MM#98--The Confessions of St. Augustine

Welcome to the theory to action podcast, where we examine the timeless treasures of wisdom from the great books in less time to help you take action immediately, and ultimately to create and lead a flourishing life. Now, here's your host, David Kaiser.

Hello, I'm David and welcome back to another Mojo minute. So last year, I was fortunate enough to attend a class taught online by the great Dr. Robert Royal. The class was a walkthrough of Dante's Divine Comedy. And it was fascinating. Please check out Mojo minutes, 52 and 57, where I talked about the Divine Comedy. And so in the last couple months, I was fortunate enough again, to attend a second class online taught by Dr. Oil. And this one explored St. Augustine ins, confessions, perhaps one of the world's greatest autobiographies ever written. And because we are now in the season of Lent, I thought I would share some passages from that most excellent book. Now, before we get into that I wished I have I've since wished, that I had grown up with a classical education. Because if I did, I would have already read St. Augustine ins confessions a long, long time ago. And without a doubt, it would have helped me as a young man, to understand the world at a much better and a much earlier age. 

The fact that I'm reading St. Augustine for the first time, at age 47, when it would have helped me a great deal at age 1617 or 18, or even in my college years just goes to show you how our education system has failed greatly, when especially it goes away from these classical books, that have educated and helped millions of people, for centuries. Now, why is St. Augustine ins confessions so compelling? Well, I think because very quickly, you learned that what was happening to a fourth century young man is the same thing that happens to a 21st century, young man or for that matter, young woman we are trying to make our way in the world. And the world seems confusing. But let's back up. And let's give you a brief biography of Augustine of Hippo, St. Augustine of Hippo. He was born November 13 354. AD, and what is now modern day Algeria. Back then it was part of the Western Roman Empire. His mother Monica was a devout Christian, and his father patricius was a pagan, who would ultimately convert on his deathbed. Augustine his first language was Latin. He was sent to school as a teenager to study the Latin literature. Though he would learn more about pagan beliefs and practices while at school. Augustine relates in his book The Confessions, like I said, it's an autobiography, about the first time he understood sin at its core. 

Let's go to the book. There was a pear tree near a vineyard heavy with fruit, but fruit that was not particularly tempting either to look at or to taste. The group of young black guards and I among them, went out to knock down the pears and carry them off late one night, for it was our bad habit to carry on our games. In the streets till very late. We carried off an immense load of pears, not to eat, for we barely tasted them before throwing them to the hogs. Our only pleasure in doing it was that it was forbidden. Such was my heart, oh, God. Such was my heart yet in the depth of the abyss. You had pity on it. Let that heart now tell you what it saw. When I was thus evil for no object, having no cause for wrongdoing, save my wrongness. The malice of the act was base and I loved it. That is to say I loved my undoing. I love the evil in me, not the thing for which I did the evil simply the evil. My soul was depraved and hurled itself down from security and you into utter destruction. Seeking no profit from wickedness, but only to be wicked.

 And so you can see in that quote Augustine is coming to grips with his own original sin. Why was he attracted to it? Why did he have to steal the pears? When he was not hungry, it was merely a base thought and action. And you can see the unfolding in his mind as he pondered the greater world in his place in it, those essential questions that we talked about and leading a flourishing life. For example, who am I, where am I going? What's my special place in this world? And especially after this quote, why did I do that? Why did I commit that little act of evil of stealing the pears? So ultimately, Augustine would study in Carthage and rhetoric, and there he would live a hedonistic lifestyle, but also at Carthage, he would read Cicero, and become heavily influenced, for seeking out the truth. And he had the he developed a sincere deep desire for wisdom and philosophy. 

He would ultimately father a young child, he would keep a woman either as a concubine or a lover. It was hard to tell. And Augustine would ultimately give up the fornication lifestyle, and his lover after being heavily influenced by Ambrose of Milan, and he would eventually become a Catholic priest, ending up as bishop of Numidia in Rome in North Africa. Often, he is viewed as one of the most important church fathers. Augustine was most famous for his preaching. Most scholars believed he preached around 6000 to 10,000 sermons in his lifetime, only some 500 are deemed to be authentic, coming from his hand, and have been preserved to our modern age. Augustine also wrote, he wrote a ton, a lot of pamphlets and books, but only some survived. Notably, they are the City of God written late in his life, to restore confidence to his fellow Christians, after the sacking of Rome and 410 by the Visigoths, under L. L. rec, the first he wrote another book on the Trinity, which laid out the doctrine of the Trinity. And he wrote this autobiography, The Confessions, which we're talking about today. 

Augustine was living at a time when the Western Roman Empire began to disintegrate. almost similar to our United States of today. He directly shaped the medieval world with his writings, especially those concepts adopted by the councils of Nicaea. And Constantinople. The importance of his book, The Confessions, is it's humility. And it's discussing of human nature is where this book really shines. It's everyday ordinary struggles that each of us have to confront through our lives. Augustine had to deal with some addictive and emotionally abusive personalities, even some in his own family. Augustine had to deal with ambivalence within relationships, especially meaningful relationships and how to handle those. In a society obsessed with sex, how to counteract that and live a virtuous life was a constant question for Augustine. Now, you might chuckle and say, Wait, they had issues with sex in the fourth century, too. Yes, in fact, they did. 

The late fourth century crumbling Roman Empire was just as obsessed with sex as our late 20th century in early 21st century world is today. And St. Augustine is ambivalence over years and years of sensuality to not overcome that particular advice. He actually, in fact, says at one point, give me chastity and continence only not yet, oh, Lord. In fact, it's such a famous line, let's go to the book because it is, like I said, it's incredibly famous. And I want to give you the you should hear the full quote. For many years had flowed by a dozen or more, from the time when I was 19, and was stirred by reading the reading of Cicero's hortensis to the study of wisdom. And here was eyes still postponing the giving up of this world's happiness To devote myself to the search for that, of which not finding only the mere seeking is better than to find all the treasures and kingdoms of men, better than all the bodily better than all the bodies, pleasures, though they had, though they were to be had merely for a nod. But I, in my great worthlessness, for it was greater than thus early had begged you for chastity, saying, grant me chastity and continence, but not yet, for I was afraid that you would hear my prayer too soon. And too soon you would heal me from the disease of lust which I wanted, satisfied, rather than extinguished. 

So St. Augustine, telling us telling our Lord rather, give me chastity, but not yet one of the most famous lines from the confessions. And it reminds me of a great spiritual director, who wants told a group of young man that I was part of during our recollection, in Washington, DC one Friday night. He read this quote, and then he looked at us, he said, We human beings really do love our sins, don't we? We are often like St. Augustine. We don't really want to give them up. It's quite hard to give them up. And so don't We echo the same words as St. Augustine? Give me chastity. Oh, Lord, but not yet. That spiritual director paused and he let that sink in. And it was so moving. That it made such a profound point on me that I have remembered it ever since. Because, in fact we do. We human beings get complacent. And how are you? Do you get complacent in overcoming your sins, even the small ones. All human beings get comfortable. All human beings get complacent. We don't want to battle we get tired of battling. And getting back to Augustine confessions. St. Augustine is vice of sensuality. And fornication is legendary. 

Augustine for a period of his life drifted into believing in a fundamentalist sect at the time the mannequins. And don't we see that happen repeatedly in our time, with many things that are of a fundamentalist nature. Writing of his earlier life, Augustine intended for the confessions, to be an offertory of love to God, the Father, who saw him through all these many trials, even though he was not a baptized Christian. And it was only through St. Augustine, sincere desire for the truth, God's grace that Augustine would recognize ultimately. And as he kept exploring and reading and coming to understand the lord of truth. Now, how about some family dysfunction in the 21st century? Does anybody have a family member who struggles with alcohol addiction? It's a terrible, terrible disease.

And guess what? St. Augustine is mother, Monica, was no stranger to alcohol. For a period of time as a young woman, Monica struggled with wine. Augustine recalls for us, He says, My mother used to tell me herself that there had crept upon her a secret love of wine, unquote. But then Monica courageously confronted the fact of her addiction. And she was blessed with a cure from God. And so you can see where a 21st century person would greatly benefit from reading the struggles of a fourth century Saint. And finally, let's end with the most famous passage from this book. Great art Thou, O Lord, and greatly to be praised, great as thy power, and of thy wisdom, there is no number and man desires to praise thee. He is but a tiny part of all that thou has created. He bears about him, his mortality, the evidence of his sinfulness, and the evidence that thou doest reason Just proud, yet this tiny part of all that thou has created desires to praise thee. Thou dost so excite him, that to praise thee is his joy, for thou hast make us for thy self. And our hearts are restless until they rest in the grant, oh Lord, to know which is the souls first movement towards the to implore thy aid into utter its praise of the Our hearts are restless until they rest in you, oh, Lord. That phrase would have been wonderful to hear. 

As a 20 year old going through all the troubles that every 20 year old go through goes through, it would have helped me and countless other folks for understanding for counsel, and for wisdom that other souls have been restless in their young lives. Sometimes kids, ironically, don't want to listen, they don't want to listen to their parents. Shocking, I know. They want to experience life for themselves. And that is only natural. That's where these classic texts text, especially St. Augustine is confession can be a kind of good parent stretching over 2000 years, and encouraging the young person that there's nothing new under the sun. And so it is with that, that I encourage you to read Augustine confessions, most especially during this time of Lent. And Dr. Oils class, the translation we use was from Frank sheet, I will put a link in the shownotes for you. And also I listened to Augustine confessions on Audible, and my copy was narrated, narrated by Simon Vance, which is quite a good narration. So for all the parents, and well, parents of teenagers, say 14 years old or later, I encourage you to have your children read this most excellent autobiography. It would be helpful for all young people to read. Most especially that as a great saint in the late fourth century eventually overcame all the troubles in his life. So too can we overcome all of our struggles and become saints in the 21st century. 

And so in today's Mojo minute, let us say with one voice and continue to repeat it in our hearts until our dying day. Those famous words of St. Augustine. Our hearts are restless, until they rest in you. Oh Lord.

Thank you for joining us. We hope you enjoyed this theory to action podcast. Be sure to check out our show page at T Mojo academy.com where we have everything we discussed in this podcast as well as other great resources. Until next time, keep getting your mojo on