Augustine's teaching on human nature. (old)

Define Fall.

-The moment when Adam & Eve disobeyed God by eating the fruit of the forbidden tree; humans are ‘fallen’ bc of this moment.

Define human nature.

-The essential sense of what all humans are like; shared characteristics.

Define sin.

-Turning away from the will of God.

Define concupiscence.

-The idea that our natural perfected state has been wounded so that we aren’t bad but always inclining towards sin.

Is there a distinctive human nature?

-Evolution seems to suggest that human nature is moving away from the primitive.

-If human nature is based on civilisation, it’s clear that this changes with different civilisations - perhaps this is an argument against Hobbes.

-Marx said we are essentially creative beings - this creativity adapts to the situations we are placed in & so different ppl will have different natures.

-Sartre said that we make our own essence through the choices we make - there is no basic human nature.

What is Augustine’s definition of human will?

-For Augustine, it’s given to humans by God at creation & used to make choices.

-It’s driven by self-love & generous love, which work together to help ppl choose to love God properly.

What was the state of human beings before the Fall according to Genesis?

-The state of perfection before the Fall: According to Genesis, when God created humans he made them as the pinnacle of his creation in his ‘image & likeness’.

-They lived in the Garden of Eden – a perfect paradise where all they had to do was name the animals & live their lives. They could eat from any vegetation, except for the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good & evil.

-The state that Adam & Eve lived in can be described as perfect harmony.

How did Augustine interpret the harmony in Eden before the Fall?

-Adam & Eve had everything they needed. There were no threats to their lives.

-They were in harmony with God: he used to walk in the garden with them. They lived in complete obedience with God.

-Augustine interpreted these few verses of Genesis to say that there was perfect harmony between the human body, will & reason.

What did Augustine conclude about Adam & Eve’s relationship?

-They were married as friends.

-They were friends with God & rest of creation.

-Their friendship included reproduction.

-They would’ve had the pleasure of sex, but as friendship is a greater good than lust, the sex would’ve been without lust.

What happens in the Fall according to Genesis, and how does Augustine interpret it?

-In Genesis 3, we read the story of the Fall.

-The serpent tempts Eve to eat from the tree of knowledge of good & evil; she does so & Adam follows suit. They realise they are naked, they hide from God, he finds out & they are duly punished.

-Augustine interprets the events of the Fall in a number of ways: the shame of nakedness & the punishment to Eve of lust & subordination defines male-female relationships post-Fall.

How does the Fall affect human will and the relationship with God, according to Augustine?

-Harmony is lost (humans lose their friendship with God & are banished from the garden) & self-love & generous love separate within the will – they pull humans in opposing directions.

-Augustine is clear that it is the will, not the body, that has been corrupted.

What are the effects of the fall according to Augustine?

-For Augustine, the effect of the Fall is wide-ranging. Friendship can still exist & still be important but it's less straightforward bc the will has become clouded.

-The will therefore moves ppl away from the good - this is what Paul describes when he says 'I do not understand what I do. For what I do I do not do, but what I hate I do'.

-Augustine interpreted this passage in his own life to refer to his need to overcome his sexual desires but says this applies to all of us - lust begins to rule human relationships. This lack of control over our desires, especially our lust, is concupiscence.

Define Original Sin.

-The state that humans were brought into by the Fall, which was the first sin.

How does Augustine describe the effects of Original Sin on human nature and the will?

For Augustine, Original Sin, which came into the world at the Fall, characterises human nature. In his terms, the will continues in its disharmony & therefore rebels.

-This is illustrated sexually: man loses his ability to control his sexual desires – not just during sex but also in his desire to have sex.

-Those who don't urge for sex are showing a will rebelling in other ways. It's important to understand that other thinkers see Original Sin as describing human nature, but Augustine saw it as changing it; therefore, from the Fall onwards, no human being is truly good, however much they do good things.

How does Augustine believe Original Sin is transmitted, and what role does concupiscence play?

-Augustine believed that Original Sin is passed on to all generations through sexual intercourse because all humans are united through being descendants of Adam & Eve and are all conceived as a result of lust.

-This is shown in concupiscence. The Roman Catholic Church still holds this view.

What did Augustine say about Original Sin being a double death?

-Original sin killed the friendship between God & humans.

-Humans became mortal, following the Fall.

How did human leadership and society change after the Fall, according to Augustine?

-Before the Fall, humanity was characterised by friendship & the leadership humans required was gentle.

-However, after the Fall humans needed proper authority to control them & their rebellious wills: this is shown in the different types of leader through the Old Testament.

-Slavery was an example of the effect of the Fall on society.

What kind of peace can society aim for after the Fall, and how should Christians respond?

-Augustine spoke of society's need for peace – not heavenly peace, which humans cannot achieve, but earthly peace, which is temporary & is based around earthly, material interests.

-Society must strive for this limited form of peace by aiming for virtues such as self-control, which would never have been needed without the Fall.

-Christians should, however, keep in mind that there is a greater peace available to all. The Church is available to help people on this journey.

What are the strengths of Augustine’s views on original sin?

-Sexual desires do play a disproportionate part in human life.

-The Roman Catholic Church says that humans are divided & need the help of God to develop.

-Augustine’s view seems to correspond with our own experiences of life - we are torn in different directions even if they’re wrong.

-Freud also said sex is central to the motivation of humans.

What are the weaknesses of Augustine’s views on original sin?

-Augustine’s account relies on a literal interpretation of the Adam & Eve story & it could be unfair for people to be tainted by an act from so long ago.

-There does not seem to be space for humans to develop spiritually or morally in Augustine’s account.

-Evolution implies that we are headed towards perfection, not away from it.

-Dawkins said that Augustine’s negative approach has led to a lot of human suffering as well as an over-emphasis on sexuality.

Define Grace.

-God’s generous undeserved & free act of love for the world through Jesus.

What problem does Original Sin raise about moral goodness?

-Although the emphasis is that Original Sin isn’t the same as a day-to-day sin, Augustine is clear that everyone is corrupted by the event. In this case, is it actually possible for humans ever to be good?

-And if not, is there any point in living virtuous lives? Augustine doesn’t think this.

-He says that people need to keep in mind things beyond earth – both the heavenly peace & also what God can give directly: grace.

-It still seems unfair, however, for humans to be living lives that will always fall short & this raises key questions about the nature of God.

How does Augustine respond to the views of Hobbes and Rousseau on human nature?

-Augustine would reject both Hobbes & Rousseau’s views because they fail to understand the turning point for humanity – the Fall.

-However, when we look at a newborn baby, it's very difficult to imagine it tainted by Original Sin & Rousseau would’ve agreed – we start with clear records that society messes up.

Why do some theologians criticise Augustine’s focus on sex and guilt?

-It also seems unfair for humanity to be defined almost entirely by the idea of sex.

-Many modern theologians see sex as a healthy part of what it is to be human & would suggest that Augustine was too consumed by his own guilt & his early life where he found it difficult to control his sexual desires.

-However, even these theologians would say that sex needs to be controlled in some ways.

Is it possible for some humans to be morally good despite Original Sin?

-It is also possible to argue that there is no one distinct human nature & therefore it is possible for some, but not all, humans to be good.

-Psychological experiments have shown that, placed in identical situations, humans react differently. In this case, it could be argued that the question of whether humans can ever be morally good remains unclear.

Why do humans need God’s grace according to Augustine?

-Our free will is naturally limited; in Augustine’s eyes, people are tainted by concupiscence & so cannot choose the right action every time, even by the use of reason.

-God’s grace can make right choices, however. God’s grace is freely given to undeserving humans & is seen especially in the sacrifice made by Jesus on the cross.

What does Augustine say about election and the undeserved nature of grace?

-Humans can accept the grace of God, but as they continue to sin, Augustine believed that God elects some people to go to heaven; this is a sign of God's benevolence, that he is still prepared to let some people go to heaven.

-This underlines the belief that humans don't deserve grace (because of the Fall & Original Sin), but grace is the only thing that can save people from hell.

How does Augustine describe the nature of grace and true goodness?

-Inspired by Plato, Augustine talks about God's goodness being a greatest good that is available only for some – it is part of God's nature.

-Goodness in this world is always temporary, whereas the summum bonum is eternal happiness only found in the permanent presence of God.

-No person can buy a place in heaven – it can only be given by grace.

Define predestination.

-The idea that God chooses & guides some people to salvation.

Why is Augustine’s view of human nature considered pessimistic?

-Clearly, Augustine seems to give a pessimistic view of what it means to be human: we are tainted from the moment we are born.

-There is little opportunity to develop away from our fallen states & no total escape from it. Where there is such opportunity, it is only to pursue earthly peace, rather than true heavenly peace.

-Concupiscence is an extremely strong force we cannot escape. His teaching about election & predestination suggests that hell is a certainty for some from the moment of birth.

-We are not truly free beings.

How might Augustine’s own life have shaped his pessimism?

-However, his pessimism seems to come out of his early experiences in life, so might reflect his state of mind more than God’s.

-Augustine put a heavy emphasis on the reality of human evil. Each one of us, he believed, is sinful by nature & the account of his own life provided in the early portions of the Confessions makes it clear that he did not suppose himself to be an exception.

How does the Fall contribute to Augustine’s pessimistic outlook on human nature?

-The Fall of Man highlights that the relationship humans once shared with God has been damaged.

-The actions of Adam & Eve and the result of Original Sin has driven a wedge between man & God.

-The relationship is tainted & corrupted & we cannot do anything about it. Only God's grace can repair the damage.

How does Augustine describe the spiritual state of humanity without grace?

-Augustine regarded humanity as spiritually empty without the grace of a forgiving God.

-In his book The City of God, Augustine showed Rome – an example of the City of Man – destroyed & crumbling through extreme human greed & sin. He argues that Rome is indicative of all people at all times.

-Augustine, consequently, was prepared to envision large numbers of people lost in hell rather than to nominate as good anything that was evil, rather than to lower his sights or his standards.

What role do free will and grace play in Augustine’s pessimistic theology?

-Originally we were equally free to choose good or evil. But humans are now constantly attracted towards evil – that is, toward excessive satisfaction of our lower desires for material things & pleasures.

-We can only escape from inherited sinfulness if we receive grace from God, & there is no way we can earn such grace or force God to give it to us by being good.

-Augustine's view was that God selects only a few people to receive grace & be saved.

-The rest of humanity will just continue to sin & not repent & then they will be punished for it after death in hellfire.

-Original Sin became a kind of infection passed on to every generation.

-Consequently, we are so prone to sin that we are wholly & utterly incapable of being perfect.

In what ways can Augustine be seen as optimistic about human destiny?

-On the other hand, Augustine could be argued to be very optimistic about humans.

-There is something to look forward to – heavenly peace is achievable. God’s grace is totally given to undeserving humanity. Jesus died on the cross to save humans from sin: he redeemed humans – paid the price for their sinful natures. The

-Church exists to help Christians on their journey, starting with the important moment of baptism that keeps the wound of Original Sin closed. Faith exists as a way to point people in the direction of the summum bonum.

How do modern Christians show an optimistic interpretation of Augustine’s ideas?

-Modern Christians who have accepted much of what Augustine said would consider themselves optimists.

-The Roman Catholic Church speaks of the happy fault of Adam – Adam’s sin meant that the inexpressibly greater blessings of Jesus could be given to the world.

-Many Christians emphasise that from the moment of the Fall, God was working his mysterious goodness in the world & the joy of Jesus’ resurrection overcomes all pessimism.

Why might Augustine be seen as a realist rather than a pessimist?

-Augustine wasn’t pessimistic but a realist – he saw with a cold eye what he regarded as a human tendency towards evil.

-The positives of this is that humans may read Augustine & acknowledge their sinfulness & their tendency for concupiscence.

What role does revelation play in Augustine’s optimism?

-Augustine, however, had a streak of optimism amidst his pessimism that saw, through revelation, not only that the City of God was the ultimate destiny of the human race, but also that it offered the potential for some limited but real improvement in the world.

How does Augustine's vision allow for freedom and a deeper purpose?

-The realism of Augustine recognises that at the root of what we saw of disorder in the world is a personal will that is the good that God allows to exist even if it chooses against Him & His norms embedded in the being of man the rational being. In other words, we are free.

-The optimistic vision of a possible ideal world on Earth has a long history. Often, the ideal is also seen as transcending the boundaries of earthly life, as in St Augustine’s The City of God, which is opposed to the "city of men".

What was the disagreement between Augustine and Pelagius, and how is it viewed today?

-While Augustine was writing, the thinking of Pelagius was gaining in popularity & Augustine tried to counteract Pelagius’s view that it is possible to live a moral life.

-Pelagius felt that Augustine’s views were leading people towards immoral behaviour, but ultimately his views were condemned at a Church Council in 418 where Augustine’s view was upheld: Original Sin is inherited, babies need to be baptised & humans can only be good through God’s grace.

-With modern understandings of the origins of humanity showing that the Adam & Eve story might not be literally true, there may be a place for Pelagius’s views in the 21st century.

What do Augustine & Pelagius say about human nature?

-Augustine= Human nature is damaged by the fall, it’s sinful.

-Pelagius= Humans can’t have a flawed nature. If we did then God would be commanding the impossible when he asks humans to be holy.

What do Augustine & Pelagius say about sin?

-Augustine= Humans are incapable of avoiding sin. The will is now such that it has a tendency away from goodness.

-Pelagius= Humans don’t have to sin, it is theoretically possible for people to be good. Sin can only be sin if it is freely chosen. It must be possible for humans to live the perfect life without God’s intervention.

What do Augustine & Pelagius say about guilt & original sin?

-Augustine= Adam’s sin affects all people. The Fall transmits guilt to the whole human race. Humans are sinful at birth.

-Pelagius= We are all created in the same state as Adam, but we are only responsible for our own sin. We become sinners not at birth but when we choose to sin.

What do Augustine & Pelagius say about death?

-Augustine= Death is the consequence & punishment for sin.

-Pelagius= Death is a biological necessity, not a punishment.

What do Augustine & Pelagius say about grace?

-Augustine= Humans cannot do any good deeds without God’s grace.

-Pelagius= God’s grace assists people in doing the right thing & showing what is right & wrong but humans carry out the actions.

What do Augustine & Pelagius say about suffering?

-Augustine= All suffering is deserved - even infant deaths - as all are in Original Sin.

-Pelagius= Augustine makes God sound arbitrary in punishing innocent babies.

What do Augustine & Pelagius say about God?

-Augustine= Shows his omnibenevolence through grace. Is not to blame for evil as evil is absence of good, not a thing in itself.

-Pelagius= It would be unjust of God to condemn humans for something they couldn’t help.

What do Augustine & Pelagius say about Jesus?

-Augustine= The expression of God’s grace.

-Pelagius= Good people existed in the Old Testament. They lived before Jesus brought salvation into the world.

How does science challenge Augustine’s belief in a perfect creation damaged by sin?

-Augustine’s view that when the world was made it was perfect but damaged by human sin goes against Darwin’s theory of evolution.

-Scientists believe the universe began in chaos and has developed over time.

-Evolution shows a slow increase in intelligence & cognitive ability, not a dramatic fall.

-Augustine’s account implies we were once rational super-people, but there's no evidence for this.

Why does the mythical status of Adam and Eve undermine Augustine’s concept of Original Sin?

-Science shows the Biblical creation story isn’t literally true and suggests that Adam & Eve and the Garden of Eden are myths, not historical facts.

-This destroys the idea of Original Sin being caused by the disobedience of a first man and woman.

-The concept of inherited guilt becomes invalid. As Bishop John Selby Spong said: “The biblical story of the perfect & finished creation from which human beings fell into sin is pre-Darwinian mythology & post-Darwinian nonsense.”

What logical problem does Schleiermacher raise against Augustine’s Fall narrative?

-Friedrich Schleiermacher pointed out that it’s logically inconsistent to believe in a perfect creation that could go wrong.

-If the world and its creatures were perfect, then it should never have gone wrong. Evil cannot emerge from perfection.

-The fact that God's creatures chose to disobey him implies they already knew evil — and if they did, this knowledge could only come from God who created everything.

-Therefore, Augustine’s view that the Fall caused evil & suffering is flawed.

Why do critics argue that Original Sin is morally unacceptable?

-Critics argue it’s unethical to be punished for a crime someone else committed.

-Augustine’s idea of inherited guilt means Original Sin belongs to everyone because it belonged to the first humans. But modern ethics reject this.

-For example, imagine your mother committed a crime before you were born and was never caught. Years after her death, the police decide to punish you for it. Would that seem fair? If not, Augustine’s idea of inherited sin is morally wrong.

How do these scientific, logical, and moral criticisms challenge Augustine’s teachings?

-Scientific discoveries disprove the literal truth of Genesis, showing no evidence of a fall from perfection. Evolution contradicts Augustine’s idea of a perfect human nature that declined.

-Philosophers like Schleiermacher raise logical issues with the concept of a perfect world going wrong. Modern ethics reject inherited guilt, making Augustine’s idea of Original Sin seem unjust.

-Together, these criticisms suggest that Augustine’s teachings on the Fall and Original Sin are deeply flawed.

How do Augustine’s supporters reinterpret the Fall and Original Sin in a non-historical way?

-Supporters of Augustine argue that Original Sin doesn’t have to be a historical event, but a description of how each person moves from innocence to moral awareness.

-We are born innocent, but as we grow, we give in to temptation.

- Augustine wrote: “Many times I lied to my tutor... Can this be the innocence of childhood?” (Confessions).

-So the Fall doesn’t need to be a literal event, but a powerful explanation of the state of all humans.

How does Augustine explain the existence of evil without blaming God?

-Augustine argued it would be impossible for God to be responsible for evil because evil is not a "substance" that has been created, but a privation — the absence or lack of something.

-For Augustine, evil is the privation of good (privatio boni), a lack of good. He used the analogy of blindness, which is not a thing in itself but a lack of sight.

Why do some argue that Augustine is right about human nature and punishment?

-Supporters of Augustine argue that punishment for sin is justified.

-He showed that all humans, when left to their own devices, are selfish, cruel & often act against their own best interests.

-He was right to stress how lust & the sex drive are powerful and destructive. History shows that humans are not innocent — unstable societies like ancient Rome or modern dictatorships support Augustine’s view that human nature is selfish.

How do 20th century atrocities support Augustine’s view that humans can never be morally good?

-The 20th Century saw some of the worst genocides and destruction in history.

-Though we’ve made some moral progress, atrocities like Hitler’s Holocaust — driven by the secular philosophy of National Socialism — show we cannot be morally perfect without God. Hitler believed racial profiling, euthanasia & selective breeding would create a perfect Aryan race, but it led to horrific evil.

How do political ideologies like Stalinism support Augustine’s view on moral failure?

-Stalin’s USSR, a secular political system, led to the deaths of millions in the name of “progress”. The killing fields of Cambodia are another example of humanity’s failure.

-The invention of atomic bombs, nerve gas, and other chemical/biological weapons shows our inability to be truly good.

-Even when progress is made (like ending slavery), we regress in other areas (like human trafficking).

Why would Augustine argue that humans are incapable of true moral progress?

-According to Augustine, everything we do seems to be “infected” by sin. Our failure to achieve real moral progress proves our fallen nature.

-He would say sin is inevitable for us now — once the Fall happened, humans became incapable of achieving moral goodness on their own.

How does moral progress challenge Augustine’s belief that we can never be morally good?

-We’ve made lots of improvements in our understanding of morality — like rejecting slavery, racism, and the exploitation of the planet.

-These shifts show that we are making moral progress.

-Though we aren’t perfect, these changes challenge Augustine’s view that we’re trapped in sin and incapable of being morally good.

Why might it still be possible for humans to be morally good in the future?

-Improvements in how we treat others and the environment suggest growing moral awareness. Some argue that, although we are not morally perfect now, one day we might eliminate war, greed and other evils.

-This hopeful view implies that humans can become morally good — opposing Augustine’s belief that sin permanently corrupts us.

How does Augustine explain the idea of a shared human nature?

-Augustine believed we all share a distinctive human nature, passed from one generation to the next.

-Though he didn’t know about genetics, he argued that original sin has made this nature fallen and imperfect.

-Evidence for this is that all humans, even from a young age, have a tendency to sin.

Why does Augustine think humans can't help but sin?

-Augustine said that all human natures have been “abused” by sin — we are tainted and cannot help but sin.

-Like how people who are abused may become abusers, he believed this fallen nature is universal: everyone is affected and drawn towards wrongdoing.

What does Augustine say is our telos and how does it show human nature?

-Augustine believed our telos is to be united with God, meaning we have an innate moral nature. It is simply wrong to murder or abuse, and we should try to fulfil our nature as moral beings.

-He believed in absolute good and bad, and that perfect goodness existed before the Fall — proving there is a distinctive way to be human.

How does Sartre challenge Augustine’s view on sin being passed down?

-Sartre rejected Augustine’s idea of inherited sin — he believed we are free to choose who we are, and sinfulness is a personal choice, not something passed on.

What does Sartre say about limitations and human freedom?

-While Sartre acknowledged “facticity” (physical limits), he believed our minds and imagination are free, and that our roles in life are chosen — not determined by genetics or past events.

Why does Sartre reject the idea of a fixed moral nature?

-Sartre argued there is no absolute morality or fixed purpose; although some people may find it harder to make choices, we can break from our past and define our own meaning — but we must accept the consequences of our choices.

Summarise Augustine's teaching on human nature.

-What does it mean to be a human being? Thomas Hobbes said that human life is 'solitary, poor, nasty, brutish & short'. For Hobbes, that sums up the natural state of a human being & all that saves us is society, which makes us civilised.

-Jean-Jacques Rousseau said that 'man is born free & everywhere he is in chains'. His view was the opposite: it is society that has messed humans up - the natural state of a human is good.

-Augustine had a diff view: humans were created in the image of God, but at the Fall, human nature was irretrievably damaged & we spend our times battling against this, shown through our relationship with sin.