St Augustine, bishop of Hippo, was one of the central figures in the history of Christianity, and "City of God" is one of his greatest theological works. Written as an eloquent defence of the faith at a time when the Roman Empire was on the brink of collapse, it examines the ancient pagan religions of Rome, the arguments of the Greek philosophers and the revelations of the Bible. Pointing the way forward to a citizenship that transcends the best political experiences of the world and offers citizenship that will last for eternity, "City of God" is one of the most influential documents in the development of Christianity.
St. Augustine of Hippo: The City of God
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Augustine's City of God, a monumental work of religious lore, philosophy, and history, was written as a kind of literary tombstone for Roman culture. After the sack of Rome, Augustine wrote this book to anatomize the corruption of Romans' pursuit of earthly pleasures: "grasping for praise, open-handed with their money; honest in the pursuit of wealth, they wanted to hoard glory." Augustine contrasts his condemnation of Rome with an exaltation of Christian culture. The glory that Rome failed to attain will only be realized by citizens of the City of God, the Heavenly Jerusalem foreseen in Revelation. Because City of God was written for men of classical learning--custodians of the culture Augustine sought to condemn--it is thick with Ciceronian circumlocutions, and makes many stark contrasts between "Your Virgil" and "Our Scriptures." Even if Augustine's prose strikes modern ears as a bit bombastic, and if his polarized Christian/pagan world is more binary than the one we live in today, his arguments against utopianism and his defense of the richness of Christian culture remain useful and strong. City of God is, as its final words proclaim itself to be, "a giant of a book." --Michael Joseph Gross
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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"The human mind can understand truth only by thinking, as is clear from Augustine."
– Saint Thomas Aquinas --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
– Saint Thomas Aquinas --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.
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First Sentence
Here, my dear Marcellinus,1 is the fulfilment of my promise, a book in which I have taken upon myself the task of defending the glorious City of God against those who prefer their own gods to the Founder of that City. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
Here, my dear Marcellinus,1 is the fulfilment of my promise, a book in which I have taken upon myself the task of defending the glorious City of God against those who prefer their own gods to the Founder of that City. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By magellan
Format:Paperback
I just had one comment to make about the book, since it rarely seems to get discussed in the other reviews here, if at all.
Besides the many important issues the book dicusses, one of the main themes Augustine was concerned with is how an intelligent man could be religious. This problem is all the more important today since the rise of science has seriously called into question the Bible's picture of the universe. Whether I agree with his answers or not, Augustine was a great intellect for any age and a great man of God, and his book should be read more often by Christians, or anybody interested in religious history and philosophy.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
By orbit13
Format:Paperback
This abridged version of St. Augustine's work is great for casual readers who are looking to brush up on their classics or, as in my case, for students who either don't have time to read and decipher the text in its entirety or need help doing so. If you want to truly study "The City of God," you should probably stick with the Modern Library edition (ISBN 0679783199) which provides better explanatory footnotes, one sentence chapter summaries, a collection of commentaries, and a much more comprehensive subject index. This Image abridged version, however, benefits from simpler and more fluid prose. After reading a chapter of the Modern Library edition, I often found myself referring back to this edition to reinforce and/or clarify what I had just read. I also appreciated the better biblical footnotes found in this version. Certainly the existing chapters are condensed and those that the editors have omitted are given brief summaries. Overall, this edition does not take away the essence of Augustine's original but it does make it slightly more digestible to the average reader.
By Jim
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is an excellent book, just make sure you ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand it. I guess I'll just have to keep praying.
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The foundations of Christianity
Saint Augustine (354 - 430 AD), was born at a time when the Roman Empire was in its nadir, a situation quite antipodal to the heydays of the glorious times of the philosopher... Read more
Published on Feb 13 2004 by Roberto P. De Ferraz
5.0 out of 5 stars
Augustine: A man of thought and of God
The City of God is a work for both the scholar and the Christian; it pours light, not only on the struggle between the early Church, but also on the bases of the faith and... Read more
Published on Feb 10 2004 by Ian A Witter
4.0 out of 5 stars
Re translation of COG
Thomas Merton did many great things in his life, but he didn't "translate" the City of God. He wrote the intro for this edition (the Dodds translation). Read more
Published on Aug 29 2003
5.0 out of 5 stars
Monumental
Although I am normally a quick reader, it has taken me about six months to finish The City of God. At times I was frustrated, and believed that the book was imbued with a... Read more
Published on Aug 24 2003 by Arthem
5.0 out of 5 stars
Read this and be changed forever.
This is quite possibly my favorite book of all time. It is a priceless resource in my search to better understand - and live - my Catholic faith. Read more
Published on July 27 2003 by Kevin A Koehler
5.0 out of 5 stars
Augustine's tale of two cities.
"The City of God" is Augustine's most famous work. I agree with Thomas Merton's introduction to the latest Modern Library version, which says that an uninitiated reader of... Read more
Published on Mar 1 2003 by miked99
5.0 out of 5 stars
History and Theology in One Rich Volume
This is a difficult read. It is worth the effort because it is highly educational and very enjoyable. Read more
Published on Jun 28 2002
4.0 out of 5 stars
Literal version of a classic
Augustine wrote the City of God to respond to pagan charges that Rome fell to the barbarians because Christianity had made it soft and removed the gods' (small "g")... Read more
Published on July 7 2001 by William P. Cunningham
4.0 out of 5 stars
For the ages...
St Augustine's City of God is a work for the ages. It was not only a great apologetic to the Christian faith of the 5th century; it is an apologetic to Christian faith for all... Read more
Published on April 11 2001 by James T Humphrey II
5.0 out of 5 stars
The masterpiece of a great thinker.
City of God is a difficult, complex, and wide-ranging book, which makes many references to persons and places that will often be obscure to most of us. Read more
Published on Dec 18 2000 by David Marshall
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