Augustines Manichaean Dilemma Volume 2 by Jason David Beduhn , University of Pennsylvania Press

Description

University of Pennsylvania Press Augustines Manichaean Dilemma Volume 2 by Jason David Beduhn

By 388 C.E., Augustine had broken with the Manichaeism of his early adulthood and wholeheartedly embraced Nicene Christianity as the tradition with which he would identify and within which he would find meaning. Yet conversion rarely, if ever, represents a clean and total break from the past. As Augustine defined and became a "Catholic" self, he also intently engaged with Manichaeism as a rival religious system. This second volume of Jason David BeDuhn's detailed reconsideration of Augustine's life and letters explores the significance of the fact that these two processes unfolded together._x000D__x000D__x000D_BeDuhn identifies the Manichaean subtext to be found in nearly every work written by Augustine between 388 and 401 and demonstrates Augustine's concern with refuting his former beliefs without alienating the Manichaeans he wished to win over. To achieve these ends, Augustine modified and developed his received Nicene Christian faith, strengthening it where it was vulnerable to Manichaean critique and taking it in new directions where he found room within an orthodox frame of reference to accommodate Manichaean perspectives and concerns. Against this background, BeDuhn is able to shed new light on the complex circumstances and purposes of Augustine's most famous work, The Confessions, as well as his distinctive reading of Paul and his revolutionary concept of grace. Augustine's Manichaean Dilemma, Volume 2 demonstrates the close interplay between Augustine's efforts to work out his own "Catholic" persona and the theological positions associated with his name, between the sometimes dramatic twists and turns of his own personal life and his theoretical thinking._x000D_ Table of contents :- _x000D_ Note on Terminology_x000D_ _x000D_ Introduction_x000D_ _x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 1. The True Religion_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 2. Myth and Morals_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 3. Perfecting the Paradigm_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 4. Fortunatus_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 5. The Exegete_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 6. The Problem of Paul_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 7. Accused_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 8. Discoveries_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 9. How One Becomes What One Is_x000D_ _x000D_ Chapter 10. Truth in the Realm of Lies_x000D_ _x000D_ Conclusion_x000D_ _x000D_ _x000D_ Notes_x000D_ _x000D_ Bibliography_x000D_ _x000D_ Index_x000D_ _x000D_ Acknowledgments_x000D_