Confessions (St. Augustine)
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Confessions is the name of a series of thirteen books by St. Augustine of Hippo written between 397 and 398 AD. In modern times, the books are usually published as a single volume known as The Confessions of St. Augustine in order to distinguish the book from other books with similar titles such as Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Confessions.
The book tells about his sinful youth and how he converted to Christianity. It is the first autobiography ever published and it is also a significant theological work. A strong Platonic, and even Stoic influence is evident in this important work.
Themes of the books
- His infancy and boyhood up to age 15;
- He falls amongst bad companions committing theft and succumbing to lust;
- His studies at Carthage, his conversion to Manichaeism and continued indulgence in lust between 16 and 19;
- Losing a friend and studies in Aristotle and the fit and the fair between 20 and 29;
- Moving away from Manichaeism under the influence of St. Ambrose in Milan at 29;
- Under the influence of St. Ambrose work, moves towards Catholicism at the age of 30;
- Moving towards a greater understanding of God at the age of 31;
- His conversion to Christianity at the age of 32 and receiving instruction by Simplicianus on how to convert others;
- His baptism at 33, the death of his mother Monica and the death of his friends Nebridius and Vecundus, and his abandonment of his studies of rhetoric;
- Continued reflections on the values of confessions;
- Reflections on Genesis;
- Continued reflections on the book of Genesis; and
- Exploration of the meaning of Genesis and the Trinity
Links
- New Advent explanation of Confessions (http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/1101.htm)
- The Confessions of St Augustine in Latin (http://www.stoa.org/hippo/)
- English translation of the Confessions of St. Augustine (http://www.ccel.org/a/augustine/confessions/confessions.html)
- Adventures of Confessions of St. Augustine Bear (http://www.mnftiu.cc/mnftiu.cc/adventures.html)
- The Great Conversation (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/greatconversation/) Yahoo discussion group will be discussing Books I-VIII of Augustine's Confessions in the month of April, 2005.de:Confessiones
fr:Les Confessions (Augustin d'Hippone) ko:참회록 (아우구스티누스) it:Confessioni (di Sant'Agostino)