Augustine teaching on nature

Question 1

Summary of this topic

(intro)

Answer 1

• Augustine claims that there is a human nature which is corrupted by original sin.
• By observing himself and others, he thought humans had a natural predisposition to sin, which for him raised the question of where that came from, since it would seem to contradict God’s omnibenevolence to suggest that God created it.
• ## He concluded that humanity must be to blame for it and looked to the Genesis story as an explanation.

Question 2

BEFORE AUGUSTINE

Answer 2

• before was the emperor constantine
• under the emperor of rome being a christian was punishable by death as it was considered as treason, this all changed under the rule of emperor constantine
• christians gained positions of power and wealth

Question 3

factors/timeline of Augustine life

(354-430)

Answer 3

• The influence of his mother (a devoted christian).
• Fatherhood (he had a son by his concubine a woman with a man)
• His involvement in Manicheanism (especially the dualistic world view)
• His interest in neo-Platonism, (especially the hierarchical views)
• born in north africa (part of the roman emperor)

Question 4

1

influence on augustines lives

manichees

Answer 4

• the world is in a cosmic battle of good and evil
• people have 2 different souls, good/bad (constant internal struggle)
• soul is part of the kingdom of light but trapped in the kingdom of darkness because of our appities of the body, indicatig a struggle between the spiritual and physical aspects of human nature (similiar view to plato portrayal of the bodies as a hindrance to soul’s access to the realm of the forms, with bodily desires distracting the soul from higher truths)

Question 5

2

influence in augustine live

neoplatonics

Answer 5

• there is only the form of good (directly opposes machinees view of good and bad)
• people should treat their own characters like a sculptor with a staue, carefully reviewing all angles removing away at parts which are not right
• Augustine realises that evil is not a substance but a turning away from God.

Question 6

keyword

Concordia

Answer 6

Human friendship.

Question 7

keyword

Cupiditas

Answer 7

Selfish love, a love of worldly things and of selfish desires.

links to J.Calvin ‘pretending ignorance’

Augustine saw human will as being driven by love

Question 8

keyword

Caritas

Answer 8

• ‘Generous love’, a love of others and of virtues i.e. agape
• expression of god wills of eternal law = links to aquinas
• virtues (prudence, fortitude, temperance)

Question 9

keyword

Concupiscence

Answer 9

Uncontrollable desire for physical pleasure and material things

Question 10

Original Sin and its effects on the will and human societies

Answer 10

• Augustine explains humanity’s sinful nature after the Fall by attributing it to the path of cupiditas, characterised by lust, selfishness, and attachment to material goods.
• He believes that Adam and Eve’s choice of this path led to the transmission of Original Sin to future generations through sexual intercourse.
• Augustine disagrees with Pelagius’ view that people can achieve moral goodness through their own efforts, arguing that Adam’s sin corrupted human freedom and necessitated salvation through Christ.
• Augustine sees human will as divided after the Fall, with individuals still possessing the ability to reason and recognise right from wrong, yet corrupted by sin and inclined towards selfishness and lust.
• He draws parallels between his teachings and Paul’s struggles described in Romans 7, where Paul wrestles with the conflict between his spiritual inclinations and sinful desires, emphasising the need for God’s forgiveness despite ongoing struggles with sin.
• this is opposite to Aquinas, with his synderesis rule, he agrees with the notions that we are tempted by sin, but we naturally know what it is naughty

Question 11

The confessions of Human nature

Answer 11

Augustine’s ‘Confessions’ catalogues a series of evil deeds and sinful acts committed by him during his childhood and adolescence.

These included:
The theft of a pear from his neighbor’s orchard while a teenager.

he used this to demonstrate that sin is part of human nature (born with original sin) = therefore corrupt

Question 12

humanity sinful nature after the fall

Answer 12

• Adam and Eve choose the path of cupidtas and future generations has inherited original sin
• means that we are all in a state of ignorance = consequence of chasing cupitdas
• can only be saved by God grace and not our own efforts or else Jesus’ sacrifice would have been unnesssary

Question 13

Before the Fall

Answer 13

• harmony through complete obedience of God
• adam and eve lived in a spirit of loving relationship = concordia
• the will is driven by caritas
• human participate in the friendless of God = ‘state of perfection’

Question 14

after the fall

Answer 14

• Sexual intercourse is tainted by concupiscence
• evil is here because of the misuse off free will
• The will is driven by cupiditas (self-love)
• Friendships complex and full of anguish
• we can only be saved by salvation
• • He grappled with the problem of evil, attributing it to human misuse of free will rather than any inherent flaw in God’s goodness.

Question 15

Defending Augustine

Answer 15

Augustine’s theory of human nature can help us understand how personal challenges and failures are part of the human condition. Whether we like the idea that we are inherently sinful does not make it untrue and we need God’s help.

Question 16

Our relationship with God

Answer 16

• the people are created by God
• People are fallen in nature
• People can be redeemed

Question 17

Laudato si, Pope Francis quote

Answer 17

” We are concieved in the hearts of God, and for this reason ‘ each of us is the result of a thought of God’”

Question 18

Imago dei

Answer 18

• We share in Gods characteristics in that we have rationality, relationality, freedom
• loving relationship
• people are self-aware and have freedom of choice
  The creation of Adam by Michelangelo

‘ STATE OF PERFECTION’

Question 19

Gods Grace

Answer 19

• people cannot be saved (go to heaven) through their own efforts
• Augustine taught that reconciliation with God is only possible through the grace of God, emphasising that humans can never earn it. = (because we are all tainted with Original Sin)
• this generosity of God is the only hope for salvation,
• Augustine acknowledged that even after accepting God’s grace, people would still sin, but believed that God would elect some for eternal life in heaven as a demonstration of His goodness.

Question 20

The ’summum bonum’

Answer 20

The supreme good (similar to Plato’s Form of the Good) is a state of eternal bliss which comes from being in the presence of God. It is the highest goal for humanity, but it can only be achieved through God’s grace and cannot be earned.

Question 21

neoplatonism

Answer 21

ideas from plato

Question 22

Sex and friendship:

Answer 22

Augustine argues that Adam and Eve were married as friends, and equally and mutually participated in the friendliness of God.

As God says, be fruitful and multiply. Adam and Eve did have the pleasure of sex, but friendship is a greater good than lust, the sex would be without lust.

Adam could use his balanced body, will and reason to make his body want to have sex when he wanted. Friendship is the highest expression of huamn existence.

Question 23

Humanity as Fallen

Answer 23

• Christianity teaches that by nature, humans are inclined to disobey God.
• The story of Adam and Eve in Genesis 2-3 illustrates the concept of the Fall, where they disobey God’s command not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
• Eve is tempted by the serpent, leading both her and Adam to eat the forbidden fruit, resulting in their expulsion from paradise and punishment.
• Genesis 3:14-19 describes the consequences of the Fall, including the serpent’s curse and the hardships humanity will face, such as pain in childbirth and toil in labor.

Question 24

Augustine’s virtues

Answer 24

• prudence: (also known as wisdom) is the ability to discern the appropriate course of action to be taken in a given situation at the appropriate time, with consideration of potential consequences.
• Fortitude: (or courage) is firmnesss of spirit, steadiness of will in doing good despite obstacles in the performance of our daily duty
• Temperance: moderation/ voluntary self-resistant. It is typically described In terms of what an individual voluntary refrains from doing
• Justice: seeing what is right & fair, it requires the relationship with others

Practising these virtues that ensures a life of caritas, dedicated our lives to God.

Question 25

Jean Paul Sartre:

an existentialist French philosopher.

Answer 25

• argued that there is no such thing as human nature. We all have the capacity to make our own essence through the choices we make.

Question 26

Evaluation

STRENGTHS

Answer 26

• very influential: especially human nature, sin and temptation.
• augustine is realsitic about human temptation, using his own weaknesses to highlight issues
• Recognitions of human imperfection leads to moral progress

Question 27

problems

Answer 27

• many people accept natural selection and evolution (not the ideas of being punished because of our ancestor actions)
• whole argument is based on Gensisi accoun: the Fall which many christians do not take literal/historically accurate.
• unacctrative, unjust and difficult to reconcile Augustines ideas with a loving and forgiving God

Question 28

the human potential

Answer 28

• Hobbes started at the opposite point, that humans are essentially selfish and brutish. The purpose of life for Hobbes is to conquer out brutish nature and create just and fair societies.
• Describing and understanding human nature is a fundamental starting point for ethics, politics, & philosophy.
• It is less obvious, however, for theology, being the study of God, not humans
• But it is still a theological question to ask what humans being are, and what their purpose is
  augustine on human nature

Question 29

The will of Love

Answer 29

• The will is God-given, created from nothing with humans. It is the ability to choose or reject God, determining what kind of person we are.
• The will is also synonymous with love. It is driven by cupiditas and caritas, both necessary elements of will, because to love ones neighbour we must first love ourselves, in turn leading to love of god.

Question 30

Augustine’s teaching on human nature

Answer 30

• Augustine’s teachings focus on fundamental questions regarding human existence and nature, seeking answers in the Bible and Church teachings.
• He emphasises the impact of the Fall on humanity’s relationship with God, drawing from Genesis, Paul’s letters, and incorporating Platonic and Manichean concepts.
• According to Christianity, humanity is created by God with a purpose: to steward the earth and reflect God’s image.
• The concept of being made in God’s image suggests, relationality, freedom, and moral nature, implying equality for humans.
• While humans are part of the natural world, they also possess the capacity for moral choice and obedience to God’s commands, as seen in biblical narratives.

Question 31

How convincing are Augustine’s teachings on the historical Fall and Original Sin?

Answer 31

• Augustine’s theology, particularly his understanding of human nature and sin, has greatly influenced Christian thought, despite facing criticism.
• Some argue that Augustine’s entire framework relies heavily on the literal interpretation of the Genesis story of the Fall, which many people view as metaphorical rather than historical.
• With the acceptance of evolutionary theory, questions arise about the uniqueness of human will and rationality, challenging the notion of humans being made in the image of God and the historicity of Adam and Eve.
• The concept of Original Sin, where individuals are born sinful due to the actions of distant ancestors, can be seen as unjust and difficult to reconcile with the idea of a loving God.
• Augustine’s assertion of humanity’s inherent sinfulness and dependence on God’s grace may clash with modern beliefs in individual autonomy and self-determination, but they offer insights into the limitations of human nature and the need for divine assistance.

Question 32

Is Augustine’s view of human nature optimistic or pessimistic?

Answer 32

• Pessimistic view of human nature: Augustine’s belief suggests that humans are inherently sinful and condemned from birth, with salvation only possible through divine grace.
  Contrasting perspectives:
  
  • Quaker movement emphasises the divine light within each person and the pursuit of moral purity.
  • Humanists celebrate humanity’s achievements and potential.
  • Existentialists like Jean-Paul Sartre advocate for individual freedom to shape one’s own destiny.
• Evolution of Augustine’s view: Initially discussing virtuous living and wrongdoing as an absence of goodness, Augustine later became more pessimistic, emphasizing humanity’s inability to escape its fallen nature.
• Doctrine of election: Augustine’s belief in predestination can make his ideas seem even more pessimistic, as it suggests predetermined fates and diminishes individual responsibility.
• Proponents of optimism: Despite his focus on human flaws, Augustine’s teachings offer a path to redemption through the grace of God, presenting a hopeful outlook for humanity’s potential salvation.

Question 33

Is there a distinctive human nature?

Answer 33

• Augustine believed in the existence of human nature, describing an ideal state seen in Adam and Eve before the Fall.
• Ideal human nature, as intended by God, was innocent to harmonious relationships without greed or lust, leading to a society free from repression or authority.
• However, after the Fall, human nature was corrupted by cupiditas, characterized by desires for material pleasures and earthly peace, which cannot lead to true fulfillment.
• Other philosophers have also proposed diverse perspectives on the distinctive character of humanity, each offering their own interpretation.