On Christian Doctrine
Book Review • Augustine of Hippo, On Christian Doctrine, trans. J. F. Shaw (Aeterna Press, 2014). 175 pp. $7.
Read time: 4 min
Summary
In On Christian Doctrine, Augustine of Hippo provided a framework for understanding and teaching the Christian Scriptures. Notably, he began and concluded his work insisting on the necessity of divine assistance for accurately interpreting (Book 1, chapter 1) and effectively teaching (Book 4, chapter 30) God’s Word.
The foundation of his framework centered around the nature of objects and signs, with a view toward the ultimate goal of enjoying God in and above all other objects. By ‘objects’ he meant ends or goods that are to be enjoyed for their own sake. By ‘signs’ he referred to matters that point beyond themselves to other realities or truths, such as words, which are the primary sign with which Augustine was concerned. He argued that learning and the use of words are part of the spiritual pursuit of the enjoyment of God, which is exemplified in the incarnation of Jesus. Using Christ’s life, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension as touchpoints, he explained how these events strengthen our faith and equip believers with saving knowledge of God.
Augustine also addressed the moral and ethical dimensions of the Christian life, asserting that all forms of love should direct believers towards God, with both self-love and love for others reflecting God’s own love. Detailing the proper hierarchy of loves, he provided guidelines for how we should prioritize our affections and actions, linking this to a broader discussion on the right interpretation of Scripture. That is, Augustine posited that right biblical interpretations always promote love (1 Tim 1:5).
The theologian further offered practical hermeneutical principles grounded heavily in his conviction that much interpretive error results from ignorance of the biblical languages, especially Greek—the Greek New Testament and the Septuagint Old Testament. He critiqued numerous interpretative errors and highlighted the necessity of clear communication of scriptural truths. Augustine also examined the role of secular knowledge in biblical interpretation, supporting the use of liberal arts and sciences to illuminate biblical content, provided they support the ultimate goal of divine truth.
Augustine strongly cautioned against the misuse of secular ‘knowledge’ such as astrology and divination, arguing for reliance on divine wisdom over unfounded speculations.
Finally, in book four, the ‘Latin father’ focused on the Christian teacher’s role, reasoning that effective teaching of Christian doctrine requires not only rhetorical skills but also a life that walks out Christ’s teachings. He concluded by once again emphasizing that the primary purpose of Christian teaching is to cultivate rightly ordered loves, guiding believers toward truth through virtuous living and an accurate handling of God’s Word.
Quotations
“Some of the expressions are so obscure as to shroud the meaning in the thickest darkness. And I do not doubt that all this was divinely arranged for the purpose of subduing pride by toil, and of preventing a feeling of satiety in the intellect, which generally holds in small esteem what is discovered without difficulty” (27).
“No help is to be despised, even though it come from a profane source” (37).
“Whatever has been, Riley said, by the heathen, we must appropriate to our uses. Moreover, if those who are called philosophers, and especially the Platonists, have said aught that is true and in harmony with our faith, we are not only not to shrink from it, but to claim it for our own use from those who have unlawful possession of it” (50).
“When, however, a meaning is evolved of such a kind that what is doubtful in it cannot be cleared up by indubitable evidence from Scripture, it remains for us to make it clear by the evidence of reason” (67).
“There are three species of style, the subdued, the elegant, and the majestic: the first serving for instruction, the second for praise, and the third for exhortation” (76).
“For men of quick intellect and glowing temperament find it easier to become eloquent by reading and listening to eloquent speakers than by following rules for eloquence” (77).
“It is the duty, then, of the interpreter and teacher of Holy Scripture the defender of the true faith and the opponent of error, both to teach what is right and to refute what is wrong, and in the performance of this task to conciliate the hostile, to rouse the careless, and to tell the ignorant both what is occurring at present and what is probable in the future” (78).
“He, therefore, who teaches will avoid all words that do not teach; and if instead of them he can find words which are at once pure and intelligible, he will take these by preference” (86).
“The aim of the orator, according to Cicero, is to teach, to delight, and to move. Of these, teaching is the most essential. Accordingly, a great orator has truly said that ‘an eloquent man must speak so as to teach, to delight, and to persuade’ Then he adds: ‘To teach is a necessity, to delight is a beauty, to persuade is a triumph’” (87).
“The man who does not strive about words, whether he speak quietly, temperately or vehemently, uses words with no other purpose than to make the truth plain, pleasing, and effective; for not even love itself, which is the end of the commandment and the fulfilling of the law, can be rightly exercised unless the objects of love are true and not false” (104). ❖
