As I write this on Friday, it is August 28, the Feast Day of St. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo (in modern Algeria), who lived in the 4th and 5th centuries. It can not be overstated the influence that this African saint has had on all theological and spiritual thought. He is unique in that his writing shaped both Catholic and Protestant theology. His spirituality is embedded in many prayers in our Anglican tradition.
Many people know Augustine through his book, Confessions, in which he tells the story of his life. Looking back, we may see an old, dry, scholarly saint of little interest. However, in today’s world of social media, his life would keep people enthralled. He famously prayed, “O God, save me, but not yet,” because he was not ready to let go of the things he though gave him pleasure. His theology also was not a cerebral exercise, but a working out of how God was at work amid the challenges and instabilities of a world faced with plague, war, and division.
His mother, Monnica (also a saint), was a Christian who loved him and taught him the Christian faith. His father was a Roman official and a pagan. Eventually, the Holy Spirit brought the seeds Monica planted in her son to full blossom and Augustine’s life was transformed. After he surrendered to Christianity, he was baptized by Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, his mentor, and also a saint! He then used his scholarly training and great intellect for the teaching of the Gospel.
His writings endure to this day, with many college students encountering Confessions or City of God at some point. His treatise on the Holy Trinity has had a profound impact on me, as Augustine explained the days of creation as allegory. Each day refers to a movement in creation, in which God has an idea, brings it to fruition, completes it, and then sits back and enjoys what has been made. Augustine has taught us that all of creation is born out of the love of God, is made for God’s delight, and is the expression of God’s will and purpose.
Augustine begins Confessions with this prayerful meditation: “O God, you have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” These are the words of a person who profoundly understands both God and humanity from his own personal experience of “sowing his wild oats” and God's grace.
Augustine looked to still his restless heart in so many different pleasure: professional skill, personal love, physical pleasure. Yet, his restlessness could only be calmed when he finally let God’s passion overwhelm him.
In all of our understandings of God, at their core must be the understanding that God has made us for God’s own purposes and God’s own love. Anything we understand about God and judgment has to be rooted in an understanding of that intent and love.
In all of our understandings of ourselves and of the human condition, at their core must be the understanding that our human lives are not complete and our souls are not settled until our focus is firmly on God.
For Augustine, this did not mean living a “John the Baptist” kind of life. Rather, it meant living a life that understood beauty as a creation of God, love and fellowship as a creation of God, this world as a creation of God, and therefore fundamentally good.
It also meant living a life aware of our fallen nature, and that without God’s grace, we could not fully understand beauty, we could not will ourselves into righteousness, we could not be fully whole.
This is the power of Augustine’s witness that endures to this day because it is the witness of the Gospel, and along with that witness is the promise that we are made for God’s own, and our restless hearts can find their rest in our surrender to God’s embrace.
Blessings always,
Dirk+
Augustines Confessions have been re-translated for the 21st century in widely praised editions. Maria Boulding's translation was highly recommended by Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, for its freshness and accessibility. Sarah Ruden's translation has sought to recover Augustine as poet and dreamer. F.J. Sheed's translation is older, preserving the formality and rhythms of Augustine's prose, while moving away from the academic dryness of earlier translations. Each translation has its strengths and weaknesses, yet all are worthwhile.
A Son, a Mother, a Prayer