ABSTRACT
In the world of Augustine, the author of Confessions, religion was a vital part of everyday existence and philosophical thought. Confessions tells the story of Augustine’s pursuit of wisdom as informed by early Christian beliefs and Neoplatonism. A variety of forms of Christianity existed in the Roman Empire in the fourth century, including those followed by both Manichaeans and Catholics. Christianity was therefore an importance influence throughout his life. Two issues were particularly important to philosophers in the Roman Empire in the fourth century: authority and asceticism. Augustine’s search for wisdom was essentially a search for authority. Augustine’s commitment also involved adopting certain ascetic practices, such as sexual denial, communal living, and educating the community’s members. In Confessions, Augustine writes that he was liberated from Manichaeism by reading Platonist books, as well as through the ideas of Academicians.
