The City of God

By Augustine of Hippo and San Agustín

Book Overview

One of the great cornerstones in the history of Christian philosophy, The City of God provides an insightful interpretation of the development of modern Western society and the origin of most Western thought. Contrasting earthly and heavenly cities--representing the omnipresent struggle between good and evil--Augustine explores human history in its relation to all eternity. In Thomas Merton's words, "The City of God is the autobiography of the Church written by the most Catholic of her great saints." This Modern Library Paperback Classics edition is a complete and unabridged version of the Marcus Dods translation.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679783199
• ISBN13: 9780679783190
• Release Date: September 2000
• Publisher: Modern Library
• Length: 928 Pages
• Weight: 1.41 lbs.
• Dimensions: 2.2" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

More Detailed Table of Contents

The Table of Contents isn't very detailed, so here's a more detailed one that you can print out and insert, based on the section titles: Book I (3) 1 Of the Adversaries of the Name of Christ, Whom the Barbarians for Christ's Sake Spared When They Stormed the City 2 That It is Quite Contrary to the Usage of War, that the Victors Should Spare the Vanquished for the Sake of Their Gods 3 That the Romans Did Not Show Their Usual Sagacity When They Trusted that They Would Be Benefited by the Gods Who Had Been Unable to Defend Troy 4 Of the Asylum of Juno in Troy, Which Saved No One from the Greeks; And of the Churches of the Apostles, Which Protected from the Barbarians All Who Fled to Them 5 Caesar's Statement Regarding the Universal Custom of an Enemy When Sacking a City 6 That Not Even the Romans, When They Took Cities, Spared the Conquered in Their Temples 7 That the Cruelties Which Occurred in the Sack of Rome Were in Accordance with the Custom of War, Whereas the Acts of Clemency Resulted from the Influence of Christ's Name 8 Of the Advantages and Disadvantages Which Often Indiscriminately Accrue to Good and Wicked Men 9 Of the Reasons for Administering Correction to Bad and Good Together 10 That the Saints Lose Nothing in Losing Temporal Goods 11 Of the End of This Life, Whether It is Material that It Be Long Delayed 12 Of the Burial of the Dead: that the Denial of It to Christians Does Them No Injury 13 Reasons for Burying the Bodies of the Saints 14 Of the Captivity of the Saints, and that Divine Consolation Never Failed Them Therein 15 Of Regulus, in Whom We Have an Example of the Voluntary Endurance of Captivity for the Sake of Religion; Which Yet Did Not Profit Him, Though He Was a Worshipper of the Gods 16 Of the Violation of the Consecrated and Other Christian Virgins, to Which They Were Subjected in Captivity and to Which Their Own Will Gave No Consent; And Whether This Contaminated Their Souls 17 Of Suicide Committed Through Fear of Punishment or Dishonor 18 Of the Violence Which May Be Done to the Body by Another's Lust, While the Mind Remains Inviolate 19 Of Lucretia, Who Put an End to Her Life Because of the Outrage Done Her 20 That Christians Have No Authority for Committing Suicide in Any Circumstances Whatever 21 Of the Cases in Which We May Put Men to Death Without Incurring the Guilt of Murder 22 That Suicide Can Never Be Prompted by Magnanimity 23 What We are to Think of the Example of Cato, Who Slew Himself Because Unable to Endure Caesar's Victory 24 That in that Virtue in Which Regulus Excels Cato, Christians are Pre-Eminently Distinguished 25 That We Should Not Endeavor By Sin to Obviate Sin 26 That in Certain Peculiar Cases the Examples of the Saints are Not to Be Followed 27 Whether Voluntary Death Should Be Sought in Order to Avoid Sin 28 By What Judgment of God the Enemy Was Permitted to Indulge His Lust on the Bodies of Continent Christians 29 What the Servants of Christ Should Say in Reply to the Unbelievers Who Cas

Should be the new standard

It is hard to find recent work on De Civitate Dei in English that does not use this newest edition and translation of probably Augustine's most influential work (if not his most readable). I am convinced that this will be the translation that will be used for the foreseeable future. An excellent rendering of the Latin original, wonderful introduction and copious notes. So clear and precise is the translation, and so helpful is the supporting scholarship, that one could conceivably come to this particular text of Augustine's work having no prior knowledge, and leave it with complete fluency. It is that good. For the full effect, get the 3 vols of the Loeb Classical Latin-English edition (the MacCracken-Greene translation is still very useful, though not in comparison to newer scholarship such as Dyson's) and work though the text yourself. I think that Augustine's Latin and Dyson's English match up well next to each other--this is a volume to own if you are contemplating any serious work with Augustine, or if you are just curious about what all the fuss over Augustine is about. A polemical, brilliant, controversial, and stimulating work, City of God is as good a place as any to introduce yourself to Augustine, and this is an excellent translation to use.