Religion demands that the follower lives in the ways and norms of the outlined religious texts. Christians use the bible for this particular referencing. The holy book has the expectations set out to ensure the followers, also known as Christians are aware of what the Supreme Being expects of them. This paper will focus on a key scholar and developer of the Christian’s concepts and laws. It will focus on Augustine his confession, his achievement through the same confessions; the document will also focus on the challenges that he encountered while trying to make his confessions.
Augustine Wrote in A.D. 397, The Confessions. He outlines his history as a young man of grace. Augustine’s Confessions is written and elaborated in thirteen books. The books praise the righteous and good God. They speak of either the evil or good that Augustine engaged in while exciting men’s minds and affections toward their creator God. He explains through his life experiences and the events around him, the value and presence of God. He confesses as stated by O’Donnell (3) because he has identified that he is sinful and often falls short of the glory of his creator. The first through to the tenth books are about Augustine and his experiences and the last three are dedicated to the Holy Spirit.
Augustine, in the first book, looks at his infancy and confesses his inclination to all the pleasures and vices than to the study of the scriptures. At puberty, he engages in lustful pleasures and steals with his companions. He grows into a trend of wicked passions and the vices of his times. He confesses to the grief and pain when he lost a friend. Throughout his works, as stated by O’Donnell (4), he confesses to the shame he feels for all the sins he had committed. At thirty, he discovers the truth of the catholic doctrine. By showing what he is and what he was, he intends to display the great fruits of confessions. His judgment upon his acts and thoughts is based on the conception of temptation. He commemorates the Lord who he claims is the main mediator of God and man.
According to Augustine, as stated by O’Donnell (2), human nature is sinful and there is a need to recollect and seek repentance from God. He turns his memories of the past events to the inner unknown mysteries of his memory. At this point, he reviews his motives during the writing of the confessions. This motive is to bring man closer to God. This concept brings forth the broad analysis of how memory relates to an individual and its power. He in-depth explores the true meaning of true prayer. He looks in-depth into the temptations and appetites that the human body and soul are subjected to and how they respond. He applauds that the mediator between God and man was from a Godly origin. The concept of sin is a major barrier to the confessions of Augustine. The concept tends to create confusion on whether evil is intentional or a product of nature and its balance (O’Donnell 47).
In conclusion, Augustine had his share of a sinful past. He, through a description of his past, confesses to his past wrong behavior and evil thought. He confesses to the shame and guilt of his activities. When he lost a friend, he confesses to the feeling of fear and regret. His main challenge is the concept of sin as either a material object or as a non-tangible spirit that exists in the same state as good. His confessions enlighten Christians on the need to repent their fouls to God who provides grace at all times.
Works Cited
O’Donnell, James. Augustine: Confessions. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1992.