AUGUSTINE AND AQUINAS

ST. AUGUSTINE

• One of three philosophers to experience inward turn
• Converted to Catholic Christianity
• Coverted from Stoic to Manicheanism to Neo-Platanism to Christianity
• Major works include "Confessions" and "City of God"
• Confessions were mainly written as prayer

CONFESSIONS

• Written 11 years after Augustine's baptism
• Confessio - accusation of oneself and praise to God
• Written more as prayer rather than an autobiography
• Has 13 books but is one unified mediation prayer
• Became instant "best-seller"

CONFESSIONS (CONTINUED)

• Augustine is not merely telling tale of own life
• Rather, uses life as concrete example
• The unity and rest on God is overall theme
• Points out the problem that we focus on material things
• This proves that we are unaware of the sensible world

"DE GENESI"

• Three main themes
• Discusses natural order of things
• Pride and privacy of being
• Re-establishing the unity once possessed
• Also discusses pre-lapsarian creatures

"DE GENESI" CONTINUED

• Contemplates the lack of order
• Lack of connection between humans and God
• Humans became priority before God
• Shows that nothing can truly be hidden from God
• Discusses the significance of reconnecting with God

"CITY OF GOD"

• Flesh is evil and related to the body
• Flesh is related to the Devil and leads to sin
• "It is greedy to be of the flesh"
• Two types of cities; City of man, City of God
• All humans have rightful place in City of God

ST. THOMAS AQUINAS

• Always considered himself a teacher, not philosopher
• Faith & Reason
• Questioned God's existence being self-evident
• 5 Proofs of God

CONTRIBUTIONS

• Faith & Reason
• 5 Proofs of God
• Applied philosophy from Aristotle to Christianity
• Challenged theology of Augustine
• Distinguished between things with reason and without

MAJOR QUESTIONS

• "Summa Theologica"
• Whether it can be proven that God exists
• Whether God exists
• Whether the existence of God is self-evident

GRACE AND NATURE

• Gift of grace given to us by God
• Given to us to add to our human nature
• Helps us reason with the light of faith
• Gifts of grace are a mystery

WATER INTO WINE

• Philosophers used theology in their philosophy
• Used theology to prove things that religion cannot
• Changed ideas of the reality of "turning water into wine"

FIRST PROOF OF GOD

• There must have been something that set things into motion
• Everything has to be set into motion
• Things cannot move on their own
• Nothing is without reason
• God is the one that set everything into motion

FIRST PROOF OF GOD (CONTINUED)

• "I AM WHO AM" = I am my own existence
• Body and soul are parts
• Parts proves the lack of unity
• God is One

FIRST ANALYSIS

• Augustine's confessions show fairh in God
• Gave reasons on why we should have faith
• Natural law is same as human nature

SECOND ANALYSIS

• Aquinas proves that God is real
• Uses theology in his philosophy