Theology

Augustine spent a lot of time reflection on an episode in which he and his friends stole some pears. Why does this interest him so much? What question does it lead him to ask, and what conclusion does he come to?

After Augustine and his friends stole pears for no reason, he asks the question: Why do we make bad decisions? This interest him because he compares himself to Adam and Eve and their falling to original sin He finally comes to the conclusion that everything we desire in the world is good but it's the way we attain these things that can be dangerous Augustine was searching for friendship as he was stealing pears but he went about it the wrong way

Why was reading Cicero's Hortensius such an important moment in Augustine's life? Explain what affects it had on him

After reading Hortensius, Augustine realized that he wanted to find God and the truth. In order to find this truth, he must pursue it through philosophy Cicero also fails to mention Christ within his book, which leads Augustine to start reading the bible He is not impressed by the language of the Bible so he turns to the Manichees

In Book V Augustine describes how his studies in philosophy influence his thinking. How and why does his philosophical reading affect his relationship to Manichaeism? What does he see as the weakness in philosophical knowledge?

As Augustine reads more and more into philosophy, he beings to shift away from the Manichees because they did not agree with science Manichees believed in myths and claimed they had secret truth Philosophy was something that can be tested, observed, and predicted The weakness in philosophical knowledge was that it is not personal Religion is a personal relationship with God Philosophy isn't dynamic, like a relationship with God is The scientist did not know that their knowledge came from something greater than themselves Scientists are prideful and do not acknowledge God They went to credit themselves for their work, rather than give credit to God for their gifted minds (arrogance)

Why are the Psalms so important to Augustine in the period after his conversion (Book IX)? If you like, you may offer from your own experience an instance of the way in which songs can shape us

At this point in Augustine's conversion he feels whole and free and pursues what he wants to pursue Psalms were a way for him to express his newfound land for Christianity Augustine sees the Psalms as poetry and uses them to express the wide range of emotion he went through while searching for truth

Why does Augustine's encounter with a drunken beggar upset him so much? In your answer, you will need to indicate where he is at this point in his life, professionally and personally

Augustine realizes how happy and worriless the beggar is This upsets hi because at this point in his life, his career as a teacher is going very well. However, he fells miserable and unfulfilled but doesn't know how to change this Augustine worries that the beggar is happier than him even though he has nothing Augustine would still rather be in his situation than the beggars

What Manichean idea about God did Augustine have trouble getting away from? What philosopher helped him and how?

Augustine was having trouble getting away from the Manichean idea of dualism The battle between good and evil (light.dark, material/spiritual) and why God would create evil if everything he has created is good. They believed that God was of material form Plato's philosophy that what is real is idea helped him. Augustine starts reading Plato and this allows him to better understand that something can be real and not exist in space

What does Balthasar say is the theological significance of beauty?

Balthasar says that beauty is a way in which we can access God and wonder What we fear, what we want to protect ourselves against but beauty can stop us in our trucks Beauty is an antidote to sin

Identify the key experiences that were instrumental in the conversion of Thomas Merton and his spiritual journey as a Catholic. Which do you identify with most and why?

Beauty: the response we have to something beautiful opens up something within us It causes us to expand our awareness The awakening has no use to the fearful side of us (small soul): shows us that there is no more to us than the small soul Dependency: moved by the death of his father and other close family members His response to loss was religious, he find himself praying often Gives a sense of limitation: It makes him notice his own smallness/helplessness Point Vierge: Where we belong entirely to God His eyes are completely opened and he realizes that everyone around him is connected to God (he sees the image of God in those around him)

Describe very briefly what happens in Dante's Inferno. What does Barron say we can learn about our own condition from this story?

Dante is in the midst of his midlife crisis when his spiritual journey begins. He tries to climb the mountain of God but is unable to, beasts in the forest stop him, and these beasts represent his sins. The poet Virgil comes to guide Dante down an alternate path to salvation. He takes Dante through Hell, where he must face his sins head on in order to overcome them The further he gets into hell the worse his sins are Barron says the same of our sins; we cannot get past our sins if we not look them in the eye to overcome them

In Book V Augustine meets Faustus and Ambrose. Who are they, and what role does each play in Augustine's development in this book?

Faustus - Manichee Bishop Augustine bleives he will be able to provide answers to all of Augustine's questions. Faustus admits that he does not know the answers to the questions he is asking This interaction starts to turn Augustine away from the Manichees. Respects that Faustus admits that he can't answer all of his questions Ambrose - Catholic Bishop First impression that he is very kind Admires/respects the way he speaks First listens to him because he likes the way he sounds, but eventually he begins listening to the content This is the start of his conversion to Christianity By listening to Ambrose his prejudices are chipped away

What does Barron mean when he says that "fear of the other is the cause and consequence of sin" Do you agree with him? Why or why not?

Fear of the other causes us to turn away from others and turn away from God This isolates our ego, we only think about ourselves and we view others as threats or rivals, this plays into the cycle of fear associated with sin Become a rival with others and God

What lesson does Augustine draw in Book IV from reflection on his friend's death and his reaction to it?

He questions why we continue to live if we know we will eventually grieve He realizes that everything earthly will change and if we get attached to it, we will grieve This does not mean that we should not love at all. We must remember that things won't last forever but we can enjoy them while we can He believes that everything except God will change and we can gain stability when we find permanence in God

What did Augustine gain from reading the Neo-Platonists and from reading Paul?

Neo-Platonists - helped him see that God was not made of matter, he is real but does not exist in space. This turns him away from the Manichees because they believed that God was material Allowed him to understand that you can recognize the idea of the existence of God, even though He does not exist in space (in matter) After the Neo free his mind from the Manichees, Paul helps him toward finding truth He is drawn to Paul because he feels that Paul understands his struggle to find truth Paul gets the mess of being a human being, the emotion and passion that Augustine can identify with and the personal struggles

Why did the Church hold the Council of Trent? Describe one element from the cannons (writings) that the Council produced, and explain Barron's interpretation of it.

One element from the canons that Barron discusses was justice Justice is the balance and harmony within a group or a relationship We lose justice because we focus on ourselves and our needs before anyone else's

The title of the first section of Barron's book is The Riven Self. What does this mean, and how does it set up the subject and theme of the section

Riven: Split on pieces Talks about the split between two sides of human nature, The Imago Dei (image of God) and original sin Uses to explain this: Dante's Inferno, Adam and Even, The Doctrine of Original Sin Something very wrong with us but something very right with us Original Sin v. Imago Dei

In Book VIII Augustine uses a metaphor of liberation from bondage or imprisonment to describe his conversion. Describe the nature of the bondage as he explains it. What is he enslaved by, and how did it happen?

The compulsion to act in such a way, habit and trying to follow a new path towards God but falling back into temptation Battle of two wills - one wants God and the other wants lust (lust is his stronger will) Sex addiction

Explain in some detail what is the exact nature of the conflict, which Augustine finds so distressing in Book VIII. How is it resolved?

The conflict he experiences is his addiction to sex Realizes it was his own decisions that brought him to this point and made him addicted He has a vision of self control and hears a child singing in the garden to "pick up and read" so heads Paul's epistles Once he got to the end of the verse all of his doubt went away and he stopped struggling His will changed and he was free and felt whole

What is the literal meaning of the word "theology" and what problems associated with doing theology does Augustine raise in the first few pages of the Confessions?

Theology literally means "words about God" "God talk" This brings up the question of how we are to go about looking for something if we don't know what exactly we're looking for

How do the title and subtitle of Barron's book set up the themes of the whole?

Title: "And Now I see" - Christianity is a way of seeing the world (it is a perspective of the existence of anything) Subtitle: "A theology of transformation" - we want to transform from the small soul to the large soul Go beyond the mind that you have Metonoia - repentance, transformation

What does Barron mean when he says that Christian theology is "soul-doctoring"?

What does Christianity do to us? It moves us from fear to trust It fixes our soul and moves us from our ego and self-deification toward a "feeling of absolute dependence" on God

As soon as Adam and Eve eat the apple, they make themselves clothes. What is the significance of this according to Barron's reading of the passage?

When they realize their nakedness they immediately make clothes because they feel vulnerable so they try and hide from God This feeling is a result of self-deification and radical autonomy Self-deification - when someone declares themselves as God, and their ego/self is the center of everything Radical Autonomy - not in the reference to anything, decide what is this right and wrong for self The action of eating the fruit from the forbidden tree is a result of the two things above. This puts Adam and Eve in a position of immense power, this causes an ironic result, it creates an isolated ego and makes every other self out there are rival/threat Including God (causes a constant state of fear) This fear is what cause the vulnerability and the need for clothes Barron says God will help us out of this state of fear; trust in God and this fear will go away