Philosophy Exam 2 Flashcards
Creatio ex nihilo
Creation out of nothing
Augustine’s years
354-430 AD
Things that occurred between ancient Greece and St. Aug
Christianity Roman Empire Council of Nicaea Stoicism Epicureanism Neo-Platonism
What happened at the Council of Nicaea
The Trinity Doctrine
Biblical Canon
T/F Both of Augustine’s parents were Christians
F; mom was a devout Christian. Dad was a Roman pagan
T/F Augustine started as a student of literature and rhetoric
T
Where is Augustine from
North Africa (Taagaste)
T/F Augustine was well advanced academically and in his self-control
F, he was academically, but he allowed his lusts (eros) control him
Augustine’s Eros (love) becomes
Lust
How did Cicero’s writings influence Augustine
They spurred him to study philosophy in his free time (seeking smg deeper for his eros with a more gratifying eudaemonia)
What is Augustine’s first reaction upon reading the Bible?
He’s unimpressed because it seems uncultured. He doesn’t care for its seemingly anthropomorphic view of God and has a problem with evil
Anthropomorphic
Human form
What is the problem of evil?
If God is all powerful, all knowing, and good, there can’t be evil bc… so God must not be one of those things
T/F Manichaeans regarded themselves as Christians but were really just a cult
T
Said that cosmos is a constant battle between light vs.dark/good vs. evil, dualistic nature
Zoroastrianism (Manichaeism)
Explain the dual nature of Manichaeism
said that the true self is not material body, you are temporarily embodied. Said that soul is good and to separate soul from flesh you have to get rid of desires to reach eudaemonia
What is the Great Chain of Being?
A hierarchy of value
T/F Augustine was a full member of Manicheanism
F, he was just a “hearer”
T/F Manicheanism believes there is no omnipotent good power, just 2 opposing powers
T
T/F Essentially, in Manicheanism, we are just souls
T
Why did Augustine leave Manicheanism?
Their beliefs were obscure and he found their leader to be unwise; also no matter how much aescetism he practiced, he still had desires
The key to salvation in Manicheanism
Knowledge (didn’t help people’s lives in Aug’s opinion)
What is the ultimate being in Neoplatonism
The One (the source of everything else that exists)
What draws Augustine to St. Ambrose
At first just his oratorical skills, but then his teachings begin to get to him
Source of evil for Manicheanism
The body (our desire are due to flesh) to get rid of evil, disassociate yourself from your body
Denying normalcy/societal norms and legitimate physical goods (ex. lifelong celibacy)
Asceticism (part of Manicheaanism)
For Aug., where is the source of sin and evil?
The will (not the body)
How does Augustine say he is able to receive God?
By God’s grace; God saved him after Augustine worked through intellectual problems and left spiritual ones raw (his intellect could not save him)
What is the Bondage of the Will?
the Love of truth and desire for sanctity, but unable to reach it. We need more than just intellect and the law, we need grace
3 things Ambrose revealed about Christianity that made Aug.’s conversion partially possible
- God and soul being immaterial realities (God can be omnipresent)
- Ambrose wasn’t afraid to go to philosophical thought to make Christianity understandable
- Allegorical interpretations to scripture
The Chain of Necessity (broken at Augustine’s conversion)
Perversity of the will –> lust (sin) –> habit –> necessity (what is wrong with humans and how it can be cured)
T/F For Augustine, wisdom is 1
T
Differences in Christianity and Neoplatonism
C: creating out of nothing. If it exists God made it and it is good.
N: reality is a chain of being, One being at the top (The One is the top of the chain, but not creator)
T/F Aug. uses Neoplatonist thought to some extent
T, For Augustine, The One is God and he is creator (N would say no). Augustine believes that we can make ourselves like God or go lower on the chain depending on how we order our loves
List of the chain of being
The One (divide here according to Aug.) Angels Humans Animals Plants Rocks Nothing (non-existence) **Being and Value increase as you go up
What does A say about non-being at the bottom of the chain of being?
If it were to exist, it would be completely evil