Abstract
St. Augustine devotes an extraordinary amount of effort in his writings to understanding and explaining what one is to learn from the dichotomy between pre- and post-Iapsarian man; in whole or in part, De Genesi ad litteram is given over to distinguishing between these two "states," as are the De Genesi contra Manichaeos and De Genesi ad litteram imperfectus liber, the last three books of the Confessiones, and the last twelve books of the De civitate Dei. The two aspects of the human condition which revolve around the question of the Fall find their embodiment in the two cities, the City of God and the City of Man. and are distinguished in terms of love- the latter is bound by the love of earthly. perishable things, while the former. the City of God, is defined by the love it has for the eternal peace of heaven. The last twelve books of St. Augustine's De civitate Dei are devoted to a consideration of the origin, progress, and destinies of the "two cities." The first section of this portion of the work, addressing the origins of the cities, is comprised of Books XI-XIV, and it is this portion that will occupy our attention, in order to come to an understanding of the nature of Augustine's teaching on creation, the fall, and the role of the will. The distinct origins of the two cities are made clear by a consideration of the Fall of the angels, and then by the Fall of man from the Garden of Genesis, and this is fundamentally connected to the question of the will.
Recommended Citation
Dougherty, Richard J.
(1994)
"Creation, the Fall, and the Role of the Will in St. Augustine’s De Civitate Dei, Books XI-XIV,"
University of Dayton Review: Vol. 22:
No.
3, Article 13.
Available at:
https://ecommons.udayton.edu/udr/vol22/iss3/13
Comments
Issue contains the subject matter of the 1994 Philosophy Colloquium, which had the theme "Augustine on Human Goodness: Metaphysics, Ethics and Politics." It was held April 7-9, 1994.