Reconsiderations

work by Augustine

Also known as: “Retractationes”

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July 13, 2026

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Reconsiderations (Retractationes), written by St. Augustine near the end of his life, is a retrospective review of his extensive writings. It catalogs his works, offering context for their creation and noting any retractions or corrections he made in hindsight. This work was instrumental in preserving Augustine's authentic writings for posterity and deeply imprinted his personal narrative on readers. While largely accurate, the book also functions as a form of propaganda, presenting a consistent and unwavering image of Augustine's doctrine and life.1

Augustine's Confessions (c. 400) and The City of God (413–426) are two of his most influential works. Confessions is a vivid portrayal of an individual's struggle for self-definition in relation to God, while The City of God defends Christianity and outlines Augustine's vision of two societies: the elect ("The City of God") and the damned ("The City of Man").123

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St. Augustine
Reconsiderations
Retractationes (426–427; Reconsiderations), written in the last years of his life, offers a retrospective rereading of Augustine’s career. In form, the book is a catalog of his writings with comments on the circumstances of their composition and with the retractions or rectifications he would…
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Retractationes (426–427; Reconsiderations), written in the last years of his life, offers a retrospective rereading of Augustine’s career. In form, the book is a catalog of his writings with comments on the circumstances of their composition and with the retractions or rectifications he would…
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lying
The morality of lying
Augustine—whose De mendacio, in the Reconsiderations, was the first systematic discussion of lying—argued that lying is always impermissible, although he granted as sometimes allowable that one may avoid telling the truth, a view that was later endorsed by Thomas Aquinas (c. 1224/25–1274 ce) in the Summa theologiae.
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Augustine—whose De mendacio, in the Reconsiderations, was the first systematic discussion of lying—argued that lying is always impermissible, although he granted as sometimes allowable that one may avoid telling the truth, a view that was later endorsed by Thomas Aquinas (c. 1224/25–1274 ce) in the Summa theologiae.
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