St. Augustine s Theory Of Evil - 899 Words

Saint Augustine struggled with the concept of evil in the natural world while simultaneously converting to Christianity, much to his mother’s delight. Augustine began by looking for sound arguments against the Manichean school of thought, which he prescribed to for a short while himself. The Neo-Platonic philosophy eventually showed him the intellectual way toward this goal when Ambrose, the bishop of Milan, began to apply this philosophical viewpoint to Christianity. In the end, Augustine created a completely new Christian view of evil, a view that inspired theologians for centuries to come. To begin, Manichean thought saw evil as a substance. A Manichean believed in the duality of substances in the world. In other words, evil was a substance equal yet opposite to the substance of good. While Augustine originally agreed with this school of thought, he eventually found this philosophy to be inept in its explanations of the world. â€Å"But it was principally the idea of the two masses of good and evil that held me fast and stifled me, for I was unable to conceive of any but material realities.† This left the door open for Augustine to find inspiration from different sources. Neo-Platonism enters the scene as one of his mother’s religious heroes, St. Ambrose, explains a new interpretation of Christian scripture. This new philosophical thought understood everything in the natural world to stem from â€Å"The One†, or a single source also referred to as â€Å"The Good†. As AugustineShow MoreRelatedAugustine : A Journey Of Conversion1043 Words   |  5 PagesCaroline Casey Dr. Butera Development of Western Civilization 2 December 2014 Augustine: A Journey of Conversion Before submitting himself to God, Augustine lived a life controlled by various sinful tendencies such as theft and lust. Surrounded by strong believers of Catholicism, such as his mother, St. Monica, Augustine grew up questioning Christ and the faith and rather explored other religions. Two religions that Augustine devoted himself to were Manichaeism and Neoplatonism. While both religionsRead MoreProposed Seven Philosophers On The Existence Of God And Their Development Of These Ideas1413 Words   |  6 Pageschoice topic. The seven philosophers are as follows: (1) Socrates, (2) Plato, (3) Aristotle, (4) Francis Bacon, (5) St. Augustine, (6) Thomas Aquinas, and (7) Rene DesCartes. The specific three I want to focus on being; St. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas and Rene Descartes. Lastly, I will proceed to relate their ideas on the existence of God and their development of these ideas. St. Augustine s epistemology is rationalization. In his argument for the existence of God, he is referring to varying degrees ofRead MoreQuestions For A Philosopher On The Real World1505 Words   |  7 Pages According to Augustine there are two essential questions for a philosopher examining the real world. The first question has to do with the human soul, in which we would concentrate on examining the self. And the second question has to do with God, which helps us better understand our existence. We become more capable of a happy life by getting to better know ourselves. However, the only way we can become truly happy is by getting to know who God is. 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What is the Original Sin? According to Harent (1911), the â€Å"original sin may be taken to mean: (1) the sin that Adam committed; (2) a consequence of this first sin, the hereditary stain with which we are born on account ofRead MoreReasons For St Augustine s Conversion2016 Words   |  9 Pageswith spirit. St Augustine Biography Info Augustine of Hippo was born on November 13, in AD 354, in Thagaste (modern day Souk Ahras, Algeria), and died on August 28, in AD 430, in modern-day Annaba, Algeria (then known as Hippo Regius). It was in the latter city where he was named Bishop 35 years prior to his death. It is a challenge to encapsulate renowned personalities, and with St. Augustine, this task is even more difficult (Augustine of Hippo). A theologian and philosopher, Augustine dithered betweenRead MoreThe Sin As A Crime And Sickness2259 Words   |  10 Pagesdefilement against God and Humanity (Taylor 54-57). In addition to the sin as a sickness or crime theories, some religious scholars say each theory should be used but both are never used in the same church (Taylor, 57-59). Although I agree that churches should include both sin as a crime and sickness, I don’t think both methods for explaining sin are used equally in churches. In fact, I think the sin as a crime theory is used more often than sin as a sickness. Accordingly, sin as a sickness ought to be emphasizedRead MoreThe Foundations Of Rationalism By Plato1762 Words   |  8 PagesPlato, such of the theory of the forms, demonstrates reason as a building block for knowledge. The enlightenment saw thinkers daring to know (Kant 1784), even in instances where reasoning subverted faith, and continued as seen in the publication of Darwinian theories. Faith remains an enemy of reason when its findings are misheld as knowledge. It is incorrect to state that faith is one of the world’s greatest evils, because the use of reason Plato’s dialogues proposes theories that since have beenRead MoreLeibniz and the Problem of Evil3712 Words   |  15 PagesTHE PROBLEM OF EVIL BY OKOJIE E. PETER epo4escriva@yahoo.com MAY 2013 INTRODUCTION For many centuries, philosophers have been discussing evil, how it exists in the world, and how this relates to God. The discussion on evil and its relations to us is not an easy one though. It is commonly called the problem of evil. The problem of evil in contemporary philosophy is generally regarded as an argument for atheism. The atheist contends that God and evil are incompatible, and given that evil clearly existsRead MoreBeyond the Problem of Evil Essay6495 Words   |  26 PagesBeyond the Problem of Evil Introduction: The problem of evil is, in my opinion, the best point of departure for a fruitful dialogue between Christianity, traditionally conceived, and those strands of modern philosophy which have been perceived--indeed, have sometimes perceived themselves--as a threat to that tradition. As such, I will attempt first, to outline the problem of evil in the starkest terms possible, presenting Augustines approach to its solution followed by a critical analysis;