Ch 4: Martyrdom, the Spirituality of Death Part 2 (with St Augustine)

Christian Spirituality: Chapters in the History of the Faith

In this week’s episode, we return to the topic of martyrdom – the spirituality of death. Our guide this time is not a martyr such as St Ignatius but a preacher: St Augustine of Hippo. With the help of his sermons, we probe a bit into what drives the martyr to his or her death, what makes a martyr, what the essence of the spirituality of martyrdom is, and what the repercussions for the spiritual life of the church are.

This is, in part, a plug for my upcoming Davenant Hall course, Augustine the Preacher, and you can register for it here: https://davenanthall.com/product/augustine-preacher/

If you need more convincing to spend time with Augustine, check out last episode.

The edition of Augustine’s sermons I was using is Essential Sermons, intro and notes by Daniel E. Doyle, trans. Edmund Hill. New York: New City Press, 2007.

The quotation from Confessions with which I closed is this:

Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you. In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created. You were with me, but I was not with you. Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would have not been at all. You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness. You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you. I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me, and I burned for your peace.