About the Author

[Nemo]

Augustine once writes that the best way to know someone whom you haven't met in person is to read his writings. So I would refrain from imposing my view of him on the readers, but let him speak for himself.

If you're interested in known historical facts about Augustine, here is a short bio:

https://earlychurch.org.uk/augustine.php

There is also a definitive biography of Augustine, among many others:

Augustine of Hippo: A Biography

[John]

Nemo, thank you for posting these links. I did not know that Augustine didn't know (or like) Greek.

[Nemo]

John Angerer wrote: "Nemo, thank you for posting these links. I did not know that Augustine didn't know (or like) Greek."

I'm not sure whether such judgment of Augustine's knowledge of Greek is objective and fair. When reading history, we need to separate facts from opinions.

In the "Translator's Note" of the Penguin's edition, Bettenson writes of Augustine: "Our author is pleased, on occasion, to air his somewhat scanty knowledge of the Greek language."

The author of the webpage I linked to quoted two passage from Augustine's Confessions to support his claim that "Augustine never learned to read Greek and disliked Greek literature and so was restricted in his biblical studies to working with a Latin translation."

This claim was contradicted by Marcus Dods in his footnotes to the passages in Confessions.

Exaggerated statements have been made as to Augustin’s deficiency in the knowledge of Greek. In this place it is clear that he simply alludes to a repugnance to learn a foreign language that has often been seen in boys since his day. It would seem equally clear from Bk. vii. sec. 13 (see also De Trin. iii. sec. 1), that when he could get a translation of a Greek book, he preferred it to one in the original language. Perhaps in this, again, he is not altogether singular. It is difficult to decide the exact extent of his knowledge, but those familiar with his writings can scarcely fail to be satisfied that he had a sufficient acquaintance with the language to correct his Italic version by the Greek Testament and the LXX., and that he was quite alive to the importance of such knowledge in an interpreter of Scripture. See also Con. Faust, xi. 2–4; and De Doctr. Christ. ii. 11–15.

Confession I.13.20
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf1...
Confessions 1.14.23
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf1...

[Nemo]

Augustine's Popularity

If the number of extant manuscripts is an indication of popularity, Augustine was the most popular Christian author in the first seven centuries (and later ). To name a few of his works in descending order of polarity: Expositions on the Psalms, Sermons, Letters, City of God, On the Trinity and Confessions. None of his works, which were written in Latin, were translated into Greek, however, which means that he was not (well) known in the Eastern Church. By contrast, the works of his contemporary St. John Chrysostom, which were written in Greek, were translated into Latin, Coptic and Syriac.

[Kerstin]

Nemo wrote: "John Angerer wrote: "Nemo, thank you for posting these links. I did not know that Augustine didn't know (or like) Greek."

I'm not sure whether such judgment of Augustine's knowledge of Greek is ob..."

The note in my copy of The Confessions reg. the Greek studies, the footnote states, "In Augustine's day a learned Westerner conducted his daily affairs in Latin but was also expected to possess a working knowledge of Greek, similar to how French fluency marked an erudite person throughout much of early modernity."