Hello, and welcome once more to my personal deep dive into The City of God, by Saint Augustine of Hippo, a detailed breakdown of each point to help me (and maybe you) understand this great work a little better. Diving right in, we’re hitting points 9, 10, and 11!
Point 9: Why Are the Good and the Wicked Equally affected?
Augustine carries on from the last point, seeking to explain further why Christians are equally afflicted by disasters that affect pagans.
He points out that while Christians are neither godless nor criminally wicked, they are not undeserving of temporal punishment. All of us, every one, has sinned, and does continue to sin.
He also points out that Christians bear a level of culpability in that they often fail to correct others, out of both fear or laziness, or that we worry after making someone loathe us or convince them to hinder our worldly designs (after all, who can harm our soul?).
He points out also that this DOESN’T mean that someone who refuses to speak out for fear of driving someone away from Christ, or seeks to wait for a more beneficial time, or fears speaking out in ignorance, is not culpable for the same lack of speaking out, as he holds himself back not from self preservation, but from charitable mentation.
Augustine goes on to delineate a difference between the married and the unmarried among the Christian, pointing out (rightfully) that the married man will be more inclined to gather more temporal goods (as is his responsibility as a provider), and thus is often afraid to offend those who could deprive him of those things. He does not justify silence in this, but rather, holds himself equally accountable for his silence as he does the unmarried person.
The unmarried, while able to be more content with less temporal goods, is often afraid to provide correction for fear of damage to their reputations or threat to their lives. He states that in this case, they are silent out of self interest, and are thus also in the wrong.
Augustine posits that the good man should despise this life, its pleasures, and the sins that come with it, and attempt to correct and reform his fellow man for the sake of his eternal soul.
Lastly, Augustine puts forth the story of Job, showing that some temporal disasters can serve to strengthen a Christian in spirit, that he may learn for himself what degree of devotion he has.
Point 10: The Saints Lose Nothing by Being Deprived of Temporal Goods
Augustine now asks the question: Has anyone observed any disaster that has happened to the faithful that did not turn out to be for their own benefit (Romans 8:28)?
He goes on to say that if they have not lost faith, they have lost nothing. We come into this world with no possession, we leave with no possession. The riches of the Christian are riches of the soul, their faith and devotion.
He points out that if you own anything in faith, when it is taken from you, you simply respond to your “loss” in the manner of Job. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. It has happened as the Lord decided, may His name be blessed.
Even those weak among us, when we lose the items and possessions we love, come to realize how much we sinned in loving the thing, and not the creator of the thing. We suffer only in proportion to our conformity with the world.
He quotes Paul to make clear that being wealthy in itself is not sin, but rather desiring wealth, rather than desiring God.
“As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.”
1 Timothy 6:17
He shares the story of Paulinus, the bishop of Nola, who he claims deliberately disposed of his wealth, and when the barbarians invaded, suffered no loss in their raids, for all of his wealth was stored with the perfect guardian of wealth, God Himself. He points out that some Christians were tortured for their wealth, and chides them for allowing themselves to be tortured to keep worldly possessions.
And if someone without wealth was tortured, then if they bore poverty for the name of Christ, even if they weren’t believed and were tortured, they confessed Christ in confessing their poverty, and earned heavenly rewards.
Augustine states that even a Christian who has starved to death has turned starvation to his advantage, for he has rid himself of all worldly evil, and if he has not starved, he has been taught a way to live more frugally and to fast more extensively.
Point 11: The End of This Life Must Always Come
Many Christians have died, been killed, or been taken by disease. When this is pointed out, as if it somehow invalidates the Christians belief, Augustine counters that all of us die, every one, both Christian’s and pagan. What matters is not the way that we die, or the reason for our death. When our life has ceased, why should we care which way it ended?
Every man, throughout life is threatened by numerous kinds of deaths, and no one knows which will take him. Death is not a disaster. We will all die, but we should not worry much about how we should end. Why should those who have lived well fear the blade, or the flame?
Thoughts
Whew. What a text. Points 9 and 10 at both substantial, and there’s a lot of nuance and detail I simply can’t cover for want of time. That being said, let’s get into my thoughts.
Augustine clearly holds the belief that we as Christians should despise this life. It is the love of worldly things that causes us to sin, so we should not love worldly things. To a degree, this makes sense, but it’s important to note that we are also called to show the love of Christ to all those around us. The “worldly” things that Augustine is discussing are things which causes us to sin, things like acquisitiveness (greed) and our reputation (pride).
As Christians, we truly do own nothing. All that we have is given us by God, and thus any thing we give, we give from God. Anything we receive we are mere stewards of what has been given. While it is true that the less you have in your possession, the less there is to lose, it is also your responsibility to invest your talents wisely, and not to simply throw away what you have been given by God.
Lastly, you can’t say it much better than Augustine. Fearing the manner of death or death itself is pointless, as it is going to happen to you someday. Live well, so that you may die well, loving God and loving God’s children. Be a beacon of hope to all around you.
And as always, may all you who read this be blessed with wisdom and obedience to God.
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