LA CONSOLACION COLLEGE – BAIS SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Name:

Year and Section: :

“The Confessions”

At the end of this lesson, the students are expected to:

1. Describe St. Augustine’s Autobiography, “The Confessions”;
2. Discuss St. Augustine’s purpose of writing “The Confessions”;
3. Share insights on how St. Augustine’s work inspire them.

Activity 1: “Share your Thoughts”

What is an “Autobiography?”

Confessions (Latin: Confessiones) is the title of St. Augustine’s autobiographical work,

consisting of 13 books, by Saint Augustine of Hippo, written in Latin between 397 and 400 AD.
The work outlines Saint Augustine's sinful youth and his conversion to Christianity. Modern
English translations of it are sometimes published under the title The Confessions of Saint
Augustine in order to distinguish the book from other books with similar titles. Its original title
was Confessions in Thirteen Books, and it was composed to be read out loud with each book
being a complete unit.
Confessions is generally considered one of St. Augustine's most important texts. It is
widely seen as the first Western Christian autobiography ever written and was an influential

AUGUSTINIAN SPIRITUALITY 1
 LA CONSOLACION COLLEGE – BAIS SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

model for Christian writers throughout the Middle Ages. Professor Henry Chadwick wrote that
Confessions will "always rank among the great masterpieces of western literature."
Although the confession is not a complete autobiography, for it was written during Saint
Augustine's early 40s and he lived long afterwards, producing another important work, The
City of God. Nonetheless, it does provide an unbroken record of his development of thought
and is the most complete record of any single person from the 4th and 5th centuries. It is a
significant theological work, featuring spiritual meditations and insights.
In the Confessions, St. Augustine writes about how much he regrets having lived a life
outside God’s grace. He discusses his regrets for following the Manichaean religion and
believing in astrology. He writes about his friend Nebridius's role in helping to persuade him
that astrology was not only incorrect but evil, and Saint Ambrose's role in his conversion to
Christianity. The first nine books are autobiographical and the last four are commentary and
significantly more philosophical. He shows intense sorrow for his sexual sins which he
considered sins against chastity and writes on the importance of sexual morality. The books
were written as prayers to God, thus the title, based on the Psalms of David; and it begins with
"For Thou hast made us for Thyself and our hearts are restless till they rest in Thee." The work
is thought to be divisible into books which symbolize various aspects of the Trinity and
trinitarian belief.

PURPOSE
Confessions was not only meant to encourage conversion, but it offered guidelines for
how to convert. Saint Augustine extrapolates from his own experiences to fit others' journeys.
Augustine recognizes that God has always protected and guided him. This is reflected in the
structure of the work. Augustine begins each book within Confessions with a prayer to God.
For example, both books VIII and IX begin with "you have broken the chains that bound me; I
will sacrifice in your honor." Because Augustine begins each book with a prayer, Confessions
is a "pilgrimage of grace [a] retracing] [of] the crucial turnings of the way by which [Augustine]
had come. And since he was sure that it was God’s grace that had been his prime mover in
that way, it was a spontaneous expression of his heart that cast his self-recollection into the
form of a sustained prayer to God." Not only does Confessions glorify God but it also suggests
God’s help in Augustine’s path to redemption.
Written after the legalization of Christianity, Confessions dated from an era where
martyrdom was no longer a threat to most Christians as was the case two centuries earlier.
Instead, a Christian’s struggles were usually internal. Augustine clearly presents his struggle
with worldly desires such as lust. Augustine’s conversion was quickly followed by his
ordination as a priest in 391 CE and then appointment as bishop in 395 CE. Such rapid
ascension certainly raised criticism of Augustine. Confessions was written between 397–398
CE, suggesting self-justification as a possible motivation for the work. With the words "I wish
to act in truth, making my confession both in my heart before you and in this book before the
many who will read it" in Book X Chapter 1, Augustine both confesses his sins and glorifies
God through humility in His grace, the two meanings that define “confessions,” in order to
reconcile his imperfections not only to his critics but also to God.

TRUE or FALSE
Instruction: Write “True” on the space provided before each number if the statement is true. Write
“False” if the statement is false.

ANSWER QUESTIONS/STATEMENTS
1. Confessions (Latin: Confessiones) is the title of St. Augustine’s
autobiographical work, consisting of 13 books, by Saint Augustine of Hippo,
written in Latin between 397 and 400 AD.
2. The work outlines Saint Augustine's sinful youth and his conversion to
Christianity

AUGUSTINIAN SPIRITUALITY 2
 LA CONSOLACION COLLEGE – BAIS SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL

3. Confessions is generally considered one of St. Augustine's most important

texts.

4. It is widely seen as the first Western Christian autobiography ever written and
was an influential model for Christian writers throughout the Middle Ages
5. In the Confessions, St. Augustine writes about how much he regrets having
lived a life outside God’s grace.
6. Professor Henry Chadwick wrote that Confessions will "always rank among
the great masterpieces of western literature."
7. The first nine books are autobiographical and the last four are commentary
and significantly more philosophical.
8. Confessions was not only meant to encourage conversion, but it offered
guidelines for how to convert.
9. Saint Augustine extrapolates from his own experiences to fit others' journeys.
Augustine recognizes that God has always protected and guided him.
10. Augustine’s conversion was quickly followed by his ordination as a priest in
1931 CE and then appointment as bishop in 1935 CE.

Agree or Disagree, Why?

“Life is a pilgrimage of God’s grace”

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confessions_(Augustine)#cite_note-3

Chadwick, Henry (2008). Saint Augustine: Confessions. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-
953782-8.

AUGUSTINIAN SPIRITUALITY 3