奥古斯丁与罗马的陷落

公元410年罗马陷落这一事件,曾经在罗马帝国的知识分子中引起巨大轰动。由于尤西比乌以来的基督教历史观赋予了罗马以神圣的历史意义,哲罗姆、德尔图良、索佐门、君士坦丁堡的苏格拉底、奥罗修斯等都难以满意地解释这一历史事件。而奥古斯丁则从上帝之城与地上之城的对比、个体与人类整体的关系两个角度出发,重构了基督教的拯救历史观和世界历史观,这成为《上帝之城》的主题,也对西方后来的世界历史观产生了深远影响。

Augustine and the Fall of Rome

The fall of Rome in 410 was a sensation among the educated people in the Roman Empire.Because Christian Historians since Eusebius has endowed a sacred significance of Roman Empire,Jerome,Tertulian,Sozomen,and Socrates of Constantinople could not satisfactorily interpret the fall of this sacred city.By distinguishing the secular city and the heavenly city,and linking individual soul with the entity of human race,Augustine reconstructed the salvation history and world history of Christianity.This is the theme...