On Creativity, Liberty, Love and the Beauty of the Law

Description

Reading Augustine presents concise, personal readings of St. Augustine of Hippo from leading philosophers and religious scholars. Todd Breyfogle's On Creativity, Liberty, Love and the Beauty of the Law introduces readers to Augustine's understanding of law as an arena in which the possibilities of creative freedom are reconciled with the needs of natural and civil order. It places Augustine's conception of law in the broader mosaic of his ideas about how human beings are bound together individually, socially, and spiritually. Seasoned readers of Augustine will see this fundamental element of his thought in a different light, even as those less familiar with Augustine are introduced to the thrill of following how he makes sense of the complexities of nature, history, and the human spirit.

Todd Breyfogle is Director of Seminars at the Aspen Institute, USA. Educated at Colorado College, Oxford, and the University of Chicago, he has published and lectured at universities in the USA and abroad on topics ranging from political philosophy, theology, and literature, to the music of J. S. Bach. Dr. Breyfogle is editor emeritus of The American Oxonian, the quarterly publication of the Association of American Rhodes Scholars, and editor of several books, including Literary Imagination, Ancient and Modern (1999). In 2015, he was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II to the Order of St. John, an 11th century Order of Chivalry of the British Crown.

Breyfogle's account of Augustine's thought is masterful and sweeping. Not only does he have an excellent grasp of the web of interlocking ideas in Augustine's works, but he also invites his reader to immerse himself in discovering their inner meaning with an engaged heart and soul ... How much have we gained by reading Augustine? Surely a lot, given the excellence of Breyfogle's work. * Augustiniana * In this beautifully written and meditative book, Breyfogle develops the social, educational, and aesthetic tapestry of Augustine's mind. The result is altogether refreshing, for he restores an 'inner warmth' to our reading of Augustine on law and justice. * Russell Hittinger, Warren Chair of Catholic Studies and Research Professor of Law, University of Tulsa, USA * Traversing a diverse range of Augustine's works, and with a light and illuminating touch, Breyfogle succeeds in capturing Augustine's theological, ethical and political vision as a coherent and living whole. He displays beauty as a binding theme, not only in Augustine's treatment of music, where one might expect it, but also in his conceptions of law and justice. Augustine emerges as more meditative than polemical, but nonetheless with an incisive and countercultural message for our day. * Susannah Ticciati, Reader in Christian Theology, King's College London, UK *