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Retrieving Augustine's Doctrine of Creation: Ancient Wisdom for Current Controversy
How might premodern exegesis of Genesis inform Christian debates about creation today? Imagine a table with three people in dialogue: a young-earth creationist, an old-earth creationist, and an evolutionary creationist. Into the room walks Augustine of Hippo, one of the most significant theologians in the history of the church. In what ways will his reading of Scripture and his doctrine of creation inform, deepen, and shape the conversation? Pastor and theologian Gavin Ortlund explores just such a scenario by retrieving Augustine's reading of Genesis 1-3 and considering how his premodern understanding of creation can help Christians today. Ortlund contends that while Augustine's hermeneutical approach and theological questions might differ from those of today, this church father's humility before Scripture and his theological conclusions can shed light on matters such as evolution, animal death, and the historical Adam and Eve. Have a seat. Join the conversation.
264 pages, Paperback
Published July 14, 2020
29 people are currently reading
658 people want to read
About the author
Gavin Ortlund
13 books359 followersGavin Ortlund (PhD, Fuller Theological Seminary) is senior pastor at First Baptist Church of Ojai in Ojai, California. He was previously a research fellow for the Creation Project at the Carl F. H. Henry Center for Theological Understanding at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School. He is the author of Finding the Right Hills to Die On, Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals, and Anselm's Pursuit of Joy.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
January 29, 2024
A very thought-provoking work here. As the title promises, this is what retrieval work is at its best. Ortlund does an exemplary job at considering Augustine in his own context first, and then bringing his contribution into contemporary conversations. One strength of this book is that Ortlund keeps his findings and his suggestions modest: this book is not anachronistic and Ortlund does not pretend that Augustine solves all our contemporary inquiries. Augustine's witness does, however, chasten our rhetoric and brings alternative perspectives that offer promise for fruitful meditations moving forward.
My favorite chapters were chapter one (where Ortlund traces out just how central the doctrine of creation was for all of Augustine's thought, and how central it ought to be in ours), and chapter three (where Ortlund invites us to wonder with Augustine at the sheer beauty of living in God's world).
Here's the greatest service Ortlund has offered me with this book: he has allowed Augustine to help me decrease the stakes on *some* of the issues surrounding how to interpret the earliest chapters of Genesis. Though the stakes are high in a sense, it seems clear to me now that some of the rhetoric is way overblown.
My one beef is with Ortlund's portrayal of the present-day situation regarding evolution. The chapter was very ambitious, so I can't blame him too much for omitting perspectives, but it did seem to me that Ortlund neglected to give adequate weight to the questionability of Darwinian evolution on the grounds of science and philosophy (not just on textual ground). You almost get the impression that the scientific testimony is uniform (in agreement with Darwinism), and that the struggle now is how to make sense of that testimony in light of Scripture. But the "scientific testimony" is not monolithic, and not every scientific argument against Young Earth Creationism is an argument FOR evolution. For my own part, I find a figurative reading of the days of creation and an old earth predating the creation of Man a far easier pill to swallow than Darwinian biological evolution. I find the latter less plausible on scientific and philosophical grounds, not just on exegetical grounds. This perspective didn't feel adequately represented.
Still, Ortlund was, as mentioned above, rather modest on what he positively claimed. In this book, he is more of a conversation-facilitator, and in that role, I thin he's done a marvelous job.
My favorite chapters were chapter one (where Ortlund traces out just how central the doctrine of creation was for all of Augustine's thought, and how central it ought to be in ours), and chapter three (where Ortlund invites us to wonder with Augustine at the sheer beauty of living in God's world).
Here's the greatest service Ortlund has offered me with this book: he has allowed Augustine to help me decrease the stakes on *some* of the issues surrounding how to interpret the earliest chapters of Genesis. Though the stakes are high in a sense, it seems clear to me now that some of the rhetoric is way overblown.
My one beef is with Ortlund's portrayal of the present-day situation regarding evolution. The chapter was very ambitious, so I can't blame him too much for omitting perspectives, but it did seem to me that Ortlund neglected to give adequate weight to the questionability of Darwinian evolution on the grounds of science and philosophy (not just on textual ground). You almost get the impression that the scientific testimony is uniform (in agreement with Darwinism), and that the struggle now is how to make sense of that testimony in light of Scripture. But the "scientific testimony" is not monolithic, and not every scientific argument against Young Earth Creationism is an argument FOR evolution. For my own part, I find a figurative reading of the days of creation and an old earth predating the creation of Man a far easier pill to swallow than Darwinian biological evolution. I find the latter less plausible on scientific and philosophical grounds, not just on exegetical grounds. This perspective didn't feel adequately represented.
Still, Ortlund was, as mentioned above, rather modest on what he positively claimed. In this book, he is more of a conversation-facilitator, and in that role, I thin he's done a marvelous job.
September 15, 2020
This is a fascinating and engaging book, that takes the reader for a journey into the works and mind of Augustine, concentrating on his doctrine of Creation. I came away from this book feeling the need to read more of Augustine, and to re-read the Confessions and the City of God - so that in itself gets 5 stars from me :)
I found that the Author is trying to be sensitive to those who have differing views on the “how” and “when” of Creation. He leans towards a theistic evolutionary position, and as someone who leans more towards an old earth creationist viewpoint, I quite enjoyed what he has to say - and his desire to have better and more charitable dialogue between those who hold different views.
Whilst he does show Augustine’s care of where he places his “certainty” and where he allows for “divergence”, and encourages us to do the same in this discussion, he also rightly points out that we are in a dangerous situation if it is good Science influencing our Theology without having good Theology influencing our Science. I have a Science Degree, and I find it strange at times the “certainty” that is is often claimed publicly, in areas that 10 years ago they were perhaps claiming something different and will perhaps have a new, better model 10 years from now.
From a philosophical viewpoint, Scientists could also benefit from Augustine :)
I found that the Author is trying to be sensitive to those who have differing views on the “how” and “when” of Creation. He leans towards a theistic evolutionary position, and as someone who leans more towards an old earth creationist viewpoint, I quite enjoyed what he has to say - and his desire to have better and more charitable dialogue between those who hold different views.
Whilst he does show Augustine’s care of where he places his “certainty” and where he allows for “divergence”, and encourages us to do the same in this discussion, he also rightly points out that we are in a dangerous situation if it is good Science influencing our Theology without having good Theology influencing our Science. I have a Science Degree, and I find it strange at times the “certainty” that is is often claimed publicly, in areas that 10 years ago they were perhaps claiming something different and will perhaps have a new, better model 10 years from now.
From a philosophical viewpoint, Scientists could also benefit from Augustine :)
August 10, 2020
Summary: A study of Augustine's writing about creation and what that might contribute to the contemporary controversy.
Imagine a gathering with a young earth creationist, an old earth creationist, and an evolutionary creationist. Fireworks, right? Now imagine that Augustine time-travels from the late 4th-early 5th century and sits down with this group. What would he contribute to the discussion and how might he offer unique perspectives? These are the questions Gavin Ortlund explores in this new work.
First of all, Ortlund observes that Augustine helps us to step back from the controversy to consider the sheer wonder of creation. God created, not out of need, but his extravagant goodness. Augustine was absorbed with creation, believed it mirrored our own purpose of being created for God and finding rest in God, a theme he develops at the end of The Confessions.
While not afraid to speak from conviction about the goodness of creation when faced with the dualism of Manichaean heresy, Augustine urges humility and the avoidance of rashness in interpretations, admitting where he thinks several views are equally possible. He exemplifies this with his own careful handling of Genesis 1, and his rejection of literal twenty-four hour days because of difficulties within the text including fitting all the events of day five into twenty-four hours.
Augustine also offers different perspectives on the problem of animal death and suffering. Responding to Manichaean ideas, he defends the goodness of predation. He also proposes the idea of perspectival prejudice, in which our local perspective often obscures the larger picture.
Finally, Ortlund looks at Augustine's writing on Genesis 2 and 3 concerning the question of a historic Adam and fall. Augustine both admits the literary complexities of the text and his convictions about the historic character of Adam and the fall in the garden, while leaving room for figurative interpretations.
In one sense, Augustine can't resolve the differences between the contemporary "camps." He was unaware of the science to which contemporary interpreters respond in differing ways. By modern standards, some of his exegetical conclusions would be ones to which many would take exception. Yet Ortlund proposes that Augustine offers perspective that may enrich and change the tone and character of these discussions. He reminds us of the wonder of God's work in creation. He exhibits an uncharacteristic humility, admitting both what he knows and does not, speaking with conviction about what is clear, and peaceably and humbly the matters on which interpreters may differ. In such areas, he exhibits a flexibility and openness contemporary scholars might emulate. Ortlund also shows us a careful scholar dedicated to rigorous study to understand what scripture affirms. These dispositions would not resolve our conflicts, but would create a character of conversation that would be God-honoring.
Ortlund's concern focuses on the conversation between Christians. But wonder, humility, and rigor of study are also dispositions characterizing dedicated scientists. The animus between faith and science that has existed may well be rendered unnecessary if more on both sides emulated Augustine. We cannot invite him to the table except by mining his writings. Ortlund offers a study of Augustine's writings worthy of Augustine's dispositions.
________________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
Imagine a gathering with a young earth creationist, an old earth creationist, and an evolutionary creationist. Fireworks, right? Now imagine that Augustine time-travels from the late 4th-early 5th century and sits down with this group. What would he contribute to the discussion and how might he offer unique perspectives? These are the questions Gavin Ortlund explores in this new work.
First of all, Ortlund observes that Augustine helps us to step back from the controversy to consider the sheer wonder of creation. God created, not out of need, but his extravagant goodness. Augustine was absorbed with creation, believed it mirrored our own purpose of being created for God and finding rest in God, a theme he develops at the end of The Confessions.
While not afraid to speak from conviction about the goodness of creation when faced with the dualism of Manichaean heresy, Augustine urges humility and the avoidance of rashness in interpretations, admitting where he thinks several views are equally possible. He exemplifies this with his own careful handling of Genesis 1, and his rejection of literal twenty-four hour days because of difficulties within the text including fitting all the events of day five into twenty-four hours.
Augustine also offers different perspectives on the problem of animal death and suffering. Responding to Manichaean ideas, he defends the goodness of predation. He also proposes the idea of perspectival prejudice, in which our local perspective often obscures the larger picture.
Finally, Ortlund looks at Augustine's writing on Genesis 2 and 3 concerning the question of a historic Adam and fall. Augustine both admits the literary complexities of the text and his convictions about the historic character of Adam and the fall in the garden, while leaving room for figurative interpretations.
In one sense, Augustine can't resolve the differences between the contemporary "camps." He was unaware of the science to which contemporary interpreters respond in differing ways. By modern standards, some of his exegetical conclusions would be ones to which many would take exception. Yet Ortlund proposes that Augustine offers perspective that may enrich and change the tone and character of these discussions. He reminds us of the wonder of God's work in creation. He exhibits an uncharacteristic humility, admitting both what he knows and does not, speaking with conviction about what is clear, and peaceably and humbly the matters on which interpreters may differ. In such areas, he exhibits a flexibility and openness contemporary scholars might emulate. Ortlund also shows us a careful scholar dedicated to rigorous study to understand what scripture affirms. These dispositions would not resolve our conflicts, but would create a character of conversation that would be God-honoring.
Ortlund's concern focuses on the conversation between Christians. But wonder, humility, and rigor of study are also dispositions characterizing dedicated scientists. The animus between faith and science that has existed may well be rendered unnecessary if more on both sides emulated Augustine. We cannot invite him to the table except by mining his writings. Ortlund offers a study of Augustine's writings worthy of Augustine's dispositions.
________________________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary review copy of this book from the publisher. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
July 12, 2025
Gavin Ortlund tar utgangspunkt i et tankeeksperiment; hva skjer hvis Augustin kommer inn i et rom der det sitter en ung jords-kreasjonist, gammel jords-kreasjonist og en person som står for teistisk evolusjon?
Augustin har mye å komme med, og det var spesielt interessant å høre noen av hans tanker om hva skapelsen betyr, og ikke bare debatt om hvordan Gud skapte. Spesielt dette med at vi er skapt for å tilhøre Gud, og at vi ikke vil finne oss selv uten ham. Og hvor fundamentalt skapelsen er for resten av den bibelske fortellingen.
Ortlund trekker frem noen av Augustins tanker og anvender dem på teamer som død i dyreriket før syndefallet, evolusjon og hvorvidt Adam og Eva og syndefallet kan forstås som historiske personer og hendelser.
Noe av det jeg sitter mest igjen med er hvordan Augustin vektlegger ydmykhet i møte med tolkning av både Bibelen og vitenskap. Det betyr ikke at man skal la være å konkludere, men at man bør unngå å hoppe raskt til konklusjoner og fremstille ens eget syn som det eneste åpenbare. Måten man kommer frem til sin overbevisning og hvordan man møter andre på har også mye å si, i tillegg til hva man faktisk mener.
Vil anbefale denne boken og C. John Collins sin bok om skapelsen (Reading Genesis Well) som noe av det beste man kan lese hvis man er interessert i å sette seg mer inn i skapelsesberetningen.
Augustin har mye å komme med, og det var spesielt interessant å høre noen av hans tanker om hva skapelsen betyr, og ikke bare debatt om hvordan Gud skapte. Spesielt dette med at vi er skapt for å tilhøre Gud, og at vi ikke vil finne oss selv uten ham. Og hvor fundamentalt skapelsen er for resten av den bibelske fortellingen.
Ortlund trekker frem noen av Augustins tanker og anvender dem på teamer som død i dyreriket før syndefallet, evolusjon og hvorvidt Adam og Eva og syndefallet kan forstås som historiske personer og hendelser.
Noe av det jeg sitter mest igjen med er hvordan Augustin vektlegger ydmykhet i møte med tolkning av både Bibelen og vitenskap. Det betyr ikke at man skal la være å konkludere, men at man bør unngå å hoppe raskt til konklusjoner og fremstille ens eget syn som det eneste åpenbare. Måten man kommer frem til sin overbevisning og hvordan man møter andre på har også mye å si, i tillegg til hva man faktisk mener.
Vil anbefale denne boken og C. John Collins sin bok om skapelsen (Reading Genesis Well) som noe av det beste man kan lese hvis man er interessert i å sette seg mer inn i skapelsesberetningen.
October 24, 2021
I’ve been following Dr Ortlund on YouTube for a while now and I really appreciate his charitable voice when talking about issues over which Christians disagree. In this book, he writes with the same humility and charity concerning one of the most important - and most contentious - issues facing early 21st-century Christianity: how to synthesize the Biblical account of creation with well-settled scientific evidence on evolution. Dr Ortlund takes us back in Church history to examine St Augustine’s doctrines on creation and how that formidable Saint can provide guidance on how to approach these complex issues. I highly recommend this book to any evangelical Christian who is concerned with the relevance of the Church in today’s culture.
December 9, 2021
What I hope will stick with me most from this book is how for all his brilliance Augustine’s interpretation of Genesis 1-3 was filled with humility (see especially chapter 2). If Augustine didn’t have all the answers, I certainly don’t.
4.5 stars
4.5 stars
August 25, 2022
Ortlund brings Augustine in the creation discussion, which is especially fruitful in two ways: (1) he makes the case that doctrinal conversation is often more than two-sided, and that it is harder for people to see third alternatives when they have misidentified the most popular chat about a theological issue as the historic discussion around the theological issue itself (and these are very different things!). (2) Ortlund demonstrates how many other sub-doctrines of creation are often left out of view to focus on the argument of the place and extent of evolution in God's design. These sub-doctrines like creaturely contingency, the goodness of creation, divine priority and trinitarian agency formed a significant part of Augustine's doctrine of creation. Much like it could be argued the Second Great Awakening emphasized a reductionistic concept of conversion to the great neglect of other doctrines of salvation, the age of the earth (while a worthy topic of debate that good Christians are free to disagree on) is often thought of as equivalent to the doctrine of creation, and Augustine helps us broaden our horizons far beyond it.
October 29, 2020
Highly recommended reading if you are wanting to get acquainted with pre-modern readings and theological understandings of the doctrine of creation. Ortlund's presentation is very balanced; he does a great job distilling and presenting Augustine's various sources on creation and then applies that thought to modern conceptions of creation. A great work.
July 2, 2024
Ortlund throws an offspeed pitch by exploring Augustine’s beliefs on creation and applying them to the modern origins debate. The results are surprisingly enlightening.
Three of Ortlund’s emphases stick out to me:
1) Augustine was open to alternative readings of Gen 1-3. This was not because he was eager to compromise with science but because there was dispute about the specifics of creation even then. He also takes the purely literal view to task as a product of Manichean teaching. This really drove home to me how much modern categories in this debate are not intuitive but a product of our moment.
2) Augustine urges humility in our understanding of the specifics of creation. He repeatedly acknowledges that he could be wrong, that he could be talking out of turn with regard to science, and he even sometimes refuses to give an opinion. Humility is not a strong suit in either creationist or evolutionist reasoning, since they probably feel too much is at stake to admit any uncertainty.
3) Augustine cautions us against “respectable prejudice” in which we disdain parts of creation that either do not directly benefit us (mosquitoes) or that we cannot see reason for. God is not subject to us. This sense has been lost in modern arguments.
Part of Ortlund’s goal here is to remind very conservative creationists that alternative views are viable in orthodox Christianity. (ie before condemning others for not taking the days literally, remember that by the same standard you would condemn Augustine). I find this less helpful because I come from a tradition that does not reason from theologians.
Three of Ortlund’s emphases stick out to me:
1) Augustine was open to alternative readings of Gen 1-3. This was not because he was eager to compromise with science but because there was dispute about the specifics of creation even then. He also takes the purely literal view to task as a product of Manichean teaching. This really drove home to me how much modern categories in this debate are not intuitive but a product of our moment.
2) Augustine urges humility in our understanding of the specifics of creation. He repeatedly acknowledges that he could be wrong, that he could be talking out of turn with regard to science, and he even sometimes refuses to give an opinion. Humility is not a strong suit in either creationist or evolutionist reasoning, since they probably feel too much is at stake to admit any uncertainty.
3) Augustine cautions us against “respectable prejudice” in which we disdain parts of creation that either do not directly benefit us (mosquitoes) or that we cannot see reason for. God is not subject to us. This sense has been lost in modern arguments.
Part of Ortlund’s goal here is to remind very conservative creationists that alternative views are viable in orthodox Christianity. (ie before condemning others for not taking the days literally, remember that by the same standard you would condemn Augustine). I find this less helpful because I come from a tradition that does not reason from theologians.
October 23, 2024
I was going to give this book four stars, but Ortland’s application of Augustine’s attitude in theology to our contemporary wrangling was a great conclusion.
While a commentary is by nature subjective, what was presented in this book was very inspiring. This book gives me the motivation I need to tackle Augustine’s Confessions.
Also, Augustine will get you excited about worms if that’s is something you want in your life.
While a commentary is by nature subjective, what was presented in this book was very inspiring. This book gives me the motivation I need to tackle Augustine’s Confessions.
Also, Augustine will get you excited about worms if that’s is something you want in your life.
January 4, 2021
Gavin Ortlund did a fantastic job with this book. My favorite chapters were the first, where we learn, through Augustine’s theology, interpretive points we may miss in today’s context, and the fourth chapter, focusing on the goodness of animal death.
Augustine’s insights into creation are extremely edifying, including his focus on the contingency of creation and the implications of humans being completely reliant on God for existence, with a tendency of created things to return to nothing. Ultimately, we are exceedingly mutable and much closer to nothingness than we are to our Creator. However, he also brings in the idea of creation being good but not perfect, leaving the goal of human life as theosis with an end of sharing in divine immutability.
Augustine also teaches us to avoid rashness by seeking truth with humility (Augustine dealt very differently with the Manichaeans than he did with the Origenists) and to value the science of the day. We need to fully appreciate our fallibility as interpreters of God’s infallible word and be willing to reinterpret a text if our original interpretation was proved unlikely. Augustine also does not believe allegorical and literal interpretations are mutually exclusive. Thankfully, the most important doctrines of creation are those generally held by all Christians, e.g. creation ex nihilo, the goodness of creation, etc.
Additionally, Ortlund helps us realize the vast composite of varying interpretations in pre-Darwinian Christendom. Augustine didn’t hold to a literal 6 day creation and, more than that, he wasn’t idiosyncratic for his time or long after.
A large “problem” for old earth creationists and theistic evolutionists is pre-fall animal death. However, Augustine strongly believed in the goodness of animal death and of the beauty of creation as a whole, including “pernicious” animals, comparing the whole of creation to a painting or poem - even the predatory system of the animal kingdom holds beauty. Here, Ortlund names two insightful principles in Augustine’s thought on this topic: temporal beauty and perspectival prejudice. The passing of animals into non-existence provides a certain beauty, and trying to judge God’s creation as bad is the height of folly, as if one were to judge the beauty of a poem by just one line.
Overall, this book was a needful call to re-evaluation of our interpretive presuppositions of Genesis 1-3 with a preeminent theologian helping us along the way, as well as an exhortation to irenicism.
Augustine’s insights into creation are extremely edifying, including his focus on the contingency of creation and the implications of humans being completely reliant on God for existence, with a tendency of created things to return to nothing. Ultimately, we are exceedingly mutable and much closer to nothingness than we are to our Creator. However, he also brings in the idea of creation being good but not perfect, leaving the goal of human life as theosis with an end of sharing in divine immutability.
Augustine also teaches us to avoid rashness by seeking truth with humility (Augustine dealt very differently with the Manichaeans than he did with the Origenists) and to value the science of the day. We need to fully appreciate our fallibility as interpreters of God’s infallible word and be willing to reinterpret a text if our original interpretation was proved unlikely. Augustine also does not believe allegorical and literal interpretations are mutually exclusive. Thankfully, the most important doctrines of creation are those generally held by all Christians, e.g. creation ex nihilo, the goodness of creation, etc.
Additionally, Ortlund helps us realize the vast composite of varying interpretations in pre-Darwinian Christendom. Augustine didn’t hold to a literal 6 day creation and, more than that, he wasn’t idiosyncratic for his time or long after.
A large “problem” for old earth creationists and theistic evolutionists is pre-fall animal death. However, Augustine strongly believed in the goodness of animal death and of the beauty of creation as a whole, including “pernicious” animals, comparing the whole of creation to a painting or poem - even the predatory system of the animal kingdom holds beauty. Here, Ortlund names two insightful principles in Augustine’s thought on this topic: temporal beauty and perspectival prejudice. The passing of animals into non-existence provides a certain beauty, and trying to judge God’s creation as bad is the height of folly, as if one were to judge the beauty of a poem by just one line.
Overall, this book was a needful call to re-evaluation of our interpretive presuppositions of Genesis 1-3 with a preeminent theologian helping us along the way, as well as an exhortation to irenicism.
March 11, 2023
Honestly, I definitely judged this book by its cover and that made me want to read it. I ended up listening to the audiobook at a whim without any knowledge of the author or an urgency to hear about the subject. I was glad for the opportunity to hear more of Augustine's thought. He's written so much it feels overwhelming to get into Augustine directly, so I enjoyed the filtered experience pulled from a wide array of his works which relied heavily on quotations rather than interpretations.
I think Augustine's reading of Scripture (and his particular focus on Genesis philosophically) has a lot to offer us today and his questions transcend a lot of the categories we're used to thinking about (in a helpful way in my opinion). Where the book lost me a bit (personally, not because of false advertising since the title is pretty clear) was where the author made specific connections to current debates about Creation. I'm not very knowledgeable in that area and I couldn't really tell if he was presenting the whole story, or which argument(s) he was advocating. I'm happy I listened to it, and I expect to have many of Augustine's thoughts rattling around in my head, but I'm not sure I was the target reader.
I think Augustine's reading of Scripture (and his particular focus on Genesis philosophically) has a lot to offer us today and his questions transcend a lot of the categories we're used to thinking about (in a helpful way in my opinion). Where the book lost me a bit (personally, not because of false advertising since the title is pretty clear) was where the author made specific connections to current debates about Creation. I'm not very knowledgeable in that area and I couldn't really tell if he was presenting the whole story, or which argument(s) he was advocating. I'm happy I listened to it, and I expect to have many of Augustine's thoughts rattling around in my head, but I'm not sure I was the target reader.
March 15, 2021
Usually I stay clear of books on creation, as they devolve into us/them camps. This books is a rare exception and a gem. Highly recommend.
May 17, 2022
Did a quick read on this one. Want to revisit some sections. Helpful use of Augustine to encourage humility in difficult theological matters, to navigate difficult issues, and to be charitable with others who think differently. The use of Augustine helps us gain some perspective beyond the current debates as they are framed, with their various boundaries and political and cultural components.
March 19, 2024
4.1 Stars
This is an excellent book covering Augustine's views on the doctrine of creation. It's a welcome addition to the current creation and Genesis 1 debates to hear the wisdom of the ancient Augustine Hippo. It is a very scholarly book though, and is not for everyone, but I would recommend it to Bible scholars and pastors who are wrestling with the creation debate issues.
This is an excellent book covering Augustine's views on the doctrine of creation. It's a welcome addition to the current creation and Genesis 1 debates to hear the wisdom of the ancient Augustine Hippo. It is a very scholarly book though, and is not for everyone, but I would recommend it to Bible scholars and pastors who are wrestling with the creation debate issues.
October 15, 2020
Fascinating! Ortlund invites Augustine to the table with all the different views and debates surrounding the date of creation, the historical Adam, the possibility of evolution, and urges that we listen and discuss with humility. Not only is this a fascinating read, it truly helps the reader get an overview of different creation views.
Ortlund’s own humility and love for God’s glory and beauty drives the reader to listen along with Ortlund, who seems to be a fly on the wall observing the brightest minds of history trying to observe the greatest mind of all, the Creator Himself. Enjoyable and helpful read worth your time.
Ortlund’s own humility and love for God’s glory and beauty drives the reader to listen along with Ortlund, who seems to be a fly on the wall observing the brightest minds of history trying to observe the greatest mind of all, the Creator Himself. Enjoyable and helpful read worth your time.
March 6, 2024
Parts of this book were a joy to read while others seemed to drag on and flat out go over my head. That is not the authors fault but my own. This is theological retrieval done right. It is so clear the amount of research and reading that Gavin did to synthesize not just what Augustine said about creation but where he said it and how it relates to his other writings. While I said it can be easy to get lost in this book I think the 5 chapters can be read on their own depending what questions you’re wrestling with at the moment. I plan to reference this again in the future with that in mind. Overall insightful and worth the read if you are interested in creation, augustine, or both!
July 31, 2023
Ortlund looks at the various ways Augustine built his thinking from the creation narrative, and highlights how he sought to "major on the majors". Ortlund then critiques the current evangelical pattern of majoring on the minors. His applicable point seems to be to carve out more room among evangelicals for the theistic evolution view, but also a more charitable and beneficial conversation with science, and differing views among Christians.
January 3, 2025
Pretty good. Seems to be a fairly accurate representation of Augustine’s views on creation. Ortlund focuses on the other aspects of the creation story that we miss because we’re overly focused on the timing of creation. I think this is really important and a grievous loss in the current debates. I can appreciate a lot of the OE and TE interpretations for the literary and allegorical interpretations they offer, though I don’t believe that such interpretations mean that the literal isn’t there.
April 10, 2022
An Excellent book! Gavin Ortlund does a wonderful job of laying out Augustine’s views on the doctrine of creation. I think the most important part of this entire book is the emphasis on nuance and the complexity of the topic. We must be like Augustine and understand our own fallibility as interpreters of Scripture.
January 29, 2025
Always a breath of fresh air (in particular with the creation debates) to dive into earlier periods of Christian history. I’m always reminded how helpful it would be if more of us evangelicals (in the U.S. in particular, as far as my context goes) were more familiar with the sheer breadth of Christian thought (throughout time and geographical location) on so many different theological issues. Surely it would pull back in at least some of the extremities!
November 9, 2022
Not directly the book I was looking for but was great nonetheless!
The first chapter was my favorite, but both Gavin’s and Augustine’s humility really shone throughout.
Gavin writes really helpful books
The first chapter was my favorite, but both Gavin’s and Augustine’s humility really shone throughout.
Gavin writes really helpful books
June 20, 2025
Loved Augustine’s point that a literal interpretation of Genesis does not mean a denial of figurative language in the text. Also loved Augustine’s point that we must have the humility and confidence to be okay that our interpretations might be “wrong” as long as they remain orthodox and sanctifying to believers.
Another great one from Ortlund!
Another great one from Ortlund!
April 9, 2022
Excellent look at Augustine’s views in light of the current debates and controversy among Christians. A call for Charity.
July 9, 2024
Stellar work that to me illuminated the more obscure aspects of Augustine in his confessions chapter 9-13
September 5, 2024
Absolutely one of the best books I’ve read on the creation debate. Insightful in a way that spurs worship— as theology ought.
August 6, 2022
Yesterday concluded my reading of ‘Retrieving Augustine’s Doctrine of Creation’ by Gavin Ortlund with friends, Paul Pavlik and JP Chavez. We all three listened through it together, separately, then sent voice messages back and forth over Signal as we went.
From the outset, this book made me curious to read Augustine’s fuller commentary on Genesis for myself, knowing especially that for over 1,500 years he has been quoted by all sides in the big debates of Christendom. In the meantime, however, between now and when that is accomplished, I feel strongly about Gavin Ortlund writing his treatment of Augustine and Genesis from a certain apparent bias against Young Earth Creationists.
Being a Young Earth Creationist myself, taking some umbrage is obligatory. And so I want to take exactly the right amount of umbrage – no more or less.
Where Ortlund cautions general humility in debates about the meaning of Genesis 1-3, for instance, he comes back often to Young Earth Creationism adherents especially. Does he really believe organizations like Answers in Genesis or the Institute for Creation Research lack humility more than their rival equivalents? If so, what leads him to such a conclusion?
Perhaps humility is not quite the right word, since Ortlund is not just referring to humility before the text, or humility before God – though that is what Augustine would have meant about humility here. He is saying also that we need more humility before the claims of Positivist Scientists and how those should moderate or mediate our humility before God and His Word.
This makes perfect sense from a certain angle. After all, the unbelieving world in academia holds in derision Young Earth Creationists especially. Anytime Christians generally, on Origins or anything else, talk back to or question the godless men and women in white lab coats, we are sneered at. The whole lot of us are called “anti-Science” and other dumb things. But a special place in Atheist Hell is reserved for those who believe the Bible is literally true in the way we commonly say “literally” to mean “actually” and “physically as well as spiritually.”
I will confess a kind of defiant frustration which creeps into the rhetoric of some Young Earth Creationists when engaging in these debates. We should definitely work on that.
Furthermore, in facing the Positivist Scientists especially, I can see how Ortlund might want to prescribe more of what might be called “humility” to reduce friction and improve dialogue, or at least make it more congenial and less contentious.
But since Ortlund is enlisting Augustine of Hippo to make his case about that, it is worth noting the whole tone, tenor, and paradigm of City of God. My familiarity with that work from reading it last year leads me to believe Augustine would be more circumspect than Ortlund is being about where we find ourselves today.
Were Augustine actually to walk into a room where a Young Earth, Old Earth, and Evolutionary Creationist were debating Genesis 1-3, the 4th century bishop would surely pay more attention to the slippery slopes which some balance precariously at an angle on, even as others go gleefully sliding down on their butts with reckless abandon, excited to see what lies at the bottom.
I think Augustine would recognize, for instance, how being overawed by the godless men in white lab coats makes citizens of the City of God vulnerable to a push for Global Communism. He would spot the trick when we are told to “trust the Science” as Lake Mead and Lake Powell in the United States are said by the United Nations to be approaching “dead pool status.” He would call it out as the spokespeople for this kind of Science proceed from a brief survey of the facts to asking us for a greater share of our money and power, even as they tell us to expect less food, water, and energy for our families while they fight Climate Change.
Similarly, I think Augustine would take note of how the World Health Organization has appointed a long-standing member of the Communist Party, Professor Susan Michie, to a recently formed “Nudge Unit” tasked with figuring out how governments around the globe can better manipulate humanity into making what the WHO considers better decisions about health, money, and environment. And he would remark at least in passing about how this too is lumped in as part of the “Science” Christians are being told to trust.
Ortlund is right to call for more humility on the part of hold-outs. We all are tempted by virtue of our fallen humanity to think more highly of ourselves than we ought, to be haughty rather than associating with the lowly. Young Earth Creationists are no exception. We all, as we gain knowledge and understanding, must actively resist the temptation to be wise in our own eyes. And of course that includes the folks at Answers in Genesis, as well as the fellows at the Institute for Creation Research.
In all sincerity, I think mainstream academics are still further from the kingdom by default. Just look at their fundamental presuppositions. And where their de facto scorn for those who take the Bible as being literally true translates into not associating with the lowly, as they see us, perhaps there are other kinds of humility needed here besides just humility before the world and its priests of secularity.
Nevertheless, someone will argue that it is beside the point whether mainstream academics are farther from the kingdom. Christians of all stripes need humility regardless.
That we would be humble before God and His Word must translate into genuine humility when relating to other saints, and even the outside world, even when the outside world is not humble itself at all.
But so also, I would shout from the rooftops that confidence in God’s Word should not be mistaken for a lack of humility, even where it provokes still more vehement criticisms, and even overt hostility, from the naturalists and materialists, as well as their apologists in the American Church.
We all should admit, irrespective our interpretation, to a mysterious quality to Genesis 1-3. That is humility, and that is how Augustine related to questions about Creation as well as many other topics. And just as he spent decades exploring the many combinations of possible meanings and implications for what is in the text of the first three chapters of the Bible – believing it was true, yet not always being certain what that means – we also should not be overhasty to compromise with the claims of mainstream science in our day.
The conversation between the Church and Science should not be regarded as a one way street, where we do all the listening and the Positivists do all the lecturing and brow-beating. The men in white lab coats cannot be allowed to dictate to us what of our Bibles we can believe or not as they see fit, especially when a goodly number of them would have us throw the whole thing out.
Let us do as Ortlund says Augustine would bid us, then. Create two categories into which we will put those who engage in the debate about the Creation account in God’s Word. We will put those who deny that the Bible is true in one category, and we will want nothing to do with that sort, just as Augustine wanted nothing to do with them. That is what Augustine not only would do, that is what he did do.
In the other category, let us put those who debate what to make of Genesis based on our conviction that it is true, whatever it means. And let us be respectful and patient with one another in this group, conversing with not only a genuine humility and toleration, but a genuine brotherly affection.
Yet even while we do this – making these two categories, relating to both differently based on their character and merit – we will have to admit that it is not always easy to tell who should belong in one versus the other given our circumstances.
For more assorted musings on 'Retrieving Augustine's Doctrine of Creation' by Gavin Ortlund, check out this episode of The Garrett Ashley Mullet Show podcast.
https://thegarrettashleymulletshow.co...
From the outset, this book made me curious to read Augustine’s fuller commentary on Genesis for myself, knowing especially that for over 1,500 years he has been quoted by all sides in the big debates of Christendom. In the meantime, however, between now and when that is accomplished, I feel strongly about Gavin Ortlund writing his treatment of Augustine and Genesis from a certain apparent bias against Young Earth Creationists.
Being a Young Earth Creationist myself, taking some umbrage is obligatory. And so I want to take exactly the right amount of umbrage – no more or less.
Where Ortlund cautions general humility in debates about the meaning of Genesis 1-3, for instance, he comes back often to Young Earth Creationism adherents especially. Does he really believe organizations like Answers in Genesis or the Institute for Creation Research lack humility more than their rival equivalents? If so, what leads him to such a conclusion?
Perhaps humility is not quite the right word, since Ortlund is not just referring to humility before the text, or humility before God – though that is what Augustine would have meant about humility here. He is saying also that we need more humility before the claims of Positivist Scientists and how those should moderate or mediate our humility before God and His Word.
This makes perfect sense from a certain angle. After all, the unbelieving world in academia holds in derision Young Earth Creationists especially. Anytime Christians generally, on Origins or anything else, talk back to or question the godless men and women in white lab coats, we are sneered at. The whole lot of us are called “anti-Science” and other dumb things. But a special place in Atheist Hell is reserved for those who believe the Bible is literally true in the way we commonly say “literally” to mean “actually” and “physically as well as spiritually.”
I will confess a kind of defiant frustration which creeps into the rhetoric of some Young Earth Creationists when engaging in these debates. We should definitely work on that.
Furthermore, in facing the Positivist Scientists especially, I can see how Ortlund might want to prescribe more of what might be called “humility” to reduce friction and improve dialogue, or at least make it more congenial and less contentious.
But since Ortlund is enlisting Augustine of Hippo to make his case about that, it is worth noting the whole tone, tenor, and paradigm of City of God. My familiarity with that work from reading it last year leads me to believe Augustine would be more circumspect than Ortlund is being about where we find ourselves today.
Were Augustine actually to walk into a room where a Young Earth, Old Earth, and Evolutionary Creationist were debating Genesis 1-3, the 4th century bishop would surely pay more attention to the slippery slopes which some balance precariously at an angle on, even as others go gleefully sliding down on their butts with reckless abandon, excited to see what lies at the bottom.
I think Augustine would recognize, for instance, how being overawed by the godless men in white lab coats makes citizens of the City of God vulnerable to a push for Global Communism. He would spot the trick when we are told to “trust the Science” as Lake Mead and Lake Powell in the United States are said by the United Nations to be approaching “dead pool status.” He would call it out as the spokespeople for this kind of Science proceed from a brief survey of the facts to asking us for a greater share of our money and power, even as they tell us to expect less food, water, and energy for our families while they fight Climate Change.
Similarly, I think Augustine would take note of how the World Health Organization has appointed a long-standing member of the Communist Party, Professor Susan Michie, to a recently formed “Nudge Unit” tasked with figuring out how governments around the globe can better manipulate humanity into making what the WHO considers better decisions about health, money, and environment. And he would remark at least in passing about how this too is lumped in as part of the “Science” Christians are being told to trust.
Ortlund is right to call for more humility on the part of hold-outs. We all are tempted by virtue of our fallen humanity to think more highly of ourselves than we ought, to be haughty rather than associating with the lowly. Young Earth Creationists are no exception. We all, as we gain knowledge and understanding, must actively resist the temptation to be wise in our own eyes. And of course that includes the folks at Answers in Genesis, as well as the fellows at the Institute for Creation Research.
In all sincerity, I think mainstream academics are still further from the kingdom by default. Just look at their fundamental presuppositions. And where their de facto scorn for those who take the Bible as being literally true translates into not associating with the lowly, as they see us, perhaps there are other kinds of humility needed here besides just humility before the world and its priests of secularity.
Nevertheless, someone will argue that it is beside the point whether mainstream academics are farther from the kingdom. Christians of all stripes need humility regardless.
That we would be humble before God and His Word must translate into genuine humility when relating to other saints, and even the outside world, even when the outside world is not humble itself at all.
But so also, I would shout from the rooftops that confidence in God’s Word should not be mistaken for a lack of humility, even where it provokes still more vehement criticisms, and even overt hostility, from the naturalists and materialists, as well as their apologists in the American Church.
We all should admit, irrespective our interpretation, to a mysterious quality to Genesis 1-3. That is humility, and that is how Augustine related to questions about Creation as well as many other topics. And just as he spent decades exploring the many combinations of possible meanings and implications for what is in the text of the first three chapters of the Bible – believing it was true, yet not always being certain what that means – we also should not be overhasty to compromise with the claims of mainstream science in our day.
The conversation between the Church and Science should not be regarded as a one way street, where we do all the listening and the Positivists do all the lecturing and brow-beating. The men in white lab coats cannot be allowed to dictate to us what of our Bibles we can believe or not as they see fit, especially when a goodly number of them would have us throw the whole thing out.
Let us do as Ortlund says Augustine would bid us, then. Create two categories into which we will put those who engage in the debate about the Creation account in God’s Word. We will put those who deny that the Bible is true in one category, and we will want nothing to do with that sort, just as Augustine wanted nothing to do with them. That is what Augustine not only would do, that is what he did do.
In the other category, let us put those who debate what to make of Genesis based on our conviction that it is true, whatever it means. And let us be respectful and patient with one another in this group, conversing with not only a genuine humility and toleration, but a genuine brotherly affection.
Yet even while we do this – making these two categories, relating to both differently based on their character and merit – we will have to admit that it is not always easy to tell who should belong in one versus the other given our circumstances.
For more assorted musings on 'Retrieving Augustine's Doctrine of Creation' by Gavin Ortlund, check out this episode of The Garrett Ashley Mullet Show podcast.
https://thegarrettashleymulletshow.co...
October 14, 2025
I read this book because I liked Ortlund's book on Protestantism and was intrigued by his YouTube videos on creation.
In his introduction, he presents Augustine as having something to add to the YEC, OEC, atheistic evolution debates, as though having Augustine at the table will overturn the table itself. Ortlund does not back that up. If anything, Augustine offers more confusion than clarity.
As Ortlund presents Augustine's methods, Augustine seems to exegete as many possible explanations for a passage from the Scripture as possible and then say to his reader, "it could be one, many, or none," rarely weighing in on what he believes.
If I have understood Ortlund correctly and this is indeed how Augustine operated, that is a foolish way to exegete. I think it obscures the fact that God is communicating something in his Word, has written it with us in mind, and will thus communicate it effectively. Though Augustine brings up a few compelling criticisms, most notably the one on animal death (the only chapter worth reading in this book), most of his criticisms ignore very plausible and, dare I say, likely explanations.
Aside from content, the book is just BORING! Ortlund definitely developed as a writer between this book and his book on Protestantism. I give him a little grace on that though, noting that the audio book narrator was very monotone and dry, adding no pathos at all to his delivery.
In his introduction, he presents Augustine as having something to add to the YEC, OEC, atheistic evolution debates, as though having Augustine at the table will overturn the table itself. Ortlund does not back that up. If anything, Augustine offers more confusion than clarity.
As Ortlund presents Augustine's methods, Augustine seems to exegete as many possible explanations for a passage from the Scripture as possible and then say to his reader, "it could be one, many, or none," rarely weighing in on what he believes.
If I have understood Ortlund correctly and this is indeed how Augustine operated, that is a foolish way to exegete. I think it obscures the fact that God is communicating something in his Word, has written it with us in mind, and will thus communicate it effectively. Though Augustine brings up a few compelling criticisms, most notably the one on animal death (the only chapter worth reading in this book), most of his criticisms ignore very plausible and, dare I say, likely explanations.
Aside from content, the book is just BORING! Ortlund definitely developed as a writer between this book and his book on Protestantism. I give him a little grace on that though, noting that the audio book narrator was very monotone and dry, adding no pathos at all to his delivery.
January 27, 2024
While I still personally hold a young earth model as the best interpretation of Genesis, this book is very helpful for understanding the complexities of historically orthodox views of Creation and very helpful for fostering unity between those who disagree on how best to understand the witness of the Scripture.
May 8, 2025
Interesting insights but no silver bullet.
3.5/5 for the book itself. 2/5 for the audiobook version. The reading was very dry.
Due to the tension of the biblical data and natural data on matters of the age of the earth and origin of life, I sit in a state of "I don't know" but default to YEC when pressed. I was hoping this would help push me one way or the other, but it didn't. The main issue for me is that I think Ortlund diminishes or dismisses the explicit language that one finds in the Biblical text. I do respect Augustine, however, and I find his thoughts on the biblical interpretation of Genesis intriguing. Perhaps I need to chew on it some more.
3.5/5 for the book itself. 2/5 for the audiobook version. The reading was very dry.
Due to the tension of the biblical data and natural data on matters of the age of the earth and origin of life, I sit in a state of "I don't know" but default to YEC when pressed. I was hoping this would help push me one way or the other, but it didn't. The main issue for me is that I think Ortlund diminishes or dismisses the explicit language that one finds in the Biblical text. I do respect Augustine, however, and I find his thoughts on the biblical interpretation of Genesis intriguing. Perhaps I need to chew on it some more.
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