The City of God
Categories: Ancient Roman Christianity | Roman era books | House of Theodosius | Christian texts | Christianity-related stubs
This article is about the work by Augustine. For the film, see City of God (film)
The City of God (Latin: De Civitate Dei, also known as De Civitate Dei contra Paganos: The City of God against the Pagans) is a book written in Latin by Augustine of Hippo in the early 5th century, dealing with issues concerning God, martyrdom, Jews, and other Christian philosophies.
Augustine wrote the treatise to explain Christianity's relationship with competing religions and philosophies, and to the Roman government with which it was increasingly intertwined. It was written at about the same time Rome was sacked by the Visigoths (410), an event which had left Romans in a deep state of shock. The title of the book refers to the fact that, for Augustine, Christianity found salvation in God in heaven and not in the city of Earth.
Despite Christianity's designation as the official religion of the empire, Augustine declared its message to be spiritual rather than political. Christianity, he argued, should be concerned with the mystical, heavenly City of Jerusalem rather than with Earthly politics. His theology supported the separation of Church and State that characterized Western European politics through the Middle Ages and beyond.
The book sets out to deal with Augustine's description of what he dubs the "City of God". The "City of God" is marked by people who forego earthly pleasure and dedicate their lives to the promotion of Christian values. It exists in stark contrast with the "City of Man", which consists of people who have strayed from the City of God. While the book is framed by discussion of these themes, it largely deviates into various digressions about philosophical subjects on which Augustine wishes to comment.
External links
Text of The City of God
- At "Christian Classics Ethereal Library": Full text (English)
- At "New Advent": Full text (English)
- At "The Latin Library" Full text (Latin)
Texts on The City of God
de:De civitate Dei it:La città di Dio la:De civitate Dei fi:Jumalan valtio ja:神の国