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Self-given Blindness // Braylan Stringfellow

    Pride, its one of those things that can easily just sneak up on us. I wouldn't say that being prideful is something that people intentionally try to be, but there are just some people that are. Pride is one of those sins that has a whole lot of dangers to it if we let it consume us. I believe Augustine excellently describes one of the dangers of pride by using the scientific community of his day as an example. 
    In book V, Augustine is saying how the astronomers were able to use mathematics to predict solar eclipses way into the future, and that their predictions were right. Note that there is nothing wrong with what the astronomers are doing. The problem came with how they reacted to there predictions being right. Augustine said, "the astronomers are flattered and claim credit for themselves. They lapse into pride without respect for you, my God, and fall into shadow away from your light" (Augustine 93). The astronomers completely left God out of what they were doing. They took all the credit for something they did and not to God who gave them the ability to do what they did. As a result, the astronomers are in a shadow where they can't see, or blind. Because of their pride, the astronomers are blind from God's truth.
    If pride consumes someone so much to where they are blind from God's truth, they are in a dangerous place. The Bible puts this as hardening your heart. At this point, it is nearly impossible for someone who is not a Christian to become one. This can also happen to someone who is a Christian. At this point, we are not doing anything good for God, and we are failing as a Christian. What we need to do to avoid this place is to give God the credit he deserves, and if we see pride start showing up in our lives, we need to confess it and get it out before it becomes a huge problem.

I commented on Abigale Bell's and Hailey Morgan's post

Comments

  1. Abigale BellFebruary 1, 2021 at 6:52 PM

    Hi Braylan! I think your assessment of the astronomers in the 'Confessions' was spot on! It's easy to get caught up in the excitement of an accomplishment (especially one like learning to predict the sky). I would argue that one of the hardest things to do is take a back seat when you've made a huge discovery or you have a special skill. Looking back on those astronomers, Augustine saw that their pride was pulling them away from God; from the one truly deserving of praise. I think this is a great reminder to us to give credit where credit is due.

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  2. Addison ZandaFebruary 1, 2021 at 9:37 PM

    Pride one of the great ways to describe Book V. Our pride definitely has a pull on our everyday life and sometimes restricts any love for God. Back in Genesis, the Tower of Babel was a great human achievement. But it was a monument to the builders rather than God. How often do you think we build monuments for ourselves? We may not think monuments are super wrong, but when we find our value and identity in them, they take the place of God in our lives.

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  3. abbieheddenFebruary 1, 2021 at 10:05 PM

    I love how well laid out all of your thoughts are. We are created to fulfill specific roles, but we must have a certain humility to fulfill it. Like C. S. Lewis said, humility isn't thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less.

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