Deepertruth: Stand in the Gap with us and Saint Augustine of Hippo

 Stand in the Gap with us and Saint Augustine of Hippo 8/28/2023

His writings influenced the development of Western philosophy and Western Christianity, and he is viewed as one of the most important Church Fathers of the Latin Church in the Patristic Period. His many important works include The City of God, On Christian Doctrine, and Confessions.

Augustine shines out as one whose theology focuses on the central mystery of the Christian faith, God's gracious drawing of humanity into the divine life through the work of the incarnate Word and the life-giving Spirit.

Augustine has also taught us that the human race is united in sin and rebellion against God and cannot save itself. Those who have met with Christ have learned that they must trust him completely and not rely on their own efforts, qualities, or inheritance for their salvation.

For Augustine, love that is in accord with the truth of God's love must be an ordered love, in terms of everything being loved hierarchically according to its proper relationship to God. In fact, for Augustine, all virtue is ordered love.

The idea of truth Augustine believes comes not from ex- perience nor from reason but is innate in man. It cannot come from sense knowledge or reason for these are changeable and truth is not.

The rule, developed by Augustine of Hippo (354–430), governs chastity, poverty, obedience, detachment from the world, the apportionment of labour, the inferiors, fraternal charity, prayer in common, fasting and abstinence proportionate to the strength of the individual, care of the sick,