow his mother to discuss or impose her faith upon him. Although he remained as the follower of paganism and Manichaean faiths, Augustine always strived to explore the truth of God the Creator. Consequently, he used to call the Lord, and begged to Him to reveal all realities about Him to the author. He sought His pardon, and requested Him to unveil the lights hidden under the pile of ignorance. Augustine made confessions before the Lord that his heart was closed one because of his involvements in the materialistic activities of life. In the same way, he also begged to Him for the conversion of his heart from hardness to the softness state, as the closed and hard heart were not able to feel the insight from Him. He also acknowledged the very fact that no one, other than God, could mold the hearts by diminishing its darkness and changing it to brightness. Although he had already converted to Manichaean, Augustine appeared to be exploring the light that could illuminate and enkindle his soul, heart and brain by disclosing the realities of the heavens and earth as well as each and every aspect of mortal human life. He was determined to seek perpetual protection from the evil temptations. Since he had already discovered the nature and teachings of both paganism and Manichaean beliefs, he displayed his unflinching antipathy towards both the two. The character of the Manichaean bishops brought disappointment and dejection to Augustine, and he declared them as mere the source of evil, which were busy in misleading and misguiding the innocent and simple people because of their knowledge about the natural, physical and social phenomena existing all around them. At such a precarious state of affairs, his mother (i.e. St. Monica) and St. Ambrose came to his rescue, and taught him basic teachings related to Christianity. St. Ambrose encouraged him to listen to the lectures delivered by St. Anthony of the Desert, and he acted upon his advice in the real sense. Consequently, he became disinterested in the joys materialistic life offers to man. However, he was still far away from embracing Christian faith. One day he got an opportunity of listening to the story related to Simplicianus, which made him absolutely fed up of the Manicheans’ faith. The great trials St. Perpetua, St. Fecilitas and their dauntless companions underwent for the cause and uplift of Christianity were enough to wide open his eyes. As a result, he put off the false cloak of Manichaean faith and embraced Christianity. After submitting to the faith, he completely dedicated his life for the cause of Christianity. It is therefore, each and every word of his autobiography demonstrates his unabated love and reverence for his Lord the Omnipotent, Who forgives all sins of humans, and blesses them with eternal bliss and comforts in this world as well as in the life Hereafter. Work Cited Augustine, St. “The Confessions.” 397 A.D. Penguin Press 1961 ISBN-13: 978-0-14-044114-7 Read More