Divine Illumination: The History and Future of Augustine's Theory of Knowledge (original) (raw)
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Human Reason and Divine Illumination: The Knowledge of God in Augustine’s Confessions
Horizonte Teológico, 2016
The question I ask is, according to Augustine, in what sense God provides illumination for one to gain true knowledge of God, i.e., that knowledge that enables one to enjoy and to love God? This essay attempts to demonstrate that divine illumination in human mind is the basis for human true knowledge of God in Augustine's Confessions; i.e., without divine illumination, human reason can only acquire a vague and incomplete notion of God's existence, consequently, from Augustine's perspective, true natural theology is vague and incomplete if seen apart from the framework of divine illumination. Since it is in his Confessions that Augustine appeals constantly to the necessity of divine illumination in order to gain knowledge of God's truth, I will focus primarily on this specific work in order to understand Augustine's view of human reason and divine illumination and to demonstrate the relation between divine illumination and human reason concerning knowledge of God. Finally, I will provide some brief insights to the topic of natural theology.
THE QUEST FOR CERTAINTY AND ST. AUGUSTINE'S DIVINE ILLUMINATION
An African Journal of Arts and Humanities, Vol. 7. No. 2, 2020, pp. 197-207, 2020
The inquiry into the origin, certainty and extent of human knowledge, together with the grounds and degrees of belief, opinion and assent has been the task of most philosophers of all epochs. Consequent upon this quest, most philosophers have emerged with their divergent thoughts as answers to the epistemological questions bordering on the ultimate foundation of human knowledge. Meanwhile, while some have adopted skepticism as a method for the discovery of the foundation of new knowledge, others upheld rationalism and the rest opined empiricism. This paper is about to delve into St. Augustine's position with regard to the possibility of certainty of knowledge. Succinctly, Augustine's theory of knowledge departed with an affirmation of the possibility and accessibility of human knowledge. Epistemology for him serves a practical religious purpose. It helps us live a happy life only when it brings us to the author of truth (God). To attain these objectives, Augustine became concerned with the quest for certainty and this certainty can be attained through what he calls divine illumination. This work therefore wishes to cast a critical look at St. Augustine's Divine Illumination as a means of attaining epistemological certainty (truth).
Augustine on theosis and divine illumination as the theologic framework for decolonisation
Verbum et Ecclesia, 2024
This study examined the plausibility and role of theosis in Augustine’s theory of divine illumination as a theologic framework for decolonising theology. Theologic refers to God’s revelation about himself and his nature. Therefore, through an analysis of Augustine’s dogmatic treatise concerning the nature of the Holy Trinity, this article argues that Augustine’s theory of divine illumination is a precedent for God to speak about himself. Moreover, this theory of divine illumination is useful in developing a non-biased theoretical framework for decolonialism in theology today. At the centre of this theory is the inability of human beings to possess and command true knowledge as a result of inherent sin. However, in contrast, this highlights the graceful nature of God as he assists us in partaking in his glory and wisdom through theosis. Therefore, by incorporating Augustine’s philosophical analyses into empirical studies, the purpose of this study was to discuss the following: (1) The theologic of Augustine’s theory of divine illumination in the process of decolonising theology; (2) Augustine’s comprehension and use of divine procession through a triadic function of the human mind in his treatise De Trinitate; and (3) the role and plausibility of theosis because of God’s love in the process of learning and teaching. Through critical analysis of Augustine’s philosophical thought, this study develops an ethical theoretical framework for decolonising theology. Thus, the key contention is to succinctly present Augustine’s dogmatic thought rationally and logically in the process of his pragmatic stance.
Necessary yet insufficient for an account of special divine action would be a theory of human cognition. Human understanding is the non-material key to cognitional operations that are identifiable along four irreducible levels of consciousness. From Augustine through the medieval tradition of ‘agent intellect’, this was known as Divine Illumination theory. In current exchanges with neurobiology, Divine Illumination theory would require a reformulation along the lines of three desiderata. First, as Lonergan specifies in his magnus opus, Insight, the act of insight is that cognitional act which is most neurologically indefinite yet evidentially real. Second, on grounds supplied by the Doctrine of the Incarnation, there are valid reasons to suppose that God limits divine action to that type of co-operation requiring a receptive human mind or social group thereof. This mediating activity includes, not excludes, the notions of miracle and bodily resurrection. Third, a contemporary theory of divine action entails updating the medieval notion of the supernatural, which adds the elements of intention and supervenient relation to created natural processes. Special divine action through illumination is opposed to claims of divine intervention since the notion of supernatural activity does not require divine intervention because a supernatural order is enacted in terms of human history and personal meaning.
Notes on a Method: Engaging with Augustine at the Intersection of Philosophy, Theology, and History
Notes on a Method: Engaging with Augustine at the Intersection of Philosophy, Theology, and History, 2022
This article addresses the following question: Is it possible, and if so, to what extent, to draw upon sources from different contexts or disciplines to perform theological research? The first part describes the historical origins and contemporary application of the handmaiden model of theology (“philosophy is the handmaiden of theology,” philosophia ancilla theologiae). In the second section, I consider two closely related objections to this model, namely confirmation bias (or eisegesis) and anachronism. Section three demonstrates that while these objections should be carefully considered, they do not preclude altogether the possibility of engaging with sources across temporal or disciplinary boundaries. Gadamer’s hermeneutical philosophy grounds the possibility of such interaction. The remainder of the article provides a more specific vision of how this model can be practiced. First, I look to the theological tradition itself, in particular Augustine’s interpretive principles as applied to Genesis 1 (Confessiones 12) and Michael Fishbane’s appropriation of the Jewish hermeneutical tradition. Finally, the contemporary scholars William Desmond and Cyril O’Regan exemplify the responsible constructive engagement with the sources. I argue that practitioners of the handmaiden model must take seriously objections to and concerns about their methodology. Nonetheless, once critically adapted to present circumstances, this model is feasible for a contemporary scholarly context. One can respect the integrity of the sources while also interpreting them in ways which apply to present theological interests. A key implication of this research is that for each to function properly, historical theology and systematic theology must consistently interact with each other.