Saint Augustine, a mediating figure

Do we still mention the names of Gregory of Nyssa, Donatus or John Chrysostom anywhere other than in the hushed silence of monasteries or university libraries? It is a cultural exception: Saint Augustine (354-430), their contemporary, is regularly present in modern intellectual and artistic life. Not only does Augustine escape the image of the dusty and abstruse theologian, but he still appears in the 21st century as a luminous and attractive author.

“Love and do what you want”: its sense of the formula contributes to its modernity. So, when Stanislas Roquette put on the show in 2010 What is time? based on a chapter of Confessions the public dares to compare it with… Raymond Devos. But the former retheur unites above all through his universality, explains the actor: “He is an intrepid explorer of human intelligence. He is addressed to Christians of course, but also to atheists and agnostics, because his faith is not devout. »

Before him, other big names have rubbed shoulders with it. Gérard Depardieu, under the leadership of the Latinist André Mandouze, and, more recently, Gad Elmaleh, under the leadership of the Sainte-Chapelle, in Paris. At the microphone of Radio Classique, the comedian then said: “I think of teenagers, in the madness of social networks. To think that these are texts from the 4th century and which are current because they question the human soul: that’s what I like about him. » This Doctor of the Church was even played on screen by Franco Nero, a great figure in spaghetti westerns!

“It’s part of his enigma: culture has always been interested in him,” explains Jean-François Petit, Assumptionist and author of several works on the Bishop of Hippo. His Confessions are a bestseller throughout the centuries. For academics, he is the great luminary. » And this, on both sides of the Mediterranean. In 2001, Father Petit went to Algeria for a conference on the theologian. “Among the Algerians, I saw pride, and the thirst of the youngest to discover this pre-Islamic heritage. Today, Saint Augustine plays more of a role of bridge between Christians and Muslims than of dissension. In my opinion, he can help us reconcile, because he is a mediating figure in our civilization. The Pope is well aware of this. »