The Nature and Varieties of Death in the Works of Saint Augustine

As one of the most unfathomable mysteries human beings encounter with, death has always been one of the main concerns of great scholars and one of the major teachings of monotheistic religions. Augustine is one of the great scholars who reflect upon and talk about death. Interestingly, we do not face with a particular definition of death in Augustine’s works. As a Platonic philosopher, he considers death as the separation of spirit from the body; As a Christian theologian, however, he opines that death is the consequence of sin and distance from God. In his works, one can find both some specific characteristics of natural death as well as characteristics of intentional death, which has an obvious manifestation in Augustine’s own life. Even though he endeavors to know and introduce the nature and varieties of death, his sayings signify his inability to the knowledge of this great existential enigma. It is why that he wishes Adam and Eve had not captivated us with this predicament.