Wow. This Augustine book may be short (69 pages), but there is so much. I can only read a few pages at a time before having to pause and reflect, and I'm marking the pages up like crazy. A tough but good little read.
He is referred to as a "philosophical heavyweight" on the back cover of my edition, and that's probably putting it mildly. The chapters on the existence of evil are especially plenty to consider... Augustine makes the proposition that if evil is the absence or diminishing of good, then it cannot exist without good. So, "two contraries cannot coexist in a single thing. Nevertheless, while no one maintains that good and evil are not contraries, they cannot only coexist, but the evil cannot exist at all without the good, or in a thing that is not a good." (Augustine, 16)
So by that reasoning, creation (people included) is essentially "good," evil is the good diminished or suppressed... but good cannot be completely eradicated from the creature or it would cease to exist. After all, we can't know what evil is without good to compare it to, just as one can't fully appreciate perfect health without ever being sick or injured.
Hmm.
Not sure I totally agree with him yet, but it's a unique perspective anyway, and I can't fault the logic. If anything, it really sheds some light on the great question of why God would let evil exist.
This is my first attempt at reading Augustine, and the first impression... he is definitely more of a philosopher, but from a Christian/Catholic perspective. I like it. It's a little book, but the words are profound.
Further thoughts to come, I'm sure. It is forcing me to pay attention to every word, digest it slowly, think hard... kind of nice and refreshing.
No comments:
Post a Comment