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The Confessions

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St. Augustine was the first, and is arguably the most influential, of the major Christian apologists. In a time when Christianity was gaining momentum in the Roman Empire but was still mostly confined to the poor and uneducated, Augustine's theological treatises and apology made Christianity more valid, and in many cases more acceptable, to the learned in Rome. This autobiography, detailing Augustine's early life with a special emphasis on what made him convert to Christianity, made a tremendous contribution to the work of the sect.

Augustine deals with several topics in this book. He explores why we sin, how it affects God, and how He tries to win us back. He discusses learning and the effect of worldly wisdom and human interpretation of divine will, and attempts to reconcile earthly learning to spiritual growth. In the last three books he discusses time and creation with God. This is definitely heavy reading, but while Augustine's argument is very detailed and is sometimes difficult to comprehend, it is not poorly organized. For the most part the narrative is smooth, though the last three books do lag a little bit compared with the rest of the work.

Augustine's work has endured for more than a millennium and a half. Christianity has evolved, and has branched into many different and often opposing factions, but Augustine's work and his message still carry the great weight that they did over 1500 years ago.