ABSTRACT
The sermon's transition to judgment and punishment in what Augustine called 'the widely accepted sense' is not smooth, but he retained his emphasis on humility. Augustine placed a limit on punishment; capital punishment extinguished all hope for the sinners' repentance and reconciliation. Augustine agreed but he also observed, dealing with the Donatists that discipline most often required punishments and fear of punishment. Augustine considered that the principal work of reconciling Donatist secessionists to Catholic Christianity was pastoral. Punitive measures and the fear of punishment pried them from their sects and undermined their eccentric, unwarranted sense of superiority. Augustine only infrequently lectured the regime's magistrates in Africa on the connections between punishment, rehabilitation, and reconciliation. He reserved for his church a critical role in the latter two but did not think his court or audience could make significant contributions. Augustine relished time for contemplation and learned conversation.
