Copyright © 2019 Coleman Michael Ford All Rights Reserved. The
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Copyright © 2019 Coleman Michael Ford All rights reserved. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary has permission to reproduce and disseminate this document in any form by any means for purposes chosen by the Seminary, including, without limitation, preservation or instruction. “A BOND BETWEEN SOULS”: UNDERSTANDING SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP IN AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO HIS LETTERS __________________ A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary __________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy __________________ by Coleman Michael Ford May 2019 APPROVAL SHEET “A BOND BETWEEN SOULS”: UNDERSTANDING SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP IN AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO HIS LETTERS Coleman Michael Ford Read and Approved by: __________________________________________ Michael A. G. Haykin (Chair) __________________________________________ Gregory A. Wills __________________________________________ Shawn D. Wright Date______________________________ Dedicated to Alexandria, the dearest friend I have on this earth. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ....................................................................................... vii PREFACE .................................................................................................................... viii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................. 1 Thesis ............................................................................................................ 3 Augustine as Friend and Letter Writer ............................................................ 4 Status Quaestionis in Augustine Scholarship ................................................ 10 Methodology ................................................................................................. 13 2. ASSESSING CLASSICAL MODELS OF FRIENDSHIP ................................ 15 Defining Friendship in Ancient Perspective .................................................. 16 Friendship in the Platonic Perspective .......................................................... 22 Friendship in the Aristotelian Perspective ..................................................... 25 Friendship in the Epicurean Perspective ........................................................ 30 Friendship in the Stoic Perspective ............................................................... 33 Friendship in the Writings of Cicero ............................................................. 35 Friendship in the Latin West after Cicero ...................................................... 36 Summarizing Classical Friendship ................................................................ 38 Conclusion ................................................................................................... 40 3. “WOUNDS FROM A FRIEND”: JEROME AND SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP AS CORRECTION AND CHRISTIAN LOVE ............................................ 41 Introduction .................................................................................................. 41 Eps. 28, 39, 40, 67: Establishing the Relationship ......................................... 44 Eps. 68, 71 , 72, 73, 75: Unsettling the Relationship .................................... 50 iv Chapter Page Eps. 81 and 82: Mending the Relationship ..................................................... 63 Christian Love as Christian Correction ......................................................... 69 4. CONVERSING ON HEAVENLY THINGS: SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP AS MUTUAL ENCOURAGEMENT IN THE SPIRITUAL LIFE.................................................................................... 73 Introduction .................................................................................................. 73 Friendship with Paulinus and Therasia .......................................................... 74 Eps. 130, 131, 150: Proba and a Life of Prayer .............................................. 87 Ep. 188: Juliana and Demetrias and the Grace of Virginity ............................ 98 Conclusion ................................................................................................. 103 5. “BE IMITATORS OF THEM, AS THEY ARE OF CHRIST”: SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP WITH FELLOW CLERGY ............................... 105 Introduction ............................................................................................... 105 Augustine and Alypius ............................................................................... 107 Augustine and Evodius ............................................................................... 117 Augustine and Other Clergy ....................................................................... 125 Summarizing Augustine and Spiritual Friendship with Clergy .................... 136 Conclusion ................................................................................................. 137 6. “LONG FOR THAT DIVINE AND HEAVENLY CITY”: SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP AS CIVIC COUNSEL IN AUGUSTINE’S EPISTOLARY EXCHANGE WITH ROMAN OFFICIALS ................................................................................... 138 Introduction ................................................................................................ 138 Augustine and Marcellinus ......................................................................... 140 Augustine and Boniface ............................................................................. 150 Augustine and Macedonius ........................................................................ 162 Spiritual Friendship as Civic Counsel .......................................................... 171 Conclusion ................................................................................................. 173 7. AUGUSTINE AND SPIRITUAL FRIENDSHIP ............................................ 175 v Chapter Page Introduction ................................................................................................ 175 The Spirituality of Augustine ..................................................................... 178 Friendship as Christian Love ...................................................................... 179 Friendship as Necessary for Happiness ....................................................... 185 Spiritual Friendship as Exhortation ............................................................. 189 Ep. 258 from Augustine to Martianus ......................................................... 192 Conclusion ................................................................................................. 196 8. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................. 197 BIBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................................... 201 vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ATTA Augustine through the Ages ciu. Augustine, De ciuitate dei conf. Augustine, Confessiones CSEL Corpus scriptorum ecclesiasticorum latinorum doctr. chr. Augustine, De doctrina christiana ep. Augustine, Epistulae ep. Io. tr. Augustine, In epistulam Iohannis ad Parthos GRBS Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies nupt. et conc. Augustine, De nuptiis et concupiscentia ad Valerium retr. Augustine, Retractationes s. Augustine, Sermones sol. Augustine, Soliloquies trin. Augustine, De trinitate vii PREFACE My interest in church history blossomed in an introductory class at Dallas Theological Seminary under the tutelage of Jeffrey Bingham. My interest grew with subsequent seminars on specific topics in early Christianity, and even more so while serving as an assistant for Michael Svigel. As I considered the topic for my master’s thesis, I couldn’t escape my interest in the fourth century and was specifically intrigued by the life and ministry of Ambrose of Milan. Writing my thesis on the history and context of his hymnology, this naturally led me into Augustine and his relationship with Ambrose. Having finished the thesis and looking towards doctoral work, for whatever reason, I shelved my interest in Ambrose and Augustine and turned my sights to other figures and topics. Entering the doctoral program at Southern Seminary, I quickly fell in love with topics pertaining to patristic spirituality under the teaching and guidance of Michael Haykin. In this season, my appreciation for the Cappadocians, including figures such as Macarius Symeon, grew deep. Having entertained the possibility of writing on some aspect of one of these Greek thinkers, I simply could not find a place to land and felt as if I were drifting in an unfamiliar sea, unable to navigate to a safe harbor. This caused me to set my sights back on one of my original loves, Augustine of Hippo. Having continually read Confessions for devotional purposes, I simply could not escape his descriptions of friendship. The notion of friendship in Augustine was refined and grew into a full-fledged research project, led by Michael Haykin, and resulted in this dissertation. It has been a labor of love. Many friends who have brought encouragement in the process of writing. First, I must thank Michael Haykin, my faculty supervisor, for the mentorship and friendship he has provided me in the course of my doctoral work. His desire for academic viii excellence is only matched only by his grace and charity, which he has consistently demonstrated to me as a student. Second, I must thank my friends Timothy Paul Jones,