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Why Is Augustine Called The City Of God

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Augustine, The City of God
In the 5th century, a Christian Bishop of Hippo named Augustine wrote a book called The City of God. In an effort to defend the Church against the accusations made by the Pagans, he discusses how there are two groups of people in which he divides them into two different cities. Each city is based on either a love of God or on a love of self. The first city is the city of God which is associated with the love of God. Next, is the city of Man, who is linked with the love of self. Augustine uses these cities to trace history back to the beginning of the world showing that he was different than those who came before him and that he knew what was going to happen.
The City of God illustrated the many catastrophes that occurred …show more content…

“Where were they when the people, again suffering from famine, appointed the first minister of food?” While the Gods were appointed a certain job, they were not able to live up to the standards which eventually caused the Romans famine. When the empire fell into a deadly plague, the gods …show more content…

These cities were formed between two loves. “The earthly city by the love of self, even to the contempt of god; the heavenly by the love of god, even to the contempt of self.” Augustine shows that the city of Man is where men can live according to themselves, while in the city of God, men will live according to God’s laws. In the Earthly city, they lived on the basis of rule. Leaders, along with the people of the city were all about domination and believed in the glory of human wisdom and strength. Contrary to the Earthly city was the Heavenly city. This city was focused on the basis of God and “’there is no merely human wisdom, but there is a piety which worships the true God as he should be worshipped.”’ With the city of Man’s love of self, they treasured their leaders along with the symbolism of strength. The city of God loved their God, which was where they believed internal peace could be found. Both cities have many differences between them, the city of Man was visible, temporal, and corrupt while the city of God was invisible, eternal, and perfect. Although, both cities overlapped focusing on rule and

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