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Augustine of Hippo (Confessions, City of God)
354–430; converted 386; Confessions c. 397–400; City of God 413–426· Person· People
Historical recordConfirmed by archaeology, outside sources or contemporary records.
North African bishop (354–430) whose writings on sin, grace and the church shaped Western Christianity more than anyone after Paul.
See it on the Bible & Christianity map →What it is
Born in Thagaste (now Algeria) to a Christian mother, Monica, Augustine became a teacher of rhetoric and spent nine years in the Manichaean sect. In Milan, influenced by Bishop Ambrose, he converted in 386 and was baptized in 387. He was bishop of Hippo (Annaba, Algeria) from about 395 until his death in 430, as Vandals besieged the city. His Confessions is the first great autobiography: 'Our heart is restless until it rests in you.'
Why it matters
His ideas on original sin, grace, the Trinity, and church and state guided medieval Catholicism, Thomas Aquinas, and the Reformers Luther and Calvin alike.
Life, legacy and sources
More of his writing survives than of any other ancient Latin author: over 100 books, about 250 letters and more than 500 sermons, plus a biography by his friend Possidius.
Questions and debates
His views on predestination, sexuality and using state force against the rival Donatist church remain controversial; Eastern Orthodox theologians are more critical of him than the West.
Inside this (1)
Connections (5)
▸Augustine of Hippo (Confessions, City of God) shaped the doctrine of Sin and original sinHistorical record
The connection
Augustine coined the phrase 'original sin' (around 396) and argued that Adam's sin passed both guilt and a damaged will to every descendant through birth. He leaned on the Latin text of Romans 5:12, 'in whom all sinned'. His view, sharpened against the monk Pelagius, became standard teaching in the Western church.
When and where
Hippo, North Africa, about 396–430; the Council of Carthage (418) condemned Pelagius, and the Council of Orange (529) endorsed a moderate form of Augustine's view.
Historical evidence
Augustine's own writings, especially To Simplician (c. 396) and his works against Pelagius, show the doctrine taking shape; the council records confirm its adoption.
Questions and debates
The Greek of Romans 5:12 likely means 'because all sinned', not 'in whom'. Eastern Orthodox speak of inherited mortality ('ancestral sin') rather than inherited guilt.
▸Letter to the Romans prompted the conversion of Augustine of Hippo (Confessions, City of God)Historical record
The connection
In a garden in Milan in 386, torn about his life, Augustine heard a child's voice chanting 'Take up and read.' He opened Paul's letters at random to Romans 13:13–14: 'not in revelling and drunkenness... but put on the Lord Jesus Christ.' He says his doubt vanished. Romans later shaped his teaching on grace and sin.
When and where
Milan, late summer 386, with his friend Alypius; Ambrose baptized him at Easter 387.
Historical evidence
Augustine's own account in Confessions, Book 8 (written c. 397–400), more than a decade after the event.
Questions and debates
How literally to read this carefully crafted scene is debated; his writings from 386–387 present his conversion as more gradual and philosophical.
▸Augustine of Hippo (Confessions, City of God) defended the priority of Grace: salvation as God's free giftHistorical record
The connection
Against Pelagius, a British monk who taught that people can choose to obey God by their own effort, Augustine argued from Paul (Romans; Ephesians 2:8–9) that sin has so damaged the will that no one turns to God unless grace moves them first. Even faith is a gift. This led him to a strong doctrine of predestination.
When and where
North Africa, from about 411 to his death in 430; the Council of Carthage (418) condemned Pelagius, a ruling the pope confirmed.
Historical evidence
Augustine's anti-Pelagian works survive, such as On the Spirit and the Letter (412) and On Nature and Grace (415); parts of Pelagius's own writings survive too.
Questions and debates
How much free will Augustine left is debated: Catholics, Lutherans and Calvinists each claim him. Eastern Orthodox teaching gives human cooperation a larger role.
▸Augustine of Hippo (Confessions, City of God) answered, in City of God, pagan blame for Fall of the Western Roman EmpireHistorical record
The connection
After Alaric's Visigoths sacked Rome in 410, pagans blamed the disaster on Rome abandoning its old gods. Augustine replied in City of God (22 books): Rome had suffered under the old gods too, and every earthly city rises and falls. The lasting 'City of God' is the community of those who love God, pilgrims in this world.
When and where
Hippo, North Africa, 413–426, as refugees from Rome reached Africa; Augustine died in 430 during the Vandal siege of Hippo.
Historical evidence
City of God, Book 1, states its purpose, and Augustine's Retractations (c. 427) explains why he wrote it.
Questions and debates
How far City of God shaped medieval ideas of church over state, versus later readers stretching it, is debated by historians.
▸Augustine of Hippo (Confessions, City of God) deeply influenced Martin LutherHistorical record
The connection
Luther was an Augustinian friar, and Augustine's teaching that humans cannot save themselves and depend wholly on God's grace shaped him deeply. Augustine's writings against Pelagius, especially On the Spirit and the Letter, confirmed Luther's reading of Romans. He cited Augustine more than any other church father.
When and where
Erfurt and Wittenberg, 1505–1520; Luther joined the Augustinian order in 1505 and was reading Augustine closely by 1509.
Historical evidence
Luther's handwritten notes in his copies of Augustine from 1509–1510 survive, and his writings quote Augustine constantly.
Questions and debates
Both sides claimed him: Catholics note Augustine also upheld church authority and sacraments, and say the Reformers read him selectively. Calvin answered, 'Augustine is wholly ours.'