On Compassion, Healing, Suffering, and the Purpose of the Emotional Life - (Reading Augustine) by Susan Wessel (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Reading Augustine presents concise, personal readings of St. Augustine of Hippo from leading philosophers and religion scholars.

Augustine of Hippo knew that this fallen world is a place of sadness and suffering. In such a world, he determined that compassion is the most suitable and virtuous response. Its transformative powers could be accessed through the mind and its memories, through the healing of the Incarnation, and through the discernment of Christians who are forced to navigate through a corrupt and deceptive world.

Susan Wessel considers Augustine's theology of compassion by examining his personal experience of loss and his reflections concerning individual and corporate suffering in the context of the human condition and salvation.

Review Quotes

"This is an attractive book that is potentially appealing to a wide audience ... Wessel eloquently communicates the innovativeness of Augustine's emotional teaching, and how it arose out of both personal experience and philosophical reflection." - Journal of Ethics in Antiquity and Christianity

About the Author

Susan Wessel is Professor of Theology and Religious Studies at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, USA. She is the author of Passion and Compassion in Early Christianity (2016).