I found this chapter very illuminating especially Nadya Williams discussion of Augustine’si The City of God: the contrast between Christian future historical perspective compared with the Roman perspective that began with the mythical founding of Rome and was updated to the time when the author completed a particular work. Augustine’s centering his historical views upon our Triune God also results in a way to tackle the idolatrous ideas of Christian Nationalism. This chapter also encouraged me to begin reading Peter Brown’s Augustine of Hippo. Thank you Nadya Williams.
I just finished this chapter. I really enjoyed the synthesis of classical and Christian sources – some of your best work in the book so far, in my opinion! I'm curious how you would address other Church fathers such as Isidore who did promote ideas of religious nationalism (in Isidore's case, once the Visigoths settled in Spain and converted from Arianism, they became God's favored people and essentially founders of a "new Rome" that properly fufilled the criteria of a Christian empire in ways that Rome fell short).
I found this chapter very illuminating especially Nadya Williams discussion of Augustine’si The City of God: the contrast between Christian future historical perspective compared with the Roman perspective that began with the mythical founding of Rome and was updated to the time when the author completed a particular work. Augustine’s centering his historical views upon our Triune God also results in a way to tackle the idolatrous ideas of Christian Nationalism. This chapter also encouraged me to begin reading Peter Brown’s Augustine of Hippo. Thank you Nadya Williams.
I just finished this chapter. I really enjoyed the synthesis of classical and Christian sources – some of your best work in the book so far, in my opinion! I'm curious how you would address other Church fathers such as Isidore who did promote ideas of religious nationalism (in Isidore's case, once the Visigoths settled in Spain and converted from Arianism, they became God's favored people and essentially founders of a "new Rome" that properly fufilled the criteria of a Christian empire in ways that Rome fell short).