The City of God
By St. Augustine, Marcus Dods and Thomas Merton
4/5
()
Currently unavailable
Currently unavailable
About this ebook
This Modern Library Paperback Classics edition is a complete and unabridged version of the Marcus Dods translation.
St. Augustine
AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO (354-430) was one of the foremost philosopher-theologians of early Christianity and the leading figure in the church of North Africa. He became bishop of Hippo in 396 and held that position until his death. Before becoming a Christian, Augustine lived a very secular life. His mother Monica prayed for him diligently and at age 32, during a trip to Milan, Augustine heard the preaching of St. Ambrose, was convicted by the Holy Spirit, and became a Christian. His numerous written works, the most important of which are his Confessions and City of God, shaped the practice of biblical exegesis and helped lay the foundation for much of medieval and modern Christian thought.
Read more from St. Augustine
On Grace and Free Will Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5The Confessions Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Confessions Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe City of God Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Confessions of St. Augustine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe City of God Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5The Confessions of St. Augustine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOn Christian Doctrine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Confessions of Saint Augustine Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Confessions of St. Augustine Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to The City of God
Related ebooks
The City of God - Volume I (of II) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe City of God Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bible Myths and their Parallels in other Religions Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe City of God: Complete in a single file Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Expositor's Bible: The Acts of the Apostles, Vol. 1 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Social History of the Early Church Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsComparative Study of the Bible Myths and their Parallels in other Religions Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Anti-Nicene Fathers Volume 7 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsRabbles, Riots, and Ruins: Twelve Ancient Cities and How They Were Evangelized Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe City of God, Book I Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOn the Origin of Christian Scripture: The Evolution of the New Testament Canon in the Second Century Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHow the Church Has Changed the World, Vol. II Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEaster: Its Story and Meaning Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCity of God: Treatise on the State of God Against the Pagans Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Life of Jesus: Biblical Criticism and Controversies Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Day the World Changed: May 29, 1453 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe City of God Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe City of God (Annotated): BOOKS I-XXII Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Life of Jesus Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPeter's Rock in Mohammed's Flood, from St. Gregory the Great to St. Leo III Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Life of Jesus: According to the Study and Criticism of the Bible Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChristian History: An Introductiom to the Western Tradition Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5An Introduction to the History of Christianity A.D. 590-1314 Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsI Burned for Your Peace: Augustine's Confessions Unpacked Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Christianity: Its Evidences, Its Origin, Its Morality, Its History Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChristianity and the Secular Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Christ in Art Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
History (Religion) For You
Lost Books of the Bible: The Rejected Texts, Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Early Mormonism and the Magic World View Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Pagan Origins of the Christ Myth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hermeticism: How to Apply the Seven Hermetic Principles Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Enoch Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of Living: The Classical Mannual on Virtue, Happiness, and Effectiveness Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Surprised by Joy: The Shape of My Early Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Genesis 6 Conspiracy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An Insider's View of Mormon Origins Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Paul: A Biography Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Paul and Jesus: How the Apostle Transformed Christianity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ruby Ridge: The Truth and Tragedy of the Randy Weaver Family Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Severe Mercy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Way of the Shaman Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Devil's Best Trick Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Year with Rumi: Daily Readings Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5What We Talk About When We Talk About God: A Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Black Boy [Seventy-fifth Anniversary Edition] Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Early History of God: Yahweh and the Other Deities in Ancient Israel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Church History in Plain Language, Fifth Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Jubilees Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Didache : TEACHING of the TWELVE APOSTLES: Also Includes The Epistle of Barnabas Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFreeing Jesus: Rediscovering Jesus as Friend, Teacher, Savior, Lord, Way, and Presence Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Atheist Handbook to the Old Testament: The Atheist Handbook to the Old Testament, #1 Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Walking the Bible: A Journey by Land Through the Five Books of Moses Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A History of Religious Ideas Volume 1: From the Stone Age to the Eleusinian Mysteries Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for The City of God
390 ratings13 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This whole series is excellent
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5love yourself and avoid at all costs
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5a theological classic, a huge work. Best parts are where he discusses issues of predestination, the source of evil, the history and source of pagan religions and the reality of demonic powers. Also his discussion and interpretation of Revelation 20 and the millennium; and his extensive discussions on Genesis. In some places it might be alleged that he held views akin to Roman Catholicism in regard to purgatory and the sacramental and ecclesiastical system. However, this is not a major part of this work and much of it must be understood in the context of the 4th and 5th century, not in the context of Roman Catholicism from the 13th century onwards. The major weakness I feel in this work is his over-emphasis on the immortality of the soul, something which he admits is in line with Platonist philosophy. This is not established Biblically. He is morally conservative, in a liberalistic pagan society, this we need to take note of in the church today. Overall this is a great work to read, written by a great man, although let us remember he was still but a man. Very glad to have read it - worth the effort.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Zeer veel polemiek en tekstexegese. Vooral in het eerste deel herneming van thema?s uit de Belijdenissen, maar gebalder.Zoals voorheen : soms geniale inzichten (oa relatie God-tijd), maar soms ook de meest stompzinnige redeneringen (oa speculatie over verrijzenis in het vlees en hoe het er dan aan toe zal gaan).De these van de stad van God wordt toch niet echt systematisch uitgewerkt ; wel overheerst het hoofdinzicht dat die stad ook nu al op aarde doorwerkt (als in den vreemde vertoevend).Boeiende, maar taaie lectuur
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5As a backlash against Christianity grew after the sack of Roman in 410 AD, Augustine of Hippo took up his pen to respond to pagans and philosophers as well as inform Christians about their priorities between heaven and earth. The City of God is one of the cornerstones of medieval Christianity and thought that even influences the world today.Augustine divides his work into 22 books divided into two parts. The first part was to refute the accusation by pagans that the sack of Rome in 410 AD was punishment for abandoning the gods of Rome for Christianity. Throughout the first ten books of his work, Augustine critiques the Roman religion and philosophy from the multitude of deities and the contradictory beliefs related to them as well as the conflicting philosophies that supported and opposed them. The second part, consisting of the last twelve books of the work, discussed the titular City of God and how it relates with the city of man—the present world.Augustine’s critique of pagan religion and philosophy in the first part of the book is honestly the highlight of the book. Not only did he defend Christianity but also exposed the contradictions within pagan religious beliefs a well as numerous schools of philosophies which defended or opposed those beliefs. If there was one downside within the first part, it would have been the troubling theological ideas that Augustine espoused that seemed more based on Plato than the Bible. However, it was in the second part of book that Augustine’s faulty theology truly became apparent so much so that I had to begin skimming through the text to prevent myself from contradicting Augustine in my head instead of reading. While not all of Augustine’s theology is wrong, God’s omniscience and human free will is an example, some of the defining examples I want to cover is the following: the immortality of the soul and eternal burning in hell connected to it, the claims that passages from the Old Testament are analogies for Christ and the church, that all of Psalms are prophecies written by David, the angels were created on the third day, and many more. It became too frustrating to stay focused and I admittedly might have skimmed over some of Augustine’s better theological arguments, but it was that or tossing the book.City of God is both the refutation of pagan Roman practices and the theological understanding of Augustine for Christian believers. It’s importance for medieval Christianity and thought cannot be underscored enough, however that does not mean that every reader should not look at it critically.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Zeer veel polemiek en tekstexegese. Vooral in het eerste deel herneming van thema’s uit de Belijdenissen, maar gebalder.Zoals voorheen : soms geniale inzichten (oa relatie God-tijd), maar soms ook de meest stompzinnige redeneringen (oa speculatie over verrijzenis in het vlees en hoe het er dan aan toe zal gaan).De these van de stad van God wordt toch niet echt systematisch uitgewerkt ; wel overheerst het hoofdinzicht dat die stad ook nu al op aarde doorwerkt (als in den vreemde vertoevend).Boeiende, maar taaie lectuur
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Any star rating is entirely meaningless. This is a ludicrous book, astonishing in scope, and in desperate need of an editor to make sense of it. I simply can't; it's overwhelming. Arid stretches of rhetoric suddenly cough up a fascinating philosophical argument, which then itself belches forth more arid rhetoric, and so on. Augustine takes the ancient pagan beliefs to pieces by showing that they simply can't be rationalized--then immediately forgets the obvious lesson and tries to rationalize Christianity in order to defend it. Who the hell am I to criticize, though?
That said, I'd much rather read about this book than read it again. Never before have I felt the ancient's wisdom so strongly: this is not a book, this is 22 books, and trying to read it as one is the definition of hubris. - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I'm not going to pretend to have understood more than 10% of what I read/listened to.My recommendation to any layperson who is planning on reading this is - don't.If I could do it again, I would read it as part of a class or read something more accessible that summarized the essential and relevant points.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is one of my favorite works. Yeah, I know you're skeptical, but here me out. I've begun my quest to read the basic works of western man beginning with Gilgamesh and in sequence reading through to the present. It's a lifelong ambition. I've read most of the ancient works of some repute, including Roman histories from Greek and Roman historians. When I arrived at 411 AD, I picked up The City of God. Shortly after the first sack of Rome, Augustine wrote it not as an apology for the claim that Christianity was responsible for the decay of Rome, but as a defense against that allegation. He then summarizes the histories as recorded to show internal corruption, incompetence, immorality and the quest for wealth caused the decay - not Christianity. I read the same material he did! That's way cool! I knew exactly what he was saying and with what facts he prosecuted his claim. Then he projected that even if the City of Rome were to fall, Christians can look forward ultimately to their City of God. A great book.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5So far I've read 300 pages of how Rome was the best and worst place every but, its picking up unfortunately putting it down and reading something else for right now(update)Finished it and I would say skip the first 300 pages (unless you want a Ancient Roman history lesson) and dive right into the Diamond of Christian theology that this is. An amazing read and piercing right to the soul of matters STILL relevant to today.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Oh my word, this is a masterpiece. I had read his Confession years ago, but I wish I had read this first. I would have been more interesting in finding out about his life after reading this. It is rich in doctrine. After reading Greek/Roman Lives and all the conflict and stife, it was lovely to sit down with a man who knew God, the Word, and knew how superior God is to the Greek/Roman gods! It dovetailed so nicely with my time in the prophets this year too! So many things come from this book. If you want to understand Western Civilization, this book is a must read.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I must be wierd. I liked City of God and read it straight through, but couldn't finish 'Confessions'.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5My goodness, what a difficult book. To some degree, it was a response to the fact that Rome was sacked by barbarians.