Christian Instruction; Admonition and Grace; The Christian Combat; Faith, Hope and Charity

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FAITH, HOPE AND CHARITY Chapter 1 IICANNOT SAY, most beloved son Lawrence, how greatly I delight in your learning, and how desirous I am that you be wise--not of the number of those of whom it is said: 1 'Where is the "wise man"? \Vhere is the scribe? Where is the disputant of this world? Has not God turned to foolishness the "wisdom" of this world?' but of those of whom it is written: 2 'The multitude of the wise is the welfare of the whole world,' and such as the Apostle wishes those to become to whom he says: 3 'I would have you wise as to what is good, and guileless as to what is evil.'4 (2) Now the wisdom of man is piety. This you find in the book of the holy Job, for there is written what wisdom herself has said to mankind: 6 'Behold piety is wisdom.' But if you ask what manner of piety is meant in this place, you will find a clearer expression in the Greek-theosebeia, which is the worship of God. Now, piety is also expressed in Greek by 1 1 Cor. 1.20. 2 Wisd. 6.26. 11 Rom. 16.19. 4 The Maurist editors here print an additional sentence, not found by them in the older MSS and ignored by Scheel in his edition: Now jllst as no olle can exist of himself, so also no one can be wise of himself, but only through the illumination of Him of whom it is written 'All wisdom is from God' (Ecdi. 1.1). 5 Job 28.28 (Septuagint; for 'piety' the Vulgate reads 'fear of t/le Lord'). 369 370 SAINT AUGUSTINE another word, eusebeia, by which is meant good worship, although this noun also is applied especially to the worship of God. But, since the passage would define the nature of man's wisdom, the most appropriate word is theosebeia, which manifestly conveys the meaning 'worship of God.' In requesting me to deal with great matters in short com~ pass, do you ask for an answer still more closely packed? Or do you perhaps wish that I explain in a short discourse just how it is that God should be worshipped? (3) If I here answer you that God should be worshipped by faith, hope, and charity,S you would surely say that my brevity had exceeded your wish; and you would then ask that I briefly develop what pertains to these three thingswhat a man should believe, what he should hope for, what he should love. And when I should have done this, then would you have all those things which you specified in your letter of request to me. If you have a copy with you, it is easy for you to open it and reread it; if you haven't, please recollect it while I remind you of it. (4) According to your letter, your wish is that I compose a book for you, to serve as what is called a handbook (enchiridion ), that is, one you may always have at hand. It is to contain answers to certain questions: After what, most of all, should one strive? What, chiefly, given the sundry heresies, should one shun? In what measure does reason come to the help of religion, or what lack of accord is there with reason when faith stands alone? What holds the first and what the final place? What is the sum-total of the whole doctrine? What 6 In the Latin, caritas, as in the classic verse, 1 Cor. 13.13. In virtually the same sense St. Augustine uses dilectio (found, e.g., in Gal: 5.6) and amOT (the latter notably four times at the end of sect. 8 below) . In the translation 'charity' and 'love' are often used interchangeablY. FAITH, HOPE AND CHARITY 371 is the sure and distinctive foundation of the Catholic faith? On all these points about which you ask, you will have true knowledge once you surely know what are the proper objects of our faith, our hope, and our charity, for these are the chief, nay, rather the only, guiding principles of our religion. Whoever speaks against these is either altogether an alien to the name of Christ or a heretic. The defense of reason is to be invoked for things that either originate through the senses of the body or are...