The Best (of) Saint Augustine
I started this series with a deceptively simple purpose. I wanted to write about Augustine’s presence in the Middle Ages.
Augustine in print: leaving the Middle Ages behind?
Does the reception of Augustine fundamentally change when it is no longer the scribe, but the printer who holds the reins?
‘Dear to Me above a Thousand Others’: Augustine at the Dawn of the Renaissance
Augustine, exponent and champion of Christian faith, displayed such knowledge of the poets in all his writings that there is scarcely a single letter or treatise of his which is not crowded with poetic ornament.
Did Augustine believe in Monsters?
The sermon that makes this outrageous claim is a fake. It is one of hundreds, if not thousands of sermons that circulated in the Middle Ages using Augustine’s illustrious name as a way to guarantee a wide readership and make a bid for literary immortality.
Who Owned Augustine’s Bones? The Hermits of St. Augustine
Today we will look at the relics of St. Augustine and the tug-of-war that broke out over them in the fourteenth century.
Augustine and the Master of the Sentences
This begs the question, what were the Sentences exactly, who was Peter Lombard and what did he have to do with Augustine?
The child by the seaside: a medieval story about Saint Augustine
While Augustine was working on his book On the Trinity, he was walking by the seaside one day, meditating on the difficult problem of how God could be three Persons at once. He came upon a little child.
Watch a medieval scholar work: Florus of Lyon reads Augustine
Only every once in a while, does enough material remain to truly bring to life a person who is long gone. This is the real deal, and when it comes along, historians, paleographers, and editors alike rejoice.
The City of God on Earth: Augustine at Charlemagne’s Court
While the notion of the ‘dark’ Middle Ages is – thankfully – no longer fashionable, the Carolingian Renaissance, its reform efforts, educational system, book production, continue to inspire. It will come as no surprise that Augustine was, once again, at the center of this intellectual riches.
Augustine among the Angels: The Venerable Bede’s impressive resume
I will give you a taste of Bede’s many accomplishments, not the least of which is his instrumental role in the diffusion of Augustine’s works.
The many woes of a bishop: Augustine’s sermons and Caesarius of Arles
Like all his other works, Augustine’s sermons were taken across the Mediterranean and copied and recopied throughout the Middle Ages. A crucial link in this chain of sermon manuscripts was Caesarius of Arles, who lived from c. 470 to 542 AD.
Augustine’s first editor: Eugippius of Castellum Lucullanum
I would label him one of Augustine’s first editors, publishers, and publicists, because, just like a modern editor, Eugippius did three things to make his author a success.
A Tale of Fate and Chance: The Oldest Surviving Manuscripts of Augustine’s Works
Imagine putting pen to paper today and copying down a text in longhand. What are the chances it will still be around by the year 3500 AD? What would that require?
All roads lead to Rome: The rescue of Augustine’s library in the 5th century AD
How did Augustine’s writings take their first, crucial steps in a centuries-long journey? How did they succeed in defeating the odds?
5,000,000 words: How St. Augustine’s works made it into the Middle Ages
This is the first in a series that will look over the shoulder of medieval readers to discover how they shaped Augustine’s legacy, and created an image of the man that has endured to our times.