Discerning the Good in the Letters & Sermons of Augustine

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Reference, History, Philosophy
Cover of the book Discerning the Good in the Letters & Sermons of Augustine by Joseph Clair, OUP Oxford
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Joseph Clair ISBN: 9780191075223
Publisher: OUP Oxford Publication: March 17, 2016
Imprint: OUP Oxford Language: English
Author: Joseph Clair
ISBN: 9780191075223
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Publication: March 17, 2016
Imprint: OUP Oxford
Language: English

Discerning the Good in the Letters and Sermons of Augustine turns to the vast collection of moral advice found in Augustine's letters and sermons, mining these neglected and highly illuminating texts for examples of Augustine's application of his own moral concepts. It focuses on letters and sermons in which Augustine offers concrete advice on how to interact with the various goods relevant to social and political life. A special set of goods reappears throughout the letters and sermons, namely sexual intimacy and domestic life, power and public office, and wealth and private possessions. Together, these goods form the central topics of this book. Joseph Clair highlights that the most revealing cases are those in which an individual must choose between competing goods, and cases in which an individual's role and role—specific obligations inform their decisions. Such cases uncover the nimbleness of Augustine's moral reasoning in action—an artful blend of scriptural interpretation, virtue theory, and sensitivity to the circumstances of individual lives. He reveals that Augustine's understanding of the goods constitutive of social and political life is deeply indebted to the Stoic and Peripatetic doctrine of oikeiōsis, or "social appropriation". The colorful, personal, and practical details found in these writings provide a window onto Augustine's moral reasoning not available in his more theoretical treatments of the good, and the concrete cases often illustrate the human significance of properly discerning the good. Beyond providing one of the first analyses of these ethical writings, this work contributes a new sense of Augustine's ethics—both in terms of the range of questions he addresses and the manner in which he treats them.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Discerning the Good in the Letters and Sermons of Augustine turns to the vast collection of moral advice found in Augustine's letters and sermons, mining these neglected and highly illuminating texts for examples of Augustine's application of his own moral concepts. It focuses on letters and sermons in which Augustine offers concrete advice on how to interact with the various goods relevant to social and political life. A special set of goods reappears throughout the letters and sermons, namely sexual intimacy and domestic life, power and public office, and wealth and private possessions. Together, these goods form the central topics of this book. Joseph Clair highlights that the most revealing cases are those in which an individual must choose between competing goods, and cases in which an individual's role and role—specific obligations inform their decisions. Such cases uncover the nimbleness of Augustine's moral reasoning in action—an artful blend of scriptural interpretation, virtue theory, and sensitivity to the circumstances of individual lives. He reveals that Augustine's understanding of the goods constitutive of social and political life is deeply indebted to the Stoic and Peripatetic doctrine of oikeiōsis, or "social appropriation". The colorful, personal, and practical details found in these writings provide a window onto Augustine's moral reasoning not available in his more theoretical treatments of the good, and the concrete cases often illustrate the human significance of properly discerning the good. Beyond providing one of the first analyses of these ethical writings, this work contributes a new sense of Augustine's ethics—both in terms of the range of questions he addresses and the manner in which he treats them.

More books from OUP Oxford

Cover of the book Doing Philosophy by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book Engineering: A Very Short Introduction by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book The Doctrine of Res Judicata Before International Commercial Arbitral Tribunals by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book Textbook of Evolutionary Psychiatry and Psychosomatic Medicine by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book John Stuart Mill by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book Separation of Powers in African Constitutionalism by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book Empire:A Very Short Introduction by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book Revolutions that Made the Earth by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book The Life of Slang by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book European Cross-Border Insolvency Law by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book On the Soul by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book How Imitation Boosts Development by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book How Words Make Things Happen by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book Open Innovation by Joseph Clair
Cover of the book Foreign Policy Objectives in European Constitutional Law by Joseph Clair
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy