City of God

By Saint Augustine

Catholic-ometer: 5 of 5

Enjoyability: 5 of 5

Having already read (and loved) some of Saint Augustine's other work, I had a feeling I'd really enjoy this one.  It is, after all, considered one of the most influential and famous works in the entire history of literature.  Even so, I was surprised by just how much I personally enjoyed it.

It's not enough for me to say that this book is totally, faithfully Catholic from start to finish, or to say that its reasoning is ironclad and compelling.  All of that is true, of course, but honestly, what I found most amazing about this book were two things.

First, Augustine chooses his terms much more carefully in this book than he did in "Confessions," which is good.  It helps to avoid confusion and ambiguity.  He's still not quite as precise in his wording as Saint Thomas Aquinas, but he is precise enough that almost anyone who wants to understand his words can, with a little effort.  The major obstacle to english-language theology is that so many words in english have numerous definitions, and can be interpreted in far too many different ways.  So, using very common words can lead people to draw false conclusions about what the theologian may be saying.  Almost never does that happen with this masterpiece.

Secondly, I found that the writings of this book reveal a clarity of thought and a very healthy world view on the part of the author, which I found very encouraging.  It's amazing how much you can learn about an author just from a study of their work, and it made me smile when Augustine spoke of human minds, hands, mouths, erectness of posture and so forth, describing man as the protagonist of the physical world, rather than a wretched thing that just wants to destroy everything else.  We get the opposite, and far less accurate view so often in modern culture, that even a short testimony to the contrary is a breath of fresh air.

Augustine's perspective on the world was a perspective on the world that he lived in (around the year 400,) but his explanations are clear enough, and his descriptions thorough enough that I never felt lost while reading about it.  In fact, if anything, I think Saint Augustine has helped me to learn a bit more about the days of ancient Rome.  I'll just add that to my list of things about this book that I was absolutely thrilled by.

The Confessions of Saint Augustine

By Saint Augustine

Catholic-ometer: 5 of 5

Enjoyability: 5 of 5

Yeah.  Big surprise here.  I had a feeling this would be my kind of book, even before I started reading it, although in fairness, I expected that the autobiographical nature of the text would really turn me off.  It certainly didn't, although I still preferred the theology sections of the book.

This is a book written, originally, by Augustine before he became one of the greatest saints, thinkers and philosophers of all time.  In it, he tells the story of how his sinful life led him to the heresy of the manicheans, and how, through careful thinking and intellectual honesty, he was eventually led back to the Catholic Church, and to a life of devotion and holiness.  It's a beautiful, true story.

Then, in about the last third of the book, he starts talking theology, and this is where Augustine really gets to show the depth of his intelligence.  I was thrilled by this.  I'm a big theology fan, and I loved hearing him talk about the workings of the mind, the memory, time, eternity, etc...  It's fantastic, because it encourages one to think on a much deeper level than we're accustomed to at this day in age, and yet, it all makes perfect sense.

There are Christian masterpieces that tell you only about the lives of poor sinners, striving to reach God, and other masterpieces, which tell you primarily deep truths about God himself, and his state of being and creation.  The first can be more instructive, in terms of leading us home, while the latter is, arguably, more delightful, since it pertains to the very creator and source of all delight.  I won't say which is better to read, but this book has both, so there's no need to.

Augustine's story is inspiring and encouraging, and his theology is rock solid and brilliant.  It's heady, intellectual stuff, though, so while I consider it one of the best books I've read in a while, and very difficult to misunderstand, I also can't really say it's for beginners.  It might be better to start with something a bit lighter, if you're not a theology buff.  My personal suggestion would be to start with "Rome Sweet Home," and some basic ancient philosophy, like Socrates or Plato, then move on to this when you've got all that down.