All Christians desire to be closer to God and, ultimately, to be with Him after death. But how do we get closer to God? There are two possible answers to this question. The simple answer is that all you need to do is have faith in the words of the Bible. But for many, faith alone does not seem sufficient. They feel the need to understand God. What can their beliefs mean without understanding? So, once again, the question: should we follow God's word with blind faith, or should we use reason and intellect to better understand our creator? St. Augustine, a great Catholic saint, wrestled with this same question. On the surface, The Confessions is the story of a man whose spiritual journey leads him from the depths of sin and sexual appetite to the life of a devout Christian. However, aside from his struggle with lust, St. Augustine wrestles with another issue, which lies just beneath the surface of his narrative. Like other Christians, he longs to be close to God, but as he searches for the method to achieve this goal, the conflict between his biblical and Platonic beliefs comes to a head. While Plato may not seem directly applicable at first glance, there are many parallels between Plato's "Good" and the Christian God. However, while the Bible suggests that one can only approach God through faith alone, Plato says that one can only approach the Good by using philosophy, an act of the intellect. In the Confessions, Saint Augustine oscillates between these two seemingly opposing ideas, but, in the end, manages to reconcile this problem of intellect and faith. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Christian teaching offers faith as the most important means of drawing closer to God. At the beginning of the text, St. Augustine says that "the Church required that certain things be believed even if they could not be proven, because if could be demonstrated, not all men could understand the proof, and some could not be demonstrated at all." " (6, 5). For the Church, proof and understanding have no importance. Three fundamental principles constitute the foundation of the Church. Firstly, there is faith in almighty God, creator of heaven and earth. Secondly, they believe that Jesus, who was God incarnate, was born of a virgin to die on the cross to conquer hell and ascend to heaven, thus redeeming the souls of all men, there is the promise that good Christians will be rewarded with eternal life in heaven with God. These beliefs cannot be supported or proven with the perceived laws of the world we live in. Therefore, since these things are apparently supernatural, faith has become the most important feature of Christianity Bible is devoted almost entirely to the idea of ​​faith. In the book of Job, Job becomes the subject of a wager between God and Satan states that Job, one of God's faithful servants, lives a "blameless" life only because God protects him from it. bad. To prove Satan wrong, God allows him to destroy Job's children, servants, and animals and, later, curse him with boils. When Job's friends come to visit him, they try to explain Job's condition. Assuming they know God's motives, they claim that it is God's punishment for Job. Eliphaz asks, “is not your wickedness great?” (Job 22:5). He says to Job, “Therefore snares surround you” (Job 22:10). They believe that they can understand the ways of God and that only Job's actions can be responsible for his misfortune. Instead of attempting to use reason, Job acknowledges that he does notbe able to understand God and points out to Eliphaz and the others that they cannot do so either, saying: "Where then does wisdom come from? Where is the place of understanding? Seeing it is hidden from the eyes." of all living... Destruction and Death say, "We have heard of it with our ears." God understands the way of it, and knows the place of it" (Job 28:20-23). ​​​​Saying this, Job not only emphasizes that God is the true guardian of wisdom and intelligence, but also suggests the consequences of trying to gain only mistakes can be found and ultimately the seeker will be led to "destruction and death". also gives a clear picture of God's point of view in this matter a cloud and says to Eliphaz: «My anger is kindled against you and against your two friends; because you have not said what is right about me, as my servant Job has made" (Job 42:7). God is angry with Eliphaz because he misrepresented him. Only Job recognizes that God's wisdom is not to be understood by men; and, while his friends are punished for presuming to understand God, Job is rewarded for being faithful. Faith is also greatly emphasized in the gospels, especially in the book of Matthew. Jesus speaks often about faith throughout this gospel, and he makes clear that it is the most important part of a good Christian life. When he becomes angry with cities that do not repent after experiencing his miracles, Jesus says, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and knowledgeable.” intelligence and revealed them to the children" (Mt 11:25). In this speech, Jesus draws a clear distinction between the innocence and simplicity of children and men considered "wise and intelligent". Even if it is men who seek wisdom and understanding they miss the truth that Jesus preaches about. By praising God for giving truth to children, Jesus suggests that truth is unattainable or difficult to understand among those who seek it. The only right way to receive the truth is to accept it as given directly by God. Jesus also illustrates how faith brings men closer to God, saying: "If you have faith the size of a mustard seed... nothing will be impossible for you" (Matthew 17:20). Using the image of a mustard seed, he illustrates how even a small amount of faith brings a person closer to God, such that God's strength will be with him. This faith is the source of one's bond with God. Saint Augustine offers proof of the importance of faith in one of his confessions by illustrating how, without faith, it is impossible to be close to God. Saint Augustine, speaking of his misery and his pain after losing his best friend, he says: "I knew, Lord, that I had to offer you [my soul], because you would heal it. But I didn't want to do this, nor could I... I didn't believe in you, but in an empty illusion... and if I looked for a place to rest my weight in it, there would be nothing to support it" (4, 7). God was not with him to guide him in his difficulties or give him strength for his sufferings because St. Augustine did not truly have faith in him. St. Augustine suggests that if he had faith in God, God would take his burden away and give him relief. Even though faith is very important to Saint Augustine, he is still, by nature, a curious man. Sometimes, however, his curiosity and desire to understand God seem like a curse to him. This is most evident in book 10, when St. Augustine introduces a kind of paradox after explaining his search for an answer to the question "...what is my God?" (10, 6). He says: "Animals, large and small, are aware of it1, but cannot investigate its meaning because they are not guided by reason... Man, on the other hand, can question nature. He is able to grasp nature's view invisible of God through his creatures, but his love forthese material things is too great" (10.6). Humans have the ability to reason, which distinguishes them from animals. This allows them to glimpse God by looking at nature and questioning it. But the animals simply know that God is the superior power and that he is "above us" (10.6). They don't question it because, for them, there is no need for greater understanding. Human beings, on the other hand, seek a better understanding of God thanks to their ability to reason and their inquisitive minds. But in doing so, they can focus too much on the material world, which will ultimately prevent them from knowing Him. The Bible directly answers the question of intellect. For example, from the very beginning of human existence in the Bible, it is condemned as the devil's means of leading men away from God. In Genesis, after God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the Garden of Eden, he gives them all his creation, except one thing: knowledge. He commands Adam to eat of any tree, "but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die" (Genesis 2:17). God does not tell them why He commanded them not to eat from this tree, but He expects them to do what He says even without explanation. Their role is to obey him without question. However, Adam and Eve are tempted by the serpent who encourages them to eat of this tree, saying, "God knows that in the day that you eat of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:5). The serpent explains to them that they will not die, but will gain understanding from the tree. Being like God is too strong a temptation for them to resist, so they eat the fruit and bring upon themselves the wrath of God. It is the desire to gain knowledge and understanding that leads to man's exile from paradise and the introduction of pain and death in the world. This biblical influence is evident in the Confessions when St. Augustine emphasizes the uselessness, and even danger, of intellect. An example of this is in book 5, when St. Augustine is still with the Manichaeans. Speaking of scientists he says: «Their thoughts could go far enough to form a judgment on the world around them, even if they found no trace of Him who is the Master of it» (5, 3). Here St. Augustine points out that even though these scientists claim to understand the world around them, they miss the most fundamental and important fact: that God exists and is master of everything. Their intellect brings them no closer to God than someone who doesn't understand science at all. St. Augustine even suggests that understanding science is of no importance. After all, knowing God is the most important thing for him. To illustrate this point, he says that "A man who knows that he has a tree and thanks [God] for the use he has of it, even if he does not know its exact height or the breadth of its spread, is better than another who he measures it and counts all its branches, but does not possess it, nor does he know and love his Creator" (5,4), the tree can be interpreted as the representation of all the things that God has given: the entire creation as well as His word. Whether St. Augustine is simply referring to the tree as a representation of God's earthly creation, or whether he is referring to the Word of God, the point is clear: it is not important to use science to understand what God has created. The only way to be closer to God is to faithfully accept his gift and praise him for it. More than simply considering it useless, at a certain point Saint Augustine defines curiosity as a real sin. He says: "in addition to our bodily appetites, which... lead to our ruin... the mind is also subject to a certain propensity to use the bodily senses... forsatisfaction of one's curiosity" (10, 35). Here he compares curiosity to the sins of the body, but even states that it is "more dangerous than these" (10, 35). This thirst for knowledge and understanding, like corporal indulgences , it is a sin to be avoided. Augustine explains that "curiosity... invades our religion, because we put God to the test" (10, 35), suggesting that giving in to this temptation does nothing but distance men from God. Although Saint Augustine seems to believe that the use of the intellect is wrong, his actions show how he continues to struggle with the problem. Being naturally curious, he has difficulty accepting everything simply on the basis of faith. Augustine says: I compared everything with the teaching of Manes, who had written much on these subjects... But in his writings I was unable to find any reasonable explanation of the solstices and equinoxes, nor of eclipses and phenomena similar to the ones I had read about in books written by secular scientists. Yet I should have believed what he had written, even though it was completely at odds and at odds with the principles of mathematics and with the evidence of my eyes (5, 3). This passage alludes to St. Augustine's frustration that what he should believe does not fit the evidence that is clear to him. He prefers to agree with mathematicians because they provide concrete evidence, while the religious "scientist" fails to convince him because his explanations are not "reasonable" and he provides no real evidence. Mathematics makes use of concrete concepts that Saint Augustine can understand with reason, but he confesses that "I wanted to be equally sure of everything else, both of the material things of which I could not guarantee with my senses, and of the spiritual ones of which I could not form any idea" (6, 4). To truly believe in them, Saint Augustine wants spiritual concepts to be accessible through reason as much as Saint Augustine's attachment to mathematics is proof of his Platonic influence. To better understand this influence, it is helpful to step back and take a look at the order of the universe in Plato's mind. Plato does not personify it as Christians do, but he believes in one thing that is the focal point of the universe. Identifies it as "the Good". of the physical world they do nothing but reflect. In this metaphysical world of forms, it is the Good in which all other forms participate. Similar to the Christian God, for Plato, Good is the source of all things. Human beings, bound by their physical bodies, can perceive the things around them in the physical world only through their bodily senses. However, because the soul must experience its surroundings through the body, it fails to have a faithful image of the universe. He can only experience the changing world, which ultimately separates him from the true forms. Mathematical thinking is very different from sensory perceptions of the body. Plato says that mathematicians "use visible forms and objects and subject them to analysis. At the same time, however, they regard them only as images of the originals... in all cases the originals are their concern and not the figures that draw" (Republic, 510d-510e). Because he focuses on mental concepts, not their physical representations, Plato argues that mathematics serves as a kind of stepping stone. This connection to the forms is important to Plato because, for him, understanding the forms should be the goal of all men. In Plato's mind, some men live bad lives and when they die they are punished for havinglived unjustly. On the other hand, some men simply live one life and, thanks to their good behavior, have the opportunity to choose another life. Both classes of men, however, fail to focus on forms, focusing instead on the physical world. A smaller and entirely separate class of men lives their lives only to understand the truth of the forms. These men are called philosophers. Plato says: "And of these those who have sufficiently purified themselves through philosophy then live completely without a body and reach even more beautiful dwellings" (Phaedo, 114c). By living like a philosopher and separating one's soul from the pollution of the body, one can obtain the ultimate reward of death. The soul is liberated and exists between forms, thus achieving the ultimate goal of being one with the Good. Instead of rejecting the intellect altogether, as the Bible does, Plato claims that, used correctly, the intellect is the only way to become a true philosopher and, therefore, understand the Good. However, he disputes the use of the intellect exclusively for physical investigation. For Plato, one must live to separate oneself from the material and changing world. Only then will it be possible to grasp the concepts of philosophy. The process by which one can go beyond the physical world to understand forms is called dialectics. Dialectics is rational discourse between two or more people in response to a question or preconceived idea. Plato further explains dialectics within the dialogues of the Republic. For example, he says: “Then dialectics remains the only intellectual process whose method is to decompose hypotheses and ascend to first principles to obtain valid knowledge” (Republic, 533c-533d). By making intelligent arguments, participants are able to free themselves from the limitations of the physical world and work together to understand the true knowledge of the forms. Discussing the importance of philosophy among the guardians, Plato says: "Even when the eye of the soul is sunk in the muddy abyss of barbarism, dialectics will gently release it and draw it upward, appealing to the studies we have recently examined to support his conversion work” (Repubblica, 533d). Here he emphasizes the power of dialectics. Using one's intellect, however, through dialectics, the soul can rise above the false images of the physical world to understand the true forms and, ultimately, understand the Good. Plato's influence on St. Augustine begins to become even clearer when St. Augustine Augustine examines the Bible for deeper meanings In Book 6, St. Augustine describes the Bible as having “clear language and a simple style [that] make it accessible to. everyone, and yet it absorbs the attention of the learned. In this way he gathers all men into the wide expanse of his net "and some pass safely through the narrow meshes and come to you" (6, 5). He suggests that, while the Bible satisfies the needs of some men with its direct stories on the surface of its pages, for other men, like St. Augustine, who desire a greater understanding of God, there are deeper meanings to be found in the Bible even that those men who find deeper meanings will ultimately be closer to God than those who do not. By interrogating the Bible for its deeper meaning, St. Augustine demonstrates that, like Plato, he believes in using his intellect dialectically. to overcome preconceived ideas and reach a better understanding of God and his creation, indeed, he is strongly influenced by the ideas of.