Saint Augustine

On History, Church and State, and Women

On History
For Greeks, history is cyclic.
Civilizations rise and fall; old ones replaced
by new civilizations

For Augustine, history is linear.

The world began with Creation and would end
with the Second Coming.
History is the struggle between the City of
God and the City of the World. Eventually, the
City of God will triumph.

 History is the unfolding of Gods

plan for Creation.
Not a series of human-made events that
may or may not be meaningless; It has
meaning
If we fail to comprehend its meaning, it
does not mean that history is irrational or
meaningless
It is necessary to realize Gods Kingdom
on earth
It is necessary for the enlightenment of
humankind and the destruction of evil.

 The Purpose of Studying History: so

that we can learn what is necessary
for salvation.
For Augustine, history is universal
and does not just pertain to a
particular civilization or state.
Gods foresight guides History from Adam
to the end of time as though it were a
story of a man developing from childhood
to old age.

On the Church and Sate

For Augustine, humans are

social by nature but not political.
The Church, not the state, is
essential for salvation although
it provides a place for salvation.

On Women

A woman:
1. A temptress evil, product of
Satans design
2. A wife subservient to her
husband
3. A mother instrument of God

 During Creation, God created a single

man. The woman was only created
from the man.
God made man after His own image,
gave him soul, reason and
intelligence, and gave him also a wife
to aid him in reproduction.
And Adam was not deceived, but the
woman being deceived was in the
transgression