Encyclopedia of sacred theology - pagina 261

;:

OF THE CONCEPTION OF THEOLOGY

CnAi>. I]

237

must not only be construed abstractly logiAugustine already tried to do this, though he rarely used the word Theology to indicate What in the Western the conception intended by us. called Doctrina de Deo he Theology, called Church also was or Christian Doctrine; and however strange it may seem, by the word Theology Augustine understands the pagan tion of TJieology

but also theologically.

cally,

rather than the Christian conceptions of the Divine.

This

prominently in his De Civitate Dei, in which he (Lib. VI., c. 5 sq., ed. Bened. Bass. Ven., 1797, pp. 179-255) discusses the system of Varro, as though there were three kinds of Theology: mythology (theologia appears

fabulosa},

which lived

in tradition

and

in

the

theatre

which is found natural and State religion philosophers; in the writings of the (theologia civilis), which was maintained by official public And it is noteworthy that while continually worship. quoting this threefold description of Theology, Augustine theology

(theologia

naturalis),

nowhere places theologia Christiana, or

vera, over against

Once onl}^ but always speaks of Doctrina Christiana. in caput 8 (p. 203), does he take theologia in its general sense, but still not to express doctrina Christiana, but that In refuting the after which the doctrina Christiana seeks. physiological representations of the philosophers he says it,

"But

all

these

things,

they say, have certain physical,

showing their natural meaning; as though in this disputation we were seeking ph3^sics and not theology, which is the account, not of nature, but From this we see, that by " Theology " Augustine of God." i.e.

natural, interpretations,

did not understand the study of our science, nor that sci-

much more knowledge of God, as the aim of theological study. Thus with Augustine already this deeper conception of Theology bore a decidedly theological character. This is seen in his Lihri IV. de doctrina Christiana, where he goes back to God, as Himself the Wisdom (Sapientia), and calls

ence itself; by him this was called doctrina; but the

Christ, as the

God

(

[)rima

Word of God (Verbum Dei), the first way to ad Deum via), and then by the side of the

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