I am in sin city (Chicago) born and raised. Initially I wanted to become a writer but I wasn't committed to my studies and had great difficulty finishing texts and understanding history. Believe it or not, I recently bought Augustine's book out of sheer intuition before stumbling on your video. I intend to read it diligently, but I am suffering from what Doestevsky called "logical flux of ideas" I have great insight into certain matters but they become sucked into a black hole or a vortex & I am suddenly pulled many directions. I dont consider it anxiety as much as forms of possession. However, it is as if I am attempting to pull back from influences to channel my own mind into a higher orienting principle. This is the religious or philosophical way. Except, I still cant feel Gods Grace or Christ's unending love. As a result of this, I know deep down I am damaged. But, I believe that going on to talk about it in a religious circle or social gathering would only make me grow bored, spiteful & perhaps unnecessarily cynical. This must be my pride. My vanity. Despite this being the case, my faith tells me it is there for a given purpose, one I am not fully concious to, and its apparent to me as well, that time is running out. At least, in my own life. I am 25 now. Not properly trained in any given discipline. Clumsy. Shy. Easily prone to fears. Terrible body aches. Regrets. Excuse making. So I must be like a poor man's Augustine when he was 19, trapped in a manichean war. Full of cardinal desires. So, my goal is to adopt his wisdom without sinking fully into the archetype so as not to become part of the problem. Where it will take me I dont know. But I am grateful for your video & it is re-assuring to know that well read people like you exist who discern the essence of the material and prove to my "paranoid" mind that it's still possible.
Thank you for this comment. It's what I'm going through as well, but can't quite express. In December I finished reading most of Dostoevsky's works, and I'm now reading Gogol (Dead Souls), before moving on to City of God. Like you, I don't want to sink into the archetypal Christian, as I have my own doubts about religion. But, my doubts on God, on how we're supposed to live & treat each other are even greater. Me wanting to read these books is me trying to quench an insatiable thirst for knowledge & wisdom.
My brother, let me send you something I posted to a different video yesterday: There's no point in any of this without God. If it all comes down to evolution or the big bang and we're just a clump of cells formed into a human, no soul, no life after death, no God, then there's absolutely no point in any of this. Then the point of this life is just physical pleasure, to "feel good", sex, money, power, dominance, nice cars, drugs, alcohol, good food, etc etc. But understand that creation has a Creator. Something can't come from nothing. The theory of evolution and the big bang theory is just that, a theory. They keep talking science this, science that; Ask the scientists, where did the big bang come from though? And they won't tell you anything because they don't know, they can only assume. Every other year you got scientists finding something else that refutes what other scientists before them said, including sh*t like humans evolving from apes. Don't let any fool steal your faith from you because they're unbelieving and lack understanding. I digress a little, but my point is, humans have a void inside their soul where God should be. And because God isn't there, they try to fill that empty void with anything they can, to forget themselves. This is why there's drugs and alcohol use, to fill the void. This is why people are depressed and unhappy, because that void is filled with anything, lust sex drugs alcohol gangbanging money cars, anything, except for God. But when you turn to God, when you really and actually look for Him, you're gonna find Him i promise you, just like I did. As the Bible says "for the Lord searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will let you find Him". I was in the same trash lifestyle before, but He took me out of it. Know that real life is with God in Jesus Christ. He said "I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through Me." and He said "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." Whoever feels depressed or anxiety, open the Gospel of John and read, it will change your life. Ps. Read from Gospel of John to Revelation my brother, that's the best reading you'll ever do in your life. I'm a Russian American and I've read a lot of Dostoyevsky in the original, I absolutely love him, but the Bible is THE book, then everything else. I also highly recommend C S Lewis's Problem of Pain and The Great Divorce, those 2 changed my life. God bless you in Jesus name, both of you brothers ♥️✝️ pray the Psalms too
Thank you! Question - it always seemed to me that Augustine’s City of God/Man is an early version of what has since become known as the ‘Two Kingdoms Doctrine’ In other words… it paints the picture of two forces at play in the world… ‘evil’ doing battle with ‘good’ ‘for the hearts and souls of people’, all of which really ignores Christ’s victory on the cross… Yes?
I love this series so much. Thank you for doing it! Augustine has so much of value to say to our current situation.
I am in sin city (Chicago) born and raised. Initially I wanted to become a writer but I wasn't committed to my studies and had great difficulty finishing texts and understanding history. Believe it or not, I recently bought Augustine's book out of sheer intuition before stumbling on your video. I intend to read it diligently, but I am suffering from what Doestevsky called "logical flux of ideas" I have great insight into certain matters but they become sucked into a black hole or a vortex & I am suddenly pulled many directions. I dont consider it anxiety as much as forms of possession. However, it is as if I am attempting to pull back from influences to channel my own mind into a higher orienting principle. This is the religious or philosophical way. Except, I still cant feel Gods Grace or Christ's unending love. As a result of this, I know deep down I am damaged. But, I believe that going on to talk about it in a religious circle or social gathering would only make me grow bored, spiteful & perhaps unnecessarily cynical. This must be my pride. My vanity. Despite this being the case, my faith tells me it is there for a given purpose, one I am not fully concious to, and its apparent to me as well, that time is running out. At least, in my own life. I am 25 now. Not properly trained in any given discipline. Clumsy. Shy. Easily prone to fears. Terrible body aches. Regrets. Excuse making.
So I must be like a poor man's Augustine when he was 19, trapped in a manichean war. Full of cardinal desires.
So, my goal is to adopt his wisdom without sinking fully into the archetype so as not to become part of the problem. Where it will take me I dont know.
But I am grateful for your video & it is re-assuring to know that well read people like you exist who discern the essence of the material and prove to my "paranoid" mind that it's still possible.
Thank you for this comment. It's what I'm going through as well, but can't quite express.
In December I finished reading most of Dostoevsky's works, and I'm now reading Gogol (Dead Souls), before moving on to City of God. Like you, I don't want to sink into the archetypal Christian, as I have my own doubts about religion. But, my doubts on God, on how we're supposed to live & treat each other are even greater. Me wanting to read these books is me trying to quench an insatiable thirst for knowledge & wisdom.
My brother, let me send you something I posted to a different video yesterday:
There's no point in any of this without God. If it all comes down to evolution or the big bang and we're just a clump of cells formed into a human, no soul, no life after death, no God, then there's absolutely no point in any of this. Then the point of this life is just physical pleasure, to "feel good", sex, money, power, dominance, nice cars, drugs, alcohol, good food, etc etc. But understand that creation has a Creator. Something can't come from nothing. The theory of evolution and the big bang theory is just that, a theory. They keep talking science this, science that; Ask the scientists, where did the big bang come from though? And they won't tell you anything because they don't know, they can only assume. Every other year you got scientists finding something else that refutes what other scientists before them said, including sh*t like humans evolving from apes. Don't let any fool steal your faith from you because they're unbelieving and lack understanding.
I digress a little, but my point is, humans have a void inside their soul where God should be. And because God isn't there, they try to fill that empty void with anything they can, to forget themselves. This is why there's drugs and alcohol use, to fill the void. This is why people are depressed and unhappy, because that void is filled with anything, lust sex drugs alcohol gangbanging money cars, anything, except for God. But when you turn to God, when you really and actually look for Him, you're gonna find Him i promise you, just like I did. As the Bible says "for the Lord searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will let you find Him".
I was in the same trash lifestyle before, but He took me out of it. Know that real life is with God in Jesus Christ. He said "I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through Me." and He said "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." Whoever feels depressed or anxiety, open the Gospel of John and read, it will change your life.
Ps. Read from Gospel of John to Revelation my brother, that's the best reading you'll ever do in your life. I'm a Russian American and I've read a lot of Dostoyevsky in the original, I absolutely love him, but the Bible is THE book, then everything else. I also highly recommend C S Lewis's Problem of Pain and The Great Divorce, those 2 changed my life. God bless you in Jesus name, both of you brothers ♥️✝️ pray the Psalms too
Thank you for telling the truth about the prosperity “gospel”.
Watching tiger king strikes me as dropping a rotten fish in the wellspring of the soul.
Would the abridged version of the City of God be "The Village of God?"
Thanks for the info
How about Leo Tolstoy's, The Kingdom of God is within you ?
Excellent review!
For suggestions: anything by John Owen? If someone has never read him, which book first?
Thank you!
Question - it always seemed to me that Augustine’s City of God/Man is an early version of what has since become known as the ‘Two Kingdoms Doctrine’
In other words… it paints the picture of two forces at play in the world… ‘evil’ doing battle with ‘good’ ‘for the hearts and souls of people’, all of which really ignores Christ’s victory on the cross… Yes?
Your blog page keeps on playing the first video in this playlist, instead of the correct video.
Thank you! That is fixed now.
How about you do an episode on your favorite Presbyterian authors. What do they get that many baptists don't?
Eugene Peterson