The Concept Of The Human Soul According To Saint Augustine

Author : William P. O'connor
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781330471814
Total Pages : 90 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (718 download)

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Download or read book The Concept of the Human Soul written by William P. O'connor and published by . This book was released on 2015-07-02 with total page 90 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Excerpt from The Concept of the Human Soul: According to Saint Augustine The aim of this dissertation is to present and explain the concept of the human soul as it is found in the writings of Saint Augustine. The soul of man was for Saint Augustine an object of life-long study and investigation. He was not particularly concerned about the soul as such, the plant soul, or the irrational soul of the brute, except insofar as a study of these might serve to throw some light on the nature and activities of the human soul. His interest in the soul of man was not actuated by mere curiosity to know for the sake of knowing, but he sought to know the human soul as a means whereby he might arrive at a clearer and better understanding of the Supreme Being. The concept of the human soul as it appears in the writings of Saint Augustine is not set forth in a systematic manner, but the elements that enter into its make-up are found widely scattered through his various philosophical, apologetical, polemical, exegetical, and dogmatical works. He wrote a few special treatises on the human soul, but he never attempted to construct an organized philosophy of the soul. The present thesis proposes to collect and coordinate the philosophical fragments of Saint Augustine's doctrine of the human soul and to interpret these in the light of his mental progress. There is a tendency on the part of some commentators to over-emphasize the Platonic character of Augustine's doctrine of the human soul. It is true that those works which were published during the first few years of his career manifest the strong influence of his recent study of Neo-Platonism. The treatises, however, which belong to that period when he was Bishop of Hippo and one of the most renowned scholars of his day stamp him unquestionably as a Christian philospoher. It is indispensable to the correct understanding of Augustine's concept of the human soul that due regard be paid to the development which characterizes his doctrine. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.