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goosemixtapes's review against another edition
2.0
well, that was a downright terrible experience. maybe god does hate me for being gay, and the 321 pages of the confessions i had to read in the past week and a half is his tool of punishment.
look, i didn't go into this expecting to be let down! maybe as someone who used to be catholic but is now uncomfortable with Intense Catholicism for personal reasons, i should have had rock bottom hopes. (and maybe augustine calling the aeneid useless studies should have been my first sign we would not get along.) but the opening pages of this had me musing about the nature of god and god's presence and how faith and hope and certainty tie into religion. and then the later pages of this had me spiraling about my religious OCD and then the last hundred pages had me literally writing "die die die" in the margins because dear god in heaven how many times can one man make the same point and not be any clearer about it on the fourth go-around. the last three books gave me the exact same feeling as reading the second epilogue of war and peace, namely that i was reading 1) interesting ideas repeated over and over 2) very obvious ideas that did not need explaining but were explained in depth over and over 3) the same sentences time and time again. sometimes #3 was literal because i would zone out mid-paragraph and find myself scanning the same line three times. i know he’s dead but can someone please give this man an editor.
two stars because some of the ideas were interesting. i mean, if i took the interesting ideas from this book and cut down all the fluff in the form of bible verses, i'd have, like, ten pages of material. but still. two stars for those ten pages. that's all i am so glad to not be reading this anymore
look, i didn't go into this expecting to be let down! maybe as someone who used to be catholic but is now uncomfortable with Intense Catholicism for personal reasons, i should have had rock bottom hopes. (and maybe augustine calling the aeneid useless studies should have been my first sign we would not get along.) but the opening pages of this had me musing about the nature of god and god's presence and how faith and hope and certainty tie into religion. and then the later pages of this had me spiraling about my religious OCD and then the last hundred pages had me literally writing "die die die" in the margins because dear god in heaven how many times can one man make the same point and not be any clearer about it on the fourth go-around. the last three books gave me the exact same feeling as reading the second epilogue of war and peace, namely that i was reading 1) interesting ideas repeated over and over 2) very obvious ideas that did not need explaining but were explained in depth over and over 3) the same sentences time and time again. sometimes #3 was literal because i would zone out mid-paragraph and find myself scanning the same line three times. i know he’s dead but can someone please give this man an editor.
two stars because some of the ideas were interesting. i mean, if i took the interesting ideas from this book and cut down all the fluff in the form of bible verses, i'd have, like, ten pages of material. but still. two stars for those ten pages. that's all i am so glad to not be reading this anymore
iphios's review against another edition
4.0
In its own right this book is profound, but its reflection of my own personal experience elevates this to a different level. I am profoundly in love and swooning over this book, overwhelmed by the parallelism in my conversion and Augustine's own.
rebeccapeterson's review against another edition
4.0
Love this book! It makes me really ponder about morality and what it means to be in a relationship with God. As I was reading, I found myself questioning when time originated, how the Holy Spirit dwells within us, and how God can answer prayers in unexpected ways.
ferniecosgrove's review against another edition
4.0
There is a reason why Saint Augustine’s Confessions have has such an impact in the Christian faith! His confessions challenge us to think the role of sin in our lives, the calling of salvation and what it means to live unto the Lord in a very sincere and transparent manner. I thoroughly enjoyed the read!
chelseavk's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand I appreciate his writing format (a letter to God meant to be read by us), the engaging way he shared his life story and it is so easy to see his heart for the Lord, yet the later portion of the book on philosophy was a bit much for me. This might be one of those books you get more out of by studying in a class with people to discuss it with.
alexarcher's review against another edition
4.0
This went over my head. Plan to reread this summer. What I grasped I really enjoyed. Been really appreciating the journey of reconciling philosophical thought and theology.